Ukraine parliament rejects request to prosecute MP for alleged theft

Ukraine’s parliament failed to muster enough votes on
Nov. 20 to satisfy the prosecutor general’s request to remove the political
immunity of MP Stanislav Berezkin, who is suspected in misappropriating and
laundering funds from state-controlled Oschadbank (OSCHAD). Only 160 votes were
offered out of 226 needed. The criminal charges are based on an investigation
performed by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and Specialized
Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, which concluded that Berezkin allegedly
stole USD 20 mln from the bank. So far ten people have been detained and named
as suspects in the criminal charges. Berezkin, a member of the People’s Will
group in the parliament, has denied any wrongdoing.

Vasyl Hanysh, a former MP of the Crimean parliament,
was sentenced on Nov. 19 by a Kyiv court to 12 years imprisonment for treason,
reported the ru.krymr.com news site. The court found that the former MP
supported Russia’s subversive activity in Ukraine when he participated as a
deputy in the voting to approve the illegal Crimean constitution, as well as
his participation in illegally organized local elections in 2014. Hanysh
claimed he didn’t vote for the constitution.

Zenon Zawada: These
incidents show that the Ukrainian government in general, including parliament,
is more willing and more effective in prosecuting crimes related to the Russian
military occupation than anti-corruption crimes. Even if parliament had removed
Berezkin’s immunity, he could have defended himself in a Ukrainian court. But
they did not allow the matter to even get that far.

So the independent anti-corruption bodies – created at
the demand of Western governments – will largely remain impotent without the
will of those in power, particularly in parliament and presidential
administration. And authorities will have to come to the realization that
anti-corruption activity is just as much a guarantee of Ukrainian independence
as resisting Russia’s aggression.