Outrage in Ukraine as the government attacks anti-corruption watchdogs

FEW DEPUTIES could remember a law of such importance being rushed so quickly through parliament. The passage of Bill 12414, which subordinates Ukraine’s two main independent anti-corruption bodies to the presidentially appointed prosecutor-general during wartime, had the feel of something done in panic. It was unveiled at a hastily convened committee session on July 22nd at 8am. By the afternoon, the bill had been rushed over to the president for signature. Volodymyr Zelensky’s men had been able to find the numbers to comfortably pass the bill, with 263 voting for and just 13 daring to vote against. But the vote to undermine Ukraine’s most consequential anti-corruption reforms casts a shadow over the country’s future course.

Ukraine has been building up to this moment for several weeks, with what appears to be a growing crackdown on internal dissent. In early July the government blocked the appointment of Oleksandr Tsyvinsky, a well-regarded detective, to the vacant position of director of the Bureau of Economic Security. That was followed by what appeared to be the politically motivated arrest of Vitaliy Shabunin, a prominent anti-corruption campaigner. In mid-July, in a shake-up of the government, uber-loyalists were promoted, including a new prime minister. Then, on July 21st, the domestic security service and the prosecutor-general’s office launched dozens of raids targeting officers at NABU and SAPO—the investigative and prosecution pillars of Ukraine’s independent anti-corruption system, set up under Western oversight after the 2014 so-called Maidan revolution. The officers were accused of corruption and unlawful ties to Russia.

Those troubling episodes might have been lost in the chaos that defines internal Ukrainian politics and competitive-law enforcement. Active investigations are continuing; without full knowledge of the evidence, actual criminality on the part of those being targeted cannot be ruled out. The aggressive nature of some of Ukraine’s anti-corruption campaigners has been polarising, leaving them short of supporters. But the government’s decision to then launch a full-frontal assault on the Maidan-era reforms implies that something sinister is at work. Sources suggested the trigger for the bill may have been the opening of NABU investigations into the dealings of presidential-office insiders.

The assault on Ukraine’s anti-corruption infrastructure has shocked many inside Mr Zelensky’s own team. One official suggested that the haste and scale of the bill were reminiscent of the infamous protest-banning laws of January 16th 2014, one of the last acts of Viktor Yanukovych’s government before that dictator was forced to flee Kyiv by helicopter. Another insider suggested that the presidential office had decided to seize a moment of opportunity—having recently brought America’s president, Donald Trump, somewhat onside after he seemed to have become frustrated with Vladimir Putin. “The focus has now switched to internal enemies,” said the insider. But for Yaroslav Zheleznyak, a deputy who was present in the Rada (the parliament) during the voting, the significance was cruder. “Today 263 joyous deputies legalised corruption,” he said. “The message was simple: you can take whatever you want so long as you stay loyal.”

On the night of July 22nd Mr Zelensky signed Bill 12414. The European Union, one of Ukraine’s key financers, had pressed him to pause. Writing on social media before the measure was signed, the EU’s enlargement commissioner, Marta Kos, said it would have a negative impact on Ukraine’s membership negotiations. “Independent bodies like NABU and SAPO are essential for Ukraine’s EU path,” she wrote. In Kyiv the ambassadors of the G7 nations had issued a joint statement expressing “serious concerns”. But such rhetoric had little impact. ■