SBU: Will 's The new licensing procedure for Who controls Security Service ever imported medicines will help officials illegal coal mining become Ukrainian? monopolize the market in the Donbas

№ 5 (47) March 2013 Putin and the Children Plummeting popularity and growing pressure from abroad push Yanukovych to seize power using the Belarus scenario

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In the three years of his presidency, |contents has failed Three Years of briefingPromises focusto meet his election promises. Instead, he has offered Ukraine A Failing Strategy: Putin anda slew the Children: of large-scale pseudo reformsBeware and the Referendum virtual national Is the Vlasenko Yanukovychprojects could try to in the Hands of a case a mechanism usurp power using the Tyrant: Andreas Gross Education of pressure against Belarus scenario to offset on whatPension Ukrainian reform “I guarantee that the share of governmentdisloyal scholarships MPs or an at ate universities his plummeting popularity In December 2010, Yanukovych democrats ated that pension can learn reform will be set at 75% by law” element of geopolitical and growingis nec pressureessary to reduce the Pension Fund’s annual deficitfrom of the “nearly world UAH 60bn” Despite Yanukovych’s guarantee, Art. 23.4provocation? of the Law “On Higher Education” requires ate and 4 from abroadAs a result, the retirement age for women was increased6 tohistory 60, and theof referendayears of contribu- 9 municipal universities to enroll at lea 51% of the total number of udents under the govern- tory service increased to 30 for women and 35 for men. However, this did not help the ment scholarship scheme. On July 18, 2Politics011, MPs Andriy Pavlovsky and Oleksandr Sochka Pension Fund, as the government simultaneously raisedSECURIT pensions, primarilyY for the regi ered an amendment to replace 51% Followingwith 75%. The in Pa Lukashenka’srty of Regions voted it down on targetThree pool Years of the of P artyPromises: of Regions’ As potential voters, before the 2012 parliamentaryWill Ukraine’s Security December 6, 2011. eleion. Thus, budget transfers to the Pension Fund hit UAH 64.5bn in 2012 and UAH Footsteps: Economic initiatives by 83.2bnYanukovych in 2013. The enters trend is likelythe tofourth intensify significantly in 2014, in view of the 2015Service Ever Become “Reduion in the minimum mandatory number of udents in secondarythe schools, team whichof “young will save reformers” year of his presidency, most presidential eleion.Ukrainian? An insight 2,000 village schools” have a Soviet command style and of the election promises and into the past and In fa, the number remained at “at lea five” udents in a secondary school gradesuit, while the the Family’s number of interestsschools continued to fall: nationalExpanded projects he powersproudly for local governmentspresent of the SBU by 300 in 2010/2011, 400 in 2011/2012 and 200 in 2012/2013. This was not direly related to the worsening demographic advertised“Local self-governanc in 2010 aree should still become a reliable and solid foundation situation: the number of udents in 2012 was only 7,000 less than in the previous year, but 400 schools were closed. 10 onlyof popularon paper rule. I support decentralization12 and the reform of budget 16 di ribution in favour of local governments” Healthcare SOCIETY The pa three years have not seen a single law to expand the powers of local “I will ensure a gradual increase in government funding Like Father, Like Son: governments. On the contrary, Yanukovych signed the LaPillsw “On for the the Capital Greedy: of Officials push for healthcare to the European level of 10% of GDP” Ukraine” which essentially took power away from the eleed Mayor and handed it Why the Ukrainian press to the Head of the City State Admini ration, whothrough is appointed a potentiallyby the corrupt Health care funding was 3.6% in 2010, 3.4% is closer to its genetic president. Budget di ribution in favour of local self-governmentscheme also failed. that 95% will help them to in 2011 and 3.7% in 2012. predecessors – Soviet party of local budgets ill survive on donations from themonopolize central budget. theThe pharmaceutical “I guarantee good quality free emergency medical assi ance” agitation and propaganda “reform” only had an effe in Kyiv where themarket and After Yanukovych signed the Law “On Emergency Medical Assi ance”, the – rather than its modern Yanukovych took away 50% of individual income tax, i.e. nearly UAH 8bn reform of emergency medical assi ance began on January 1, 2013. One of counterparts in the world 20 annually, essentially turning it into another budget-supported region. 