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Boston Globe
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Zelensky faces backlash as Ukrainians protest new anti-corruption law
In the morning, Zelensky convened the heads of Ukraine's key anti-corruption and security agencies in response to the outcry against his decision to approve the law that was passed by parliament. 'We all hear what society says,' Zelensky wrote on Telegram after the meeting. But he insisted the new legal framework was needed to crack down harder on corruption. Advertisement 'Criminal cases should not drag on for years without verdicts, and those working against Ukraine must not feel comfortable or immune from punishment,' he said. Zelensky said all government agencies agreed to work constructively and respond to public expectations for fairness and effectiveness. A detailed joint action plan is expected within two weeks, aimed at addressing institutional weaknesses, removing legal hurdles, and ensuring justice across the board, he said. Thousands of people gathered in the capital and other cities Tuesday to urge Zelensky to veto the controversial bill. After he approved it, activists went on social media to call for another demonstration Wednesday night in central Kyiv. Advertisement Zelensky has been the international face of Ukraine's determination to defeat Russia's all-out invasion, and his domestic troubles are an unwelcome diversion from the war effort. The legislation tightens government oversight of two key anti-corruption agencies. Critics say the step could significantly weaken the independence of those agencies and give Zelensky's circle greater influence over investigations. EU officials warn of possible setback to joining bloc Fighting entrenched corruption is crucial for Ukraine's aspirations to join the EU and maintain access to billions of dollars in Western aid in the war. 'Limiting the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption agency hampers Ukraine's way towards the EU,' German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul warned in a post on X. EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius, also on X, noted: 'In war, trust between the fighting nation and its leadership is more important than modern weapons — difficult to build and to keep, but easy to lose with one significant mistake by the leadership.' The Ukrainian branch of Transparency International criticized the parliament's decision, saying it undermines one of the most significant reforms since 2014, when Ukrainians ousted a pro-Moscow president in what they called the Zelensky said the new law clears out 'Russian influence' from fighting corruption and ensures punishment for those found guilty of it. He cited years of delays in criminal proceedings involving huge amounts of money. 'The cases that have been lying dormant must be investigated,' he said in a Telegram post early Wednesday. 'For years, officials who have fled Ukraine have been casually living abroad for some reason –- in very nice countries and without legal consequences -– and this is not normal,' he said. Advertisement He didn't give examples of what he said was Russian interference. The legal changes in Ukraine 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's Office (SAPO). Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, appointed by Zelensky just over a month ago, said the anti-corruption watchdogs and other law enforcement agencies would keep working as before. 'The prosecutor general has only been granted broader powers and an increased scope of authority,' Kravchenko told a news conference as officials moved to ease public concern. The anger and frustration among war-weary Ukrainians prevailed in the crowd Tuesday. Some protesters accused Ukraine's leadership of prioritizing loyalty and personal connections over fighting corruption. 'Those who swore to protect the laws and the constitution have instead chosen to shield their inner circle, even at the expense of Ukrainian democracy,' said veteran Oleh Symoroz, who lost both legs after he was wounded in 2022. Russian officials relished Zelensky's difficulties, although Moscow faces its own series of corruption cases against government and military officials. A third round of direct talks on the war The third direct meeting between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Turkey in as many months wasn't expected to make progress on ending the war and would likely focus on further exchanges of prisoners of war. Zelensky said the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul 'will again insist on the need for an immediate and complete ceasefire, including ... strikes on civilian infrastructure.' Russian drone strikes knocked out power to more than 220,000 customers in Ukraine's northeastern Sumy region, Zelensky said on Telegram, adding that repairs restored most of the supply in hours. Advertisement Ukrainian and Western officials have accused the Kremlin of stalling in the talks in order for its bigger army to capture more Ukrainian land. Earlier this month, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Russia with severe economic sanctions and said more American weapons, paid for by European countries, would go to Ukraine. Trump hardened his stance toward Moscow after months of frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin about unsuccessful talks for a ceasefire. Trump gave Russia until early September to agree to a ceasefire.
