{"id":84518,"date":"2025-07-23T00:17:09","date_gmt":"2025-07-23T00:17:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/84518\/"},"modified":"2025-07-23T00:17:09","modified_gmt":"2025-07-23T00:17:09","slug":"ukraine-parliament-passes-bill-weakening-anti-corruption-agencies-zelenskyy-signs-it-amid-protests","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/84518\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine parliament passes bill weakening anti-corruption agencies. Zelenskyy signs it amid protests"},"content":{"rendered":"

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) \u2014 Thousands of people gathered in Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine on Tuesday to urge the president to veto a controversial bill that threatens anti-corruption infrastructure. It marked the first major rally against the government in more than three years of war.<\/p>\n

Ukraine<\/a> \u2019s parliament passed legislation that will tighten oversight of two key anti-corruption agencies, which critics say could significantly weaken their independence and give President Volodymyr Zelenskyy\u2019s circle greater sway over investigations. Zelenskyy signed the bill into law, according to the parliament\u2019s website late Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Fighting entrenched corruption<\/a> is crucial for Ukraine\u2019s bid to join the European Union<\/a> and maintain access to billions of dollars in Western aid. The legislation\u2019s passage has triggered public outrage in Ukraine, with some saying it appeared to be a greater moral blow than the routine Russian drone and missile attacks. <\/p>\n

The changes would grant the prosecutor general new authority over investigations and cases handled by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor\u2019s Office (SAPO).<\/p>\n

\u201cIn effect, if this bill becomes law, the head of SAPO will become a nominal figure, while NABU will lose its independence and turn into a subdivision of the prosecutor general\u2019s office,\u201d the agencies said in a joint statement on Telegram.<\/p>\n

In a post on X, the EU\u2019s Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos expressed concern over the vote in the parliament, called the Rada, calling it \u201ca serious step back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kos added: \u201cIndependent bodies like NABU & SAPO are essential for Ukraine\u2019s EU path. Rule of Law remains in the very center of EU accession negotiations.\u201d<\/p>\n

While rallies have taken place during the war in Ukraine<\/a>, they have largely focused on the return of prisoners of war or missing people. Protests, however, remain a traditional form of public pressure in Ukraine, where two previous revolutions were victorious for the public.<\/p>\n

\u201cCorruption is a problem in any country, and it must always be fought,\u201d said Ihor Lachenkov, a blogger and activist who urged people to join the protest through his social media platforms, which reach more than 1.5 million followers.<\/p>\n

\u201cUkraine has far fewer resources than Russia in this war,\u201d he said. \u201cIf we misuse them, or worse, allow them to end up in the pockets of thieves, our chances of victory diminish. All our resources must go toward the fight.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Ukrainian branch of Transparency International criticized parliament\u2019s decision, saying it undermines one of the most significant reforms since what Ukraine calls its Revolution of Dignity in 2014<\/a> and damages trust with international partners.<\/p>\n

The group urged Zelenskyy to veto the law, warning that otherwise he would share responsibility with the Rada for \u201cdismantling Ukraine\u2019s anti-corruption infrastructure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many protesters carried signs reading \u201cVeto the law,\u201d \u201cProtect the anti-corruption system, protect Ukraine\u2019s future,\u201d or simply \u201cWe are against it.\u201d <\/p>\n

The mood of anger and frustration among the war-weary Ukrainians prevailed in the crowd. Some protesters accused Ukraine\u2019s leadership of prioritizing loyalty and personal connections over the fight against corruption. <\/p>\n

\u201cThose who swore to protect the laws and the Constitution have instead chosen to shield their inner circle, even at the expense of Ukrainian democracy,\u201d said veteran Oleh Symoroz, sitting in a wheelchair because both his legs were amputated after he was wounded in 2022. <\/p>\n

\u201cInstead of setting an example of zero tolerance for corruption, the president is using his power to take control of criminal cases involving his allies,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

On Monday, Ukraine\u2019s domestic security agency detained two NABU officials on suspicion of links to Russia and searched other agency employees on unrelated allegations.<\/p>\n

Zelenskyy\u2019s office didn\u2019t respond to a request for comment. Last week, the president carried out a reshuffle of his wartime Cabinet, a move widely viewed as further consolidating power within his inner circle.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"KYIV, Ukraine (AP) \u2014 Thousands of people gathered in Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine on Tuesday to…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":84519,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[64,17628,440,8697,57,37593,2934,57290,50,80,402,3657,273,3660,3656,103,107],"class_list":{"0":"post-84518","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-corruption","10":"tag-europe","11":"tag-european-union","12":"tag-general-news","13":"tag-kyiv","14":"tag-legislation","15":"tag-marta-kos","16":"tag-news","17":"tag-politics","18":"tag-protests-and-demonstrations","19":"tag-russia-ukraine-war","20":"tag-ukraine","21":"tag-ukraine-government","22":"tag-volodymyr-zelenskyy","23":"tag-world","24":"tag-world-news"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114899677824620468","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84518","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=84518"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84518\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/84519"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=84518"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=84518"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=84518"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}