24 the results of this “reform” is that it can now take up to an hour for an ambulance to get to patients suffering from Military reform high blood pressure. ECONOMICS “I guarantee the transfer to a volunteer military from 2011” “I will increase government control of the quality of medical services andCoal medicines. Wars: As miners strike for Digging for Billions: I will prote people from price fluuations on the pharmaceutical market” So far, Ukraine has neither a volunteer military, nor a clear rategy or their rights, the crucial question deadlineWho for runs creating the one illegal. Ex-Mini er Dmytro Salamatin, forced into Meanwhile, many patients did not receive proper and timely treatment after authoritiesis who failed will to purleadchase the tuber battlecu- and resignationcoal inbusiness 2012, talked in about the 2017 as a possible deadline. Now, the losis vaccines and hemophilia medication in a timely manner in 2011. In 2012, therwhosee was a shortage interests of antir it etrwillovir alpromote DefenceDonbas Mini ry is talking about a gradual switch, whereby up to 7,000 therapy for HIV patients and drugs for children with cancer. On March 1, 2013, the Law “On Amending Some Laws of volunteer soldiers will be enli ed by July 2013 at age one; nearly Ukraine on Licensing Imported Medicines and the Definition of the Term “Aive Pharmaceutical Ingredient”” signed by 30,000 in July-December 2013 at age two; and 3,000 more in 2014 at the President came into effe, introducing the licensing of imported drugs. According to experts, this will result in the 26 ages three and four. However, these are only promises so far. 30 re-di ribution of the pharmaceutical market and increase the price of good quality imported drugs. “As a top priority, officers without homes will be provided with housing. I will introduce Neighbours a procedure to provide accommodation for young officers within their fir year of service” Anti-corruption campaign Putin’s Purges: Pavel KhodorkovskyA ccording to experts, as of 2012, nearly 45,000 currDoesent army a “Sorry”officers and 20,000 reserve and In Oober 2010, Yanukovych ated that “we will finally be ableInterpreting to condu a speaks about how his retired officers, Afghani an veterans and familiesMake of soldiers Sense? killed while in service, had no an effeive ate policy to fight the corruption, which is currentlysudden a threat crackdown father has become housing. The 2013 budget provides UMichaelAH 12mn to Binyon build housing for the military. to the country’s national security” on extravagant a symbol of political The con ruion of housingon how effective The Law “On the Prevention of Corruption and Counteraion Again It”, passed officials repression in “The government should make a large contra forofficial apologies on April 7, 2011, introduces the mandatory reporting of expenditures exceeding UAH 150,000 by officials and their family members. As reque ed by Party of and why hethe posescon ruion a of social housing. 10 million apartmentsare for historical Regions MPs, the Con itutional Court later cancelled the requirement for officials 34 threat to forPutin young people, public35 seor employees, poor familiesreconciliation 38 to report their 2011 expenditures. Overall, theHISTOR new anti-corruptionY law was never and the disabled will be built over the course of 10 years” really implemented in Ukraine. Among other things, the government does nothing to prevent corruption regarding land, To meet this promise, the government should have built courts, public procurement and more. In aual fa, corruption has reached a scaleLiberated, unseen over the Only pa to few Be years Sent. As ainto Inactivity300,000 Leads new aptoartments Hell:Jaroslav over the p a three years. result, Ukraine was 144th out of 176 countries in Transparency International’s CorruptionBattle: Per ceptionsBattles Index for inUkraine 2012. and PešekIn ead, talks the number about of passive families w societiesaiting for social housing the merciless exploitation of the that let dictatorsdecreased from ascend 11,000 into 2 010power to 7,000 – in 2011. local population in the offensive and why modern Ukrainian society operations of the Red Army cannot afford to be inert 40 43 culture & arts navigator The Great Flood: The Ukrainian Week Besieged by the The real Biblical offers an overview Past: A peaceful deluge – and a of new records from invasion to number of other women in rock and the quiet catastrophic floods a selection of events old Zbarazh that have shaped to enjoy in March in Western modern Europe 44 48 Ukraine 50

Natalia Romanec, Shaun Williams, Editors; Anna Korbut, Translator Mailing address: PO Box 2, Kyiv, 03067 The Ukrainian Week № 5 (47) March 2013 Publisher address: vul. Mashynobudivna 37, Kyiv 03067 Ukraine Founder: ECEM Media Ukraine LLC Publisher: The Ukrainian Week LLC E-mail: [email protected], Tel.: (044) 351-1300 First published in January 2010 www.ukrainianweek.com State registration certificate Print: The Novy Druk, LLC, 1 Mahnitohorska Str. Series KB No18352-7152ПР of October 24, 2011 Ordering number: 13-5696. Print run: 15,000 Bohdan Andriytsev, Director, ECEM Media Ukraine LLC Sent to print on 14 March 2013 Serhiy Lytvynenko, Editor-in-Chief, The Ukrainian Week Free distribution № 5