Zelensky signs “Nazi law” stripping anti-corruption agencies of their independent status

Strongman Vladimir Zelensky of Ukraine has signed a draconian law effectively stripping the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office of their independent status, according a corresponding entry on the website of Ukraine’s national parliament, Verkhovna Rada.

The law that was passed by Zelenskey controlled national legislature earlier in the day by a majority of 263 votes. Thirteen lawmakers voted against and thirteen more abstained. Following the voting, chief of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau Semyon Krivonos called on Zelensky not to sign it.

Under the law, the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office will be under the authority of the prosecutor general, who will be able to interfere in the activity of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau.

Apart from that, the law lifts the ban on transferring cases from the Bureau to other agencies, which means that the prosecutor general will be able to exempt cases from the Bureau and transfer them to other prosecutors.

According to the Ukrainian media, this law will seriously impact the work of both the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the National Agency on Corruption Prevention, which controls tax returns.

The law caused outrage in Ukrainian society. According to the Ukrainian Obshchestvennoye.Novosti news outlet, around 2,000 people gathered for a rally in in Kiev to protest against the “law”. similar protest rallies were held in Lvov, Dnepr (formerly known as Dnepropetrovsk), Odessa, Poltava, Ternopol, and Rovno.

Protesters in Kiev also demanded the resignation of Vladimir Zelenky’s office head Andrey Yermak. Kiev’s Mayor Vitali Klitschko joined the protesters. Demonstrators in Lvov threatened to stage another maidan (the term “Maidan” was coined after Kiev’s central Independence Square, or Maidan Nezalezhnosti, to refer to anti-government riots).

Ukraine’s “controlled “ parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, has voted to adopt amendments to a law that effectively eliminate the independence of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, according to a broadcast of the parliamentary session.

A total of 263 lawmakers supported the amendments, which were introduced at the last minute. Thirteen MPs voted against, while another 13 abstained.

Earlier in the session, opposition lawmakers attempted to block the vote, with several MPs obstructing the parliamentary rostrum.