Ukrainian Activists Celebrate Anticorruption Court 'Victory,' But Cry Foul Over New Judicial-Reform Bill
By Christopher Miller
KYIV -- While activists in Ukraine have welcomed news that Petro Poroshenko conceded to their demand to create an anticorruption court on October 4, their enthusiasm was curbed knowing that legislation that could hinder corruption investigations is awaiting the president's signature.
The concession came just a day after parliament approved and sent on a contentious bill that would leave room for appeals that could handcuff the new court, a development that activists said was emblematic of Ukraine's postrevolution struggle against entrenched corruption.
Poroshenko, who had resisted the demands of activists and Western allies to create an anticorruption court and even spoke out against doing so at the annual Yalta European Strategy (YES) forum in front of European leaders in Kyiv last month, gave in surprisingly and suddenly, saying that he would take responsibility for the creation of the court.
But he did so with a caveat -- that once signed into law there also be a new "specialized anticorruption chamber in the new Supreme Court that would be the appellate body in all anticorruption cases."
The Supreme Court has been heavily scrutinized of late, with the selection process for a new judge mired in scandal as 30 of the 120 candidates put forth failed to meet ethical standards or account for their assets, according to reports that cite the Public Integrity Council, a civil-society watchdog.
Still, anticorruption activists -- who say they have been targeted as part of a months-long campaign of intimidation and harassment, allegedly at the behest of government officials and vested interests who want to discredit them and see the push for an anticorruption court stopped dead in its tracks -- were elated.
That concludes our live-blogging of the Ukraine crisis for Thursday, October 5, 2017. Check back here tomorrow for more of our continuing coverage. Thanks for reading and take care.