Int'l Business Times
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Int'l Business Times
Zelensky Defends Contested Anti-corruption Law Changes
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday defended legislative changes removing the independence of two key anti-corruption bodies, sparking the first major protests in Ukraine since the start of Russia's invasion. "We all share a common enemy: the Russian occupiers," Zelensky said after meeting with top law enforcement and anti-corruption officials. "And defending the Ukrainian state requires a strong enough law enforcement system -- one that ensures a real sense of justice," he added. "We all hear what society is saying," he said, promising to "resolve existing issues". The bill would place the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) under the direct authority of the prosecutor general, who is appointed by the president. After meeting with Zelensky, NABU and SAPO repeated their criticism of the changes and said "unambiguous legislative steps are required to reinstate the guarantees revoked by parliament". Zelensky signed off on the widely criticised law on Tuesday, the same day it was passed by parliament. The law sparked the first major protest in Kyiv since Russian troops invaded in 2022, with over 1,000 people taking part. Large gatherings are banned under Ukraine's martial law. While the government says the law will make the anti-corruption agencies function better, its critics say it consolidates power in Zelensky's hands. They also argue it will allow government meddling in high-profile graft cases. The Anti-Corruption Action Center, an NGO, said the law would render the agencies meaningless as Zelensky's prosecutor general would "stop investigations into all of the president's friends". The European Union called the decision a "serious step back". NABU began work in 2015, as Kyiv sought to bring the country closer to Europe after a 2014 pro-European revolution. Since its inception, the agency has uncovered widespread graft, including among figures in Zelensky's administration. On Monday, law enforcement conducted large-scale raids at NABU, detaining one employee on suspicion of spying for Russia. Transparency International's Ukraine office called the raids an "attempt by the authorities to undermine the independence of Ukraine's post-Revolution of Dignity anti-corruption institutions." Transparency International ranked Ukraine 105th out of 180 countries in its "corruption perceptions index" in 2024, up from 144 in 2013. Supporters of the law warn that a political crisis over the legislation could work in Russia's favour by undermining unity in the country. Commenting on the protests at a briefing, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Wednesday said there was "a lot of corruption" in the country and the issue was "a sensitive topic" for Ukraine.
CTV News
a day ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Ukraine conducts widespread searches, arrests of anti-corruption officials
KYIV -- Ukrainian security services arrested officials from the country's main anti-corruption agency on Monday and conducted dozens of searches, in a crackdown that the agency said went too far and had effectively shut down its entire mission. The SBU security body said it had arrested one official at the National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine as a suspected Russian spy and another over suspected business ties to Russia. Other NABU officials had ties to a fugitive Ukrainian politician's banned party, the SBU said. But NABU, which has embarrassed senior government officials with corruption allegations, said the crackdown went beyond state security issues to cover unrelated allegations such as years-old traffic accidents. Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International said the searches showed that the authorities were exerting 'massive pressure' on Ukraine's corruption fighters. Ambassadors of G7 nations in Kyiv issued a statement saying they had a 'shared commitment' to uphold transparency and independent institutions. But the ambassadors said they had met NABU officials and had 'serious concerns and intend to discuss these developments with government leaders.' NABU said at least 70 searches had been conducted by various Ukrainian law enforcement and security agencies in connection with 15 of its employees, and that these had taken place without the approval of a court. 'In the vast majority of cases, the grounds for these actions are the involvement of individuals in road traffic accidents,' the statement said, although it also added that some of the cases were about links to Russia. Although the risk of Russian infiltration 'remained relevant,' this could not be a justification to 'halt the work of the entire institution,' NABU said in a statement. 'Pressure' Anti-corruption campaigners have been alarmed since Vitaliy Shabunin, a top anti-corruption activist, was charged earlier this month with fraud and evading military service. Shabunin and his allies have cast those charges as politically motivated retribution from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office for exposing corrupt officials. On Monday, Shabunin condemned the searches of NABU personnel. Zelenskyy's office denies that prosecutions in Ukraine are politically motivated. The SBU said it had arrested a mole working for Russian intelligence inside NABU, who had passed information to his handler on at least 60 occasions. Separately, it had detained a senior NABU detective on suspicion of acting as an intermediary in his father's sales of industrial hemp to Russia. A third SBU statement said some senior NABU officials had ties to lawmaker Fedir Khrystenko, believed to have fled Ukraine after the Russian invasion in 2022. A separate law enforcement body, the State Bureau of Investigations, said it had served suspicion notices to three NABU employees for road accidents that had resulted in injuries. NABU said the road traffic accident cases were between two and four years old. Transparency International said conducting the searches without court orders 'demonstrates the massive nature of the pressure by the SBU and (Prosecutor General's Office) on anti-corruption law enforcement agencies.' It called on Zelenskyy to guarantee the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies. By Max Hunder (Reporting by Max Hunder; Editing by Peter Graff and Marguerita Choy)
