Zelensky becomes Judge, Jury and despot

On July 22, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law restricting the powers of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) mere hours after it had been passed by Ukrainian parliament.

The move sparked protests in several cities across Ukraine. Thousands of people took to the streets of Kyiv, with demonstrators criticizing what they saw as a “return” to the era of pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych, who was forced to flee to Russia during the Euromaidan Revolution in 2014.

The new law stipulates that the prosecutor general, who is appointed by the president with approval of parliament, will have access to all NABU cases and can also grant other prosecutors access. The prosecutor general can issue instructions to NABU investigators, change the focus of trials, discontinue proceedings at the request of the defense and much more. The new law also significantly restricts SAPO’s procedural autonomy.

“The independence of both institutions — whether from political influence and pressure on future and ongoing investigations — has been effectively destroyed,” SAPO prosecutor Oleksandr Klymenko told DW. “NABU and SAPO were created as bodies equipped with exclusive investigative powers to fight corruption at the highest levels, with full guarantees of their independence,” added NABU Director Semen Kryvonos. “This is a prerequisite for our [Ukrainian] progress toward Europe.”

Selective anti-corruption fighters?

NABU and SAPO offices were searched just one day before Ukraine’s controversial law was passed. Prosecutors of both agencies are suspected of maintaining ties to Russia. Some Ukrainian lawmakers have therefore welcomed the new law, including former prime minister and Fatherland party leader Yulia Tymoshenko, who accuses both bodies of being selective in whom they investigate over corruption.

“You can’t call this an anti-corruption structure, but rather a shadow government that controls all processes,” she said.

President Zelenskyy has said Ukrainian anti-corruption authorities would continue working though “free from Russian influence.” He also said that “suspected corruption cases must be investigated; for years, some officials who fled Ukraine have been living abroad without facing legal consequences.”

Zelenskyy said there was no rational explanation why some of the billion-dollar corruption cases have been stalled for years and complained that Russia had previously gained access to sensitive information.

Law draws broad criticism

The new law drew criticism across party lines, with even members of Zelenskyy’s own ruling Servant of the People party expressing disapproval. Ahead of the vote, Anastasia Radina, who chairs the parliamentary anti-corruption committee, warned the law would have “catastrophic” consequences for the Ukrainian state.

“The country is reverting back to a state that the Russians were once pleased with, when there was a lack of rights and democracy,” warned opposition MP Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, who chairs Ukraine’s EU Integration Committee. “Sooner or later, such countries fall into the Kremlin’s sphere of influence.”

Klympush-Tsintsadze also said the law threatens European and other international financial aid, which is linked to Ukraine’s commitments to fight corruption.

Brussels calls new law a ‘serious step back’

EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos called the new law a “serious step back” on X. She said “independent bodies like NABU & SAPO, are crucial for Ukraine’s EU path. Rule of law remains at the very center of EU accession negotiations.”

On Facebook, investment banker and financial expert Serhiy Fursa pointed out that many people accuse NABU and SAPO of inefficiency, through stressed that these bodies are “far more effective than assumed.” He said there had to be “great fear, which means that NABU is doing a very good job” if decision-makers are prepared to risk European integration and the Western support just to limit the body‘s powers.

On July 23, in light of the backlash, Zelenskyy convened a meeting with all the heads of Ukrainian law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies, as well as Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko. “We are all hearing what the public is saying,” Zelensky told them. “We see what people are expecting from state institutions to ensure all institutions operate according to the principle of justice and efficiency.”

Zelenskyy announced that a joint action plan to resolve the dispute would be developed within the next two weeks.