Protests against the law that undermines the independence of the NABU and the SAPO took place in a number of Ukrainian cities (video)
In Kyiv, Lviv, Dnipro, Odesa and other cities of Ukraine, protests against the draft law adopted by the Verkhovna Rada were held №12414. The participants of the actions believe that this document threatens the independence of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP).
The main demand of the protesters was an appeal to Volodymyr Zelenskyi with a request to promise the draft law adopted by the people’s deputies.
In Kyiv, hundreds of people came to the square near the Ivan Franko Theater. They held placards with the inscriptions: “Corruption applauds”, “People’s anger is worse than NABU and SAP”, “Money does not like silence”. In Lviv, residents gathered near the monument to Taras Shevchenko. According to co-organizer Yustyna Moiseev, 30 participants initially registered, but later their number increased.
Protesters shouted slogans: “Hands off NABU”, “Change or die”, “Corruption is the death of the future”. One of the participants of the rally, Mykhailo Pukh, explained his participation by the fact that he is outraged by the systemic activity of the authorities, which, in his opinion, harms the state.
“I’m here because I’m tired of the systematic work of the authorities against the Ukrainian state, against the Ukrainian people. And this is not only if we recall today’s draft law No. 12414 against NABU and SAP, it’s just another cog in the systematic work of the authorities in a different direction, which they promised us.” he declared.
In Odesa, protesters also demanded that the president not sign the law and shouted: “Let’s protect democratic institutions”, “No monopoly of power.”
Mykola Tarasenko, a representative of the public organization “We are getting on your nerves”, noted:
“They brazenly pushed there the points that directly regulate the powers of NABU and SAP — bodies independent of the government that conduct investigations. Now they want to transfer these powers to the Prosecutor General, who will be comfortable to manage.”
Similar protests also took place in Dnipro, Poltava, Ternopil and other cities. The participants of the actions emphasized that NABU and SAP should remain independent institutions.
We will remind you that on July 22, the Verkhovna Rada supported draft law No. 12414, certain provisions of which limit the independence of NABU and SAP. The Speaker of the Parliament, Ruslan Stefanchuk, signed the document and handed it over to the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi.
The draft law provides that the general prosecutor will have full access to all NABU cases or will be able to grant such access to another prosecutor. He will have the right to give NABU detectives written mandatory instructions, and in case of their non-fulfillment, to change the investigation and transfer cases to other bodies. Also, the Prosecutor General will be able to close the investigation at the request of the defense side, will independently determine which body should deal with this or that case, and will personally sign suspicions to high-ranking officials. In addition, the right to include the head of the SAP in the group of prosecutors will be canceled — this decision will depend entirely on the prosecutor general.
According to information posted on the parliament’s website, Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed this law.