The Citizen
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Citizen
Cartoon of the day: 22 July 2025
Who will get rid of the rats eating SA's state resources Corruption, greed, and political parasites are siphoning money and state resources meant to help the most vulnerable. A 2024 Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index ranked South Africa 82nd out of 180 countries for corruption, with 1 being the least corrupt and 180 the most. SA sits alongside Cuba, Hungary, and Tanzania on the ranking. Ivory Coast, Botswana and Namibia are all less corrupt, according to the index. 'The global trend of weakening justice systems is reducing accountability for public officials, which allows corruption to thrive. Both authoritarian and democratic leaders are undermining justice. This is increasing impunity for corruption and even encouraging it by eliminating consequences for criminals. 'Corrupt acts like bribery and abuse of power are also infiltrating many courts and other justice institutions across the globe. Where corruption is the norm, vulnerable people have restricted access to justice while the rich and powerful capture whole justice systems, at the expense of the common good,' it noted in a previous report. Rot in the police While widespread corruption has become increasingly normalised, and the rot has set in across most of government, the spotlight has fallen on the SA Police Service in recent weeks. President Cyril Ramaphosa has reportedly had a report on issues in the police on his desk for more than a year, but did not act on the crisis until KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi alleged that several high-profile officials, including Ramaphosa's own cabinet member Senzo Mchunu, were involved in political interference, corruption, and collusion with criminal syndicates. He has since announced a judicial commission of inquiry to look into the allegations.
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Ukraine war briefing: International protest over arrests at anti-corruption agency
Ukrainian security services arrested officials from the country's main anti-corruption agency, the NABU, on Monday and conducted dozens of searches in a crackdown that the agency said went too far and had effectively shut down its entire mission. The SBU said it had arrested one of the officials as a suspected Russian spy and others for alleged ties to a banned party. But NABU, which has embarrassed senior government officials with corruption allegations, said the 'vast majority' of cases involved unrelated allegations such as years-old traffic accidents. Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International said the searches conducted without court orders showed that authorities were exerting 'massive pressure' on Ukraine's corruption fighters. Ambassadors of G7 nations in Kyiv issued a statement saying they had 'serious concerns and intend to discuss these developments with government leaders'. Anti-corruption campaigners have been alarmed since Vitaliy Shabunin, a top anti-corruption activist, was charged earlier this month with fraud and evading military service. Volodymy Zelenskyy's office denies that prosecutions in Ukraine are politically motivated. Russia and Ukraine will hold new peace talks on Wednesday in Istanbul, said Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian president. It is a follow-up to two earlier rounds that made little progress on ending their war. Zelenskyy has offered to hold direct talks with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin. Russia has broadcast footage from inside a plant assembling the deadly attack drones it fires at civilian targets in Ukraine on a daily basis. The video was published on Sunday by Zvezda, a TV channel owned by the Russian defence ministry, showing workers with their faces blurred assembling jet-black triangle-shaped attack drones. 'This is the world's largest factory producing unmanned combat aerial vehicles, and the most secretive one,' said plant director Timur Shagivaleev, who has been sanctioned by the US. The plant is near the town of Yelabuga in the central Russian region of Tatarstan. Russia's Geran drones are based on Iranian Shahed drones. The French foreign minister, Jean-Noel Barrot, arrived in Kyiv on Monday for a surprise visit while rescuers were still sifting through the rubble from a massive drone and missile barrage against the Ukrainian capital. Six districts of Kyiv came under attack on Monday, sparking fires at a supermarket, multiple residential buildings and a nursery, authorities said. The entrance to a metro station where civilians were sheltering from the barrage was damaged. 'This inhumane, cynical and cruel violence has no military purpose,' Barrot said. Barrot visited the Chornobyl power plant, the site of the world's worst nuclear accident. In February, Ukraine accused Russia of using an explosive drone to damage the confinement arch protecting the structure – prompting France to pledge €10m to help fix it. Barrot said Russia 'targets energy infrastructure in defiance of international law, security and nuclear safety'.
