Anti-Corruption Activities of the Government of Ukraine
Institution: President of Ukraine/Secretariat of the President of Ukraine (Executive Branch)
Functions: Responsible for: 1) defining the general policy in the area of anti-corruption, including the development of anti-corruption concepts, strategies and other state priority documents; 2) coordinating the work of those agencies which report directly to the President and have anti-corruption functions, i.e. Security Service of Ukraine, General Prosecutors Office of Ukraine…; 3) signing of international treaties and other instruments which define Ukraine’s international commitments in the area of anti-corruption; 4) preparation of the anti-corruption legislative drafts to be submitted under the prerogative of the Presidential legislative initiative; and 5) veto power over legislative drafts in the area of anti-corruption.
Activities undertaken: In the beginning of his Presidential tenure, President Yushenko announced that the fight against corruption was one of the main priorities for Ukraine. In January 2006, the President signed a decree to honor the obligations of Ukraine to the Council of Europe (which contains various sections on anti-corruption). In September 2006, the President signed a decree adopting the anti-corruption strategy of Ukraine entitled, “On the Way to Integrity”, a document which identifies the main directions of the work in the area of anti-corruption for all branches of government. In October 2006, the President submitted a package of draft laws on anti-corruption and draft ratification instruments for the Council of Europe’s Criminal Convention on Corruption and its Additional Protocol and the UN Convention Against Corruption.
Institution: General Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine (Independent Agency)
Functions: Responsible for: 1) prosecution and investigation of corruption cases; 2) monitoring and oversight over the legality of the work of individual state agencies in the area of anti-corruption (general oversight function); 3) participation in the work of the Intergovernmental Commission on the Solution to Problems of Fighting Corruption at the NSDC, hereinafter referred to as Intergovernmental Commission.
Institution: Security Service of Ukraine (Special Status Law Enforcement Agency)
Functions: Responsible for: 1) investigation of corruption cases; 2) participation in the work of the Intergovernmental Commission.
Institution: National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC) (Advisory Coordination Body)
Functions: Responsible for: 1) coordination of the governmental activities in the area of anti-corruption; 2) monitoring and oversight over the work of individual state agencies in the area of anti-corruption; 3) monitoring of Ukraine’s progress under regional and international initiatives; 4) analyzing trends of corruption in the State and the development of recommendations towards addressing those issues; 5) addressing specific issues of combating corruption through the Intergovernmental Commission where the need is most acute.
Activities undertaken: In December 2005, the Intergovernmental Commission was created to address the problem of corruption through: a) providing analysis of the work of State agencies on combating corruption; b) making recommendations on the direction of State policy; and c) conducting coordination of State activities in the area of anti-corruption. The Commission is chaired by the Secretary of the NSDC. During 2005 – 2006, the concept on the creation of a specialized law enforcement anti-corruption agency, the concept on the reform of the judiciary (which contains specific components addressing corruption in the judiciary) and the concept on law enforcement reform (with a specific component on anti-corruption) were developed and reviewed in the framework of the NSDC. In 2006, the apparatus of the NSDC was tasked with the organization and development of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy. Representatives of the NSDC apparatus were appointed as Ukraine’s focal persons for the OECD Istanbul Action Plan and coordinated Ukraine’s submissions within the initiative, including the drafting and presentation of governmental reports for 2005 – 2006.
Institution: Prime Minister of Ukraine/Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (Executive Branch)
Functions: Responsible for: 1) execution of State policies in the area of combating corruption; 2) coordinating activities of all Ministries responsible for the specific elements of anti-corruption activities of the State and for control over the implementation of the tasks of each Ministry individually; 3) participation in the work of the Intergovernmental Commission.
Activities undertaken: A Working Group to develop an Action Plan for the implementation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy is being composed under the leadership of the Ministry of Justice. The State program for the government of Ukraine is being developed to identify the direction of the work for the government of Ukraine over the next 5 years, which will include aspects of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy.
Institution: Ministry of Justice of Ukraine (Executive Branch)
Functions: Responsible for: 1) preparation of the legislative drafts in the area of anti-corruption; 2) coordination of the input from the governmental agencies in the area of anti-corruption; 3) presentation and support of the governmental drafts in the parliament; 4) participation in the work of the Intergovernmental Commission.
