ELECTION LAW AMENDMENTS STIR CONTROVERSY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KYIV 001310 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/05/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL UP SUBJECT: ELECTION LAW AMENDMENTS STIR CONTROVERSY Classified By: Political Counselor Colin Cleary for reasons 1.4 (b,d) SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) Election law amendments passed in late July at a special Rada session have drawn criticism from both the President's office and the NGO community. Changes to the law limit the scope and timing of court appeals, make it easier to exclude NGO election observers and increase the financial requirements for candidates. Backers say the changes are balanced and non-partisan. A temporary alliance on this issue between PM Tymoshenko's bloc and the leading opposition Party of Regions gives it a veto proof majority. Presidential candidate Yatsenyuk had complained to Western diplomats about a provision which would have given the largest political parties -- Regions and the Tymoshenko bloc -- control over regional election commissions. However, this provision did not make it into the final draft. End Summary. PASSED IN SPECIAL RADA SESSION -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Amendments to the Presidential election law were passed on July 24 in an extraordinary Rada session called by Tymoshenko Bloc (BYuT) MPs. The legislation was supported primarily by BYuT and opposition Party of Regions with 152 and 161 votes respectively. It also garnered three votes from pro-coalition members of the fractured Our Ukraine-People's Self Defense (OU-PSD) bloc. The legislation is intended to address shortcomings in the electoral code that were highlighted in the 2006 and 2007 parliamentary elections, according to OU-PSD MP and former Justice Minister Roman Zvarych. Zvarych, one of the authors of the changes, told us that the fact both the government and the main opposition could agree on the changes showed that they were balanced and non-partisan. LAW LIMITS ELECTION RELATED APPEALS -------------- ¶3. (C) One key change to the presidential election law has drawn fire for limiting the role of the courts in election challenges. Under the new amendments, the Kyiv Administrative Court of Appeals is the sole court empowered to hear election related appeals and its decisions cannot be appealed. The changes also require the court to consider complaints within two days or they are automatically closed. Zvarych defended these changes and told us that because election violations are essentially administrative in nature, they should be heard in the administrative courts, not the criminal courts. ¶4. (C) Zvarych said that limiting jurisdiction and appeals are necessary to avoid complainants from "court shopping" or finding a corrupt local court willing to rule in their favor and to prevent endless appeals that damage the legitimacy of the election. Deputy head of the Presidential Secretariat Maryna Stavniychuk said that these changes would make falsification easier because the Administrative court will have the impossible job of hearing all election complaints with in two days and that there is no chance to appeal their decision to the Supreme Court for review. REMOVAL OF ELECTION OBSERVERS MADE EASIER -------------- ¶5. (C) The new amendments make it easier for regional and local election commissions to exclude NGO-led election observers from their meetings. It now requires only the support of a simple majority, rather than two-thirds, of commission members to remove observers who are deemed to be "interfering in the commission's work." Zvarych said that this allows commissions to focus on their jobs rather than dealing with obstructions from "Moscow-funded" or "nationalist" NGOs whose main goal is to create provocations rather than observe the election process. ¶6. (C) Chairman of the Agency for Legislative Initiatives Ihor Kohut, told us that he is worried that this change could allow commissions to exclude all observers from watching commissions and polling places. He said that the absence of observers would cast doubt on the accuracy of vote counts and the legitimacy of the election. Kohut noted that it was not clear if the new rules would allow commissions to exclude official observers as well as NGO observers. KYIV 00001310 002 OF 002 GRUMBLES OVER CANDIDATE BONDS TOO -------------- ¶7. (SBU) The new law ends the practice of candidates canvassing for signatures in order to be included on the presidential ballot. Previously, presidential candidates needed to gather five hundred thousand signatures from at least two-thirds of Ukraine's regions. Candidates also had to place a five hundred thousand Gryvnyia (64,000 USD) bond with the Central Election Commission. The bond would be returned if a candidate garnered more than seven percent of the vote. Under the new law the combination of signatures and a bond is replaced by a single 2.5 million Gryvnyia (320,000 USD) bond. The bond will only be returned to the two candidates who make it to the second round of voting. ¶8. (C) Zvarych said that the larger bond would discourage the dozens of "nobody" candidates that regularly fill the presidential election ballot. Deputy Central Election Commission head Andriy Magera told the Ambassador in May that the CEC expected more than 40 candidates to run for the presidency, but that only about six would garner more than one percent of the vote. At a local press forum on July 29, candidates representing small parties complained that the large bond amount would limit the ability of many candidates to participate in the election. Former Defense Minister and MP Anatoliy Hrytsenko publicly complained that the bond could keep him out of the race because he lacks wealthy "oligarch" sponsors who could pay it on his behalf. YUSHCHENKO PROMISES TO CHALLENGE LAW -------------- ¶9. (SBU) President Yushchenko promised to veto the changes to the election law which he called "an offensive on democracy" and may challenge the legality of the changes in the Constitutional Court. BYuT Deputy faction head Andriy Kozhemyakin said that BYuT and Party of Regions may call an extraordinary session before the Rada reconvenes in September to over ride Yushchenko's promised veto to ensure that the amendments are in force prior to the start of the campaign on October 20. Most see no need to rush; the override can take place in September. BYuT MP Valeriy Pysarenko warned that if Yushchenko successfully appealed the changes in the Constitutional Court during the course of the election it could force the CEC to begin the campaign anew and provide an opportunity for the President to remain in office. YATSENYUK IS HEARD -------------- ¶10. (SBU) On July 4, Presidential candidate Arceniy Yatsenyuk invited G-7 Embassy representatives to his headquarters to complain about provision in a draft of the election law which would have given the largest parties in the Rada -- BYuT and Regions -- the most seats in regional and local election commissions. Yatsenyuk contended that this would disadvantage candidates like himself who did not have large blocs in the Rada; it would also facilitate fraud. This provision was later dropped from the bill. COMMENT -------------- ¶11. (C) We will continue to canvass opinion about these changes. The provisions tightening access of election observers and redress in the courts merit particular scrutiny. We will also continue to emphasize to the Ukrainian leadership the importance of fair and transparent elections. The BYuT-Regions alliance on this issue gives a veto-proof margin of over 300 votes in the Rada. Thus, unless struck down by the courts, these are the rules that will govern the January 2010 Presidential election. PETTIT