Ukraine parliament approves first reading of bill on anti-corruption court

Ukraine’s parliament approved on March 1 the first
reading of the bill creating the High Anti-Corruption Court, which is being
demanded by Western governments and institutions, particularly the IMF, which
requires it for the next loan tranche. The bill was supported by 282 MPs, far
more than the 226-vote majority required. The bill was heavily criticized by the IMF
in January for failing to meet the standards of the Venice Commission of the
Council of Europe for failing to meet its standards in creating the court. The
approved legislation didn’t take these concerns into account but Speaker Andriy
Parubiy and other top officials vowed to amend the legislation ahead of the
vote in the second reading.

The High Anti-Corruption Court would provide the forum
to prosecute criminal cases and convict suspects investigated by the National
Anti-Corruption and Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecution, which are
independent law enforcement bodies created in 2015 to meet IMF requirements for
loans. It will serve as the court of first instance and appeals for
high-profile corruption cases. After its passage, President Poroshenko called
for the bill’s final approval by the end of the spring, stressing that “any
delay with the second reading is absolutely unacceptable.” Amendments will be
reviewed in the next two weeks, he said. “

Zenon Zawada: Approving
the bill’s first reading is the easy part, despite taking so long. It was quite
ironic to see the president calling for delays to the second reading
unacceptable, after he is widely recognized to have stalled the bill’s first
reading. We expect parliament to approve amendments in the second reading that
enable the legislation to just barely meet Council of Europe standards and just
barely qualify for an IMF loan tranche. And that’s not because the Ukrainian
government is much interested in reform, but because it desperately needs
Western loans for economic stability. In the process, they will try to limit
the court’s authority as much as possible.

The president’s spring deadline for the bill’s full
approval (including his signature) is worth noting. Approving the legislation
by then would enable him to receive the next IMF loan tranche before being able
to call early parliamentary elections before the March 2019 presidential vote.
As we mentioned yesterday, this maneuver would guarantee him an influential
parliamentary faction, which he risks losing completely if he loses the
presidential election. The IMF would be far more reluctant to offer its next
loan tranche in the middle of an early election campaign.