RC#63: Good news/Bad news

published in Eastern Economist #457, November 5, 2002
The last few weeks have been tough. In Ukraine, the president is doing battle with some tapes that make a crook out of him. The US has cut aid to Ukraine by US $50mn because of this. A US congressman has asked President Bush not to meet with Mr. Kuchma. NATO has downgraded its summit in Prague so as not to consort with him.

            An appeals court judge accepted statements pertaining to Mr. Kuchma and submitted a request for a criminal investigation against him. A retiring Supreme Court Chief Justice admitted that there was regularly “telephone pressure” from upstairs to favor certain decisions.

            Meanwhile, the Speaker revealed that the Tax Administration and Interior Ministry have been using “charitable funds” to subsidize their budgets to the tune of between 80 and a couple of hundred million hryvnia. Apparently this is where taxpayers and others are “encouraged” to contribute if they want certain things done – or not done, as the case may be.

            Two men were arrested out of the blue. One a lawyer who defended people Mr. Kuchma doesn’t seem to like. The other, a former partner of his Chief-of-Staff’s best buddy. Both men were released soon after, without much explanation. The five cops who arrested the businessman are being investigated.

            The legislature is in gridlock because the forced majority just won’t stay put. Some deputies who were friends of the arrested former partner walked this week, spoiling the quorum.

            The Verkhovna Rada failed to pass a money-laundering bill. Opposition members who boycotted the vote say there are too many loopholes.

            What do all these developments have in common? They all have to do with democratic process and rule of law.

            And they all mean good news for Ukraine.

            Take Mr. Kuchma’s problem with the tapes. He’s been caught red-handed talking about selling weapons to an off-limits country that he agreed not to deal with just months before the conversation was taped, back in summer 2000. His foreign minister tried to pooh-pooh the whole affair by saying, “So what, nothing was actually sold.” No one was impressed. That’s good news.

            Unlike the original tape scandal, there’s been little effort on the part of Mr. Kuchma’s administration to deny that the tapes contain a conversation that really took place. That’s definitely good news.

            The conversation did not seem to involve security service, law enforcement, administration, legislative or judiciary officials. It was between Mr. Kuchma and his arms trader. A man who found himself DOA after a strange car accident just as rumors began to surface in March. That’s definitely very bad news. But it seems that this was a private affair, not a state decision. That’s excellent news. For Ukraine, if not for Mr. Kuchma.

            US experts say the tape is authentic and cut the aid. But they sent an investigative team over anyway. That’s also good news for Ukraine. It’s called due process.

            The two whistle-blowing judges, given the condition of the judiciary in Ukraine, deserve medals. They both have high-profile positions and they decided to take a stance. That is great news. Maybe more judges will take a stance and maybe Ukraine’s judiciary will become a little more independent of political pressure.

            The congressman and NATO are saying, “Mr. Kuchma, you can’t mix it up. Either govern properly and above-board, or you don’t deserve your position as head-of-state.” Isn’t that good news? The pressure is for the right reasons – not to humiliate Ukraine or to protect vested interests.

            Everybody assumed Speaker Lytvyn was bought and sold by the president. It ain’t necessarily so. He seems to be taking his job as Speaker fairly seriously. And decided that his position requires some amount of accountability and responsibility towards more than just his own petty ambitions. Ukraine should have a few more of those in elected office. That’s good news for sure.

            There was a lot of brouhaha about the two arrests, which happened within 12 hours of each other. The fact is that reaction to both arrests was swift and condemning. And they were both swiftly released. Not that long ago, one or the other – or both men – might just have wound up dead somehow. This time, the people who ordered the arrests are on the defensive. The cops are being held to account, too. How’s that for good news?

            Whatever fair and unfair means have been used to kludge together the legislature’s majority, it isn’t working. The truth is, the country needs party politics, and that’s going to take time. Meanwhile, threats, bribes and whatever is not enough to get deputies to work together. The bad news is that it’s gridlocking the VR. The good news is, people are going to have to start thinking in terms of parties. Real parties, like the Communists and the Socialists. We may not like or agree with what they stand for, but we at least know what it is. What does NDP stand for, other than No Damned Platform? Or SDPU(o) – Some Dangerous Political Underworld (off limits)? Even Nasha Ukraina has no platform. It’s the Yushchenko support bloc, which is all fine and dandy. But that doesn’t make it a political party.

            The bad news about the stonewalling is that the FATF could blacklist Ukraine after Dec. 15. The good news is, the opposition is probably completely right. The bill that was presented has loopholes and they have to be closed up. It should go back to committee. That’s democratic process. That’s also rule of law. I don’t know about the rest of the world, but Ukraine’s had a good week. •