Activities undertaken: Ministry of Justice prepared the draft strategy on combating corruption and the draft laws submitted in the package by the President. Ministry of Justice representatives were appointed as focal persons for Ukraine’s participation in GRECO (Council of Europe’s Group of States Against Corruption)[1] and are assisting Ukraine during the review process, which started November 20, 2006. The Ministry of Justice serves as a liaison for the government of Ukraine to the Council of Europe’s institutions and to the UN institutions which deal with anti-corruption issues.
Institution: Ministry of Interior of Ukraine (Executive Branch)
Functions: Responsible for: 1) investigation of corruption cases; and 2) participation in the work of the Intergovernmental Commission.
Institution: Verhovna Rada of Ukraine (Legislative Branch)
Functions: Responsible for: 1) legislative drafting and the adoption of legislation in the area of anti-corruption; 2) providing expertise in the drafting of laws in the area of anti-corruption[2]; 3) ratification of Ukraine’s international commitments in the area of anti-corruption; 4) parliamentary oversight over the work of the government in the area of anti-corruption through hearings on the reports, as well as filing requests to the President and individual agencies; 5) follow up on high profile cases through creation of investigation commissions; and 6) oversight and monitoring of the governmental abuses by the Ombudsman office.
Activities undertaken: In March 2005, the Parliament ratified the Council of Europe’s Civil Law Convention on Corruption. By ratifying this Convention, Ukraine automatically became a member of GRECO. In October 2006, the package of draft laws on anti-corruption and the draft ratification instruments for the Council of Europe’s Criminal Convention on Corruption and its Additional Protocol and UN Convention Against Corruption were reviewed by the Parliament. Ratification documents were adopted and other drafts were sent for the first reading.
Institution: Courts of General Jurisdiction, Supreme Court (Judicial Branch)
Functions: Responsible for: 1) adjudicating corruption cases; and 2) monitoring judicial practice related to the application of anti-corruption legislation.
Activities undertaken: Newly-appointed Supreme Court Chairman Onopenko identified combating judicial corruption as a priority.
Institution: High Qualifications Commission, Local Qualifications Commissions (Judicial Branch)
Functions: Responsible for: 1) investigating cases of judicial corruption at local and appellate courts; and 2) issuing decisions regarding judicial corruption that may be appealed to the High Council of Justice.
Institution: High Council of Justice (Independent Agency)
Functions: Responsible for: 1) nominating judges for appointment and removal from office for breach of oath, i.e., corruption; 2) issuing decisions regarding corruption by judges and prosecutors; and 3) exercising disciplinary responsibility for justices of the Supreme Court and judges of high specialized courts, and investigating complaints regarding corruption and other disciplinary issues for judges of the courts of appeal and local courts, as well as prosecutors.
Conclusions: Because of this complex, interrelated, and very often overlapping system (both in activities, as well as jurisdiction), which comprises the State response to corruption, the Ukrainian governmental efforts have been reduced to being dispersed, uncoordinated and ad hoc. There is still no clear delineation of functions between the main actors (the President and the Prime Minister offices) on the matter of the identification of the State policies in the area. There is no agency which would effectively and in a holistic manner be responsible for the coordination of the governmental response and which would have the necessary mechanisms for oversight and enforcement of the established policies. Such functions as prevention, public awareness-raising, education, analysis of trends, integrity trainings, etc. are vested in a wide range of institutions with no clear, unified guidelines or requirements, which leaves the State activities in the area of anti-corruption heavily influenced by various secondary factors (leadership of the institutions, donor support, political agendas, etc.).
Most of the State institutions and agencies carry out anti-corruption activities and have departments/divisions/units within their structures which have anti-corruption related functions and which work in the vacuum of these institutions without any reference to the general trends and vision. Law enforcement activities in the area are carried out by a large number of agencies, which often duplicate each other’s work and have no general approach to the issue, thus working on individual cases rather than developing a systematic approach to the problem of corruption.
[1] GRECO is the international follow-up mechanism called to monitor, through a process of mutual evaluation and peer pressure, the observance of the Guiding Principles in the Fight against Corruption and the implementation of international legal instruments adopted in pursuance of the Program of Action against Corruption.
[2] The primary apparatus of the Verhovna Rada is the Main Scientific Expert Department. Profile Committees were created in July 2006 in the areas of: a) Committee on the Legal Policy; b) Committee on Justice; c) Committee on Legal Support to the Law Enforcement Activities; and d) Committee on Fight against Organized Crime and Corruption.