Ukraine parliament rejects bills to cancel NGO asset declaration

Ukraine’s parliament rejected on April 3 two bills that
would have fulfilled Western requests to remove requirements on
Western-sponsored, anti-corruption non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to
declare electronically their assets and income. A bill sponsored by
presidential contender Yulia Tymoshenko fully met Western requests, while the
other legislation sponsored by Ukrainian President Poroshenko would have
required anti-corruption workers to submit regular financial reports instead, a
provision that was criticized by the Venice Commission of the Council of
Europe. The president’s bill gained only 157 votes (out of the 226-vote minimum
required), and parliament also failed to submit the legislation to committee
for rewriting. Canceling NGO e-declarations was demanded by not only EU
authorities, but the U.S. State Department as well.

Zenon Zawada: This is
merely more negative news from Ukraine for Western authorities. At this point,
Ukraine is in a complete rut when it comes to reforms required by the West, including
resistance to the anti-corruption court and the current conflict between
leading anti-corruption authorities. This latest failure won’t affect the
prospects for the next IMF loan tranche this year, but it taints the overall
climate and contributes to growing Ukraine fatigue.

In sponsoring a firmer pro-NGO bill, Tymoshenko is
positioning herself as the leading pro-Western reformer in the 2019
presidential elections against the status quo president. Already popular with
the older generation, Tymoshenko is attempting to expand her appeal to urban,
creative class youth that is interested in a more radical pro-Western course.
If she’s successful, she will have an even stronger lead heading into the vote
scheduled for March.