{"id":1974,"date":"2025-07-29T08:35:48","date_gmt":"2025-07-29T08:35:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2025\/07\/29\/why-zelenskyy-tried-to-curb-autonomy-of-ukraines-anticorruption-agencies\/"},"modified":"2025-07-29T08:35:48","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T08:35:48","slug":"why-zelenskyy-tried-to-curb-autonomy-of-ukraines-anticorruption-agencies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2025\/07\/29\/why-zelenskyy-tried-to-curb-autonomy-of-ukraines-anticorruption-agencies\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Zelenskyy tried to curb autonomy of Ukraine\u2019s anticorruption agencies?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Kyiv, Ukraine \u2013<\/strong>\u00a0Last week, hundreds of Ukrainians rallied in several cities to protest the government\u2019s attempt to curb the independence of anticorruption watchdogs.<\/p>\n

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on July 22 signed a bill into law, which would revoke the autonomy of key agencies \u2013 the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor\u2019s Office (SAPO).<\/p>\n

The rare protest in the war-torn country forced the Ukrainian president to introduce a new draft bill to restore the independence of NABU and SAPO, which have been established to investigate high-level corruption and are widely seen as a symbol of democratic reforms.<\/p>\n

So, why did Zelenskyy try to curb powers of the anticorruption agencies, and will his action dent public trust in the government crucial at a time of war against Russia?<\/p>\n

\"Ukrainians
Ukrainians protest near the presidential office in Kyiv against a new law seen as undermining the independence of anticorruption institutions, amid Russia\u2019s ongoing war in Ukraine [Thomas Peter\/Reuters]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Why are Ukrainians protesting?<\/h2>\n

The nationwide protests erupted in the wake of the July 22 vote in the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine\u2019s lower house of parliament, to approve the bill that allows the prosecutor general to oversee the two anticorruption agencies.<\/p>\n

The prosecutor general is appointed by the president and approved by the Verkhovna Rada, where Zelenskyy\u2019s Public Servant party holds a majority.<\/p>\n

It was seen as an attempt by the government to control the two agencies, which were created in the wake of the 2013-14 pro-democracy Euromaidan protests. Many believe it\u2019s a setback from the years of reforms following the removal of pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych in 2014.<\/p>\n

The protesters held banners with slogans reading \u201cSham!\u201d \u201cDon\u2019t make a step back, there\u2019s an abyss there,\u201d and \u201cCorruption applauds\u201d the new bill.<\/p>\n

The rallies took place in Kyiv as well as in large cities such as the Black Sea port of Odesa and Lviv, known as Ukraine\u2019s cultural capital.<\/p>\n

NABU has been probing a string of senior officials and lawmakers, including those within Zelenskyy\u2019s Public Servant party.<\/p>\n

Oleksiy, who enlisted to join the army in 2022, wonders why he should keep fighting on the front lines of eastern Ukraine while officials engage in corruption.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s the point if I go back home and my family is surrounded by corruption everywhere,\u201d the 42-year-old construction manager told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

\u201cJudges, officials, even school teachers all say, \u2018Give, give, give,\u2019\u201d he said, asking to withhold his last name and details of his military service, in accordance with the wartime protocol.<\/p>\n

Oleksiy, who is on a break from his service to visit his two children and ailing mother, took part in the largest antigovernment rallies in Ukraine since Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion in 2022.<\/p>\n

Why Zelenskyy backed the bill?<\/h2>\n

The new law envisaged executive control over NABU and SAPO as the prosecutor general\u2019s office could access their information, give them binding directives, transfer cases and close down investigations.<\/p>\n

The bill \u201ccould finally destroy the independence of the anticorruption system in Ukraine\u201d, NABU said.<\/p>\n

Rachel Denber, deputy Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said the new law \u201crisks weakening Ukraine\u2019s democratic foundations and its future integration with Europe\u201d. She called for the repeal of the law.<\/p>\n

Zelenskyy, a former comedian and political rookie who came to power in 2019 on an anticorruption ticket, defended the law, claiming that the NABU and SAPO have to \u201cget rid of Russian influence\u201d.<\/p>\n

His allegation followed the arrest of two NABU staffers suspected of working for Russian intelligence, and charges against outspoken anticorruption campaigner Vitaly Shabunin.<\/p>\n

Shabunin was accused of \u201cevading military service\u201d, but his supporters called the charges trumped-up, and almost 60 anticorruption and nongovernmental groups signed a joint appeal in his defence.<\/p>\n

\"Kyiv
People rally in Kyiv against the implementation of the draft law that regulates the work of s Special Anti-corruption Prosecutor\u2019s Office and the National; Anti-Corruption Bureau [Danylo Antoniuk\/Anadolu]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A Kyiv-based political analyst says there are two popular theories about why Zelenskyy initiated the bill.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne is that NABU allegedly closed in on Zelenskyy\u2019s inner circle,\u201d Volodymyr Fesenko, head of the Penta think tank, told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

NABU accused Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Chernyshov, Zelenskyy\u2019s closest ally and lifelong friend, of taking kickbacks worth $346,000 from a real estate developer in a deal that cost the government $24m.<\/p>\n

Zelenskyy\u2019s press office didn\u2019t reply to Al Jazeera\u2019s phone calls and text messages.<\/p>\n

\u201cOr this is an attempt to control NABU\u2019s actions in order not to overtly politicise them, not to provoke domestic political wars during the war with Russia,\u201d Fesenko said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I think it has to do with the activisation of the NABU on political issues that may have caused suspicion in Zelenskyy\u2019s inner circle. That it wasn\u2019t a fight against corruption but more of a political attack on Zelenskyy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The protests, an anticorruption expert told Al Jazeera, have weakened Zelenskyy\u2019s support within domestic political circles. \u201cThere was a belief in his high and stable rating,\u201d Tetiana Shevchuk from the Anti-Corruption Action Center, a Kyiv-based group, said.<\/p>\n

But \u201che no longer can demand anything from the parliament,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Zelenskyy is afraid of NABU as the only law enforcement agency that won\u2019t open or close an investigation following a phone call from his administration, she said, referring to the centralisation of power under him.<\/p>\n

\u201cNABU is the only body that doesn\u2019t do that,\u201d Shevchuk said.<\/p>\n

Fesenko from the Penta think tank says the politicians \u201cunderestimated\u201d the bill\u2019s \u201cnegative consequences\u201d. They \u201cdidn\u2019t think the public response would be that harsh\u201d.<\/p>\n

Zelenskyy has promised to submit the new bill \u2013 a move applauded by the country\u2019s top anti-corruption investigator.<\/p>\n

Semen Kryvonos, director of NABU, however, said that corrupt actors will step up a \u201cdirty information campaign\u201d against the anti-graft agencies.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, protest leaders say they would stop rallies only after the bill has been passed \u2013 tentatively, later this week.<\/p>\n

Since the 2014 pro-democracy revolution or Revolution of Dignity, attempts have been made to root out endemic corruption.<\/p>\n

Many bureaucratic procedures have been simplified and consume less time, money and nerves.<\/p>\n

But corruption remains pervasive in the halls of justice. Ukraine ranks 105 out of 180 in Transparency International\u2019s corruption index.<\/p>\n

A criminal investigator who spent months putting together a string of lawsuits against a fraudster who duped dozens of people, including several lawmakers, told Al Jazeera that a corrupt judge could annul his work and the fraudster may walk free.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t guarantee any judge\u2019s honesty,\u201d the investigator said on condition of anonymity.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Europe\u2019s worst armed conflict since World War II has bred new forms of corruption.<\/p>\n

Some officers extort bribes for letting a serviceman take leave or go to a hospital, pilfer foreign aid such as canned foods, clothes or shoes that end up on store shelves instead of the front line.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf someone reports such an officer, they may end up in a suicide squad on zero position,\u201d serviceman Oleksiy who took part in the protests claimed, referring to the front line positions most likely to be attacked by enemy drones.<\/p>\n

\"Protesters
Protesters hold placards in Kyiv opposing the new law that strips independence of the NABU and SAPO anticorruption agencies. Following nationwide protests and EU pressure, the Ukrainian government pledged to revise the bill to restore their autonomy [Tetiana Dzhafarova\/AFP]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Officers tasked with the conscription campaign<\/a> have been accused of receiving bribes to smuggle people out of the country. Dozens of conscription officers have been arrested \u2013 and some had cash stashes of millions of dollars or euros or even in gold bullion.<\/p>\n

Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov was fired in 2023 after scandals involving inflated prices for military procurement, including ammunition, foodstuffs, medical equipment and winter clothing.<\/p>\n

His successor Rustem Umerov was investigated for alleged abuse of power, NABU said in January.<\/p>\n

Will the curbs on anticorruption bodies affect foreign aid?<\/span><\/h2>\n

The European Union said on Sunday it would freeze $1.7bn, a third of its latest aid package for Ukraine, because of the new law.<\/p>\n

But military aid from the EU and the United States is not likely to be interrupted, said Lt Gen Ihor Romanenko, former deputy head of Ukraine\u2019s general staff of armed forces.<\/p>\n

However, the protests reveal a shocking contrast between hundreds of thousands of servicemen on the front lines and the corrupt officials who dodge the draft and keep thriving on corruption.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn one side, there are people spilling blood, and corruption remains high and even gets higher in certain areas, and people find it inadmissible,\u201d Romanenko told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kyiv, Ukraine \u2013\u00a0Last week, hundreds of Ukrainians rallied in several cities to protest the government\u2019s attempt to curb the independence of anticorruption watchdogs. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on July 22 signed a bill into law, which would revoke the autonomy of key agencies \u2013 the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor\u2019s … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1975,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1974","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1974","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1974"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1974\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1975"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1974"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1974"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1974"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}