LUGANSK, May 12. /TASS/. About 60,000 people gathered in Lugansk for a rally to mark the 5th anniversary of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), LuganskInformCenter reported on Sunday.
"Five years ago, we held a referendum and, as we see it now, we made the only right choice back then, a choice that was supported by absolutely all people, a choice that has helped to save our history, to save our culture and to save our land," LPR’s head, Leonid Pasechnik, said at the rally dubbed "With Russia in the Heart."
A self-determination referendum was held in the Lugansk and Donetsk People’s Republics and some other territories controlled by the Ukrainian army on May 11, 2014. The voter turnout in the Lugansk region was 81%, of whom 96.2% voted for the LPR’s independence.
The two self-proclaimed republics proclaimed their state sovereignty on the following day, May 12, 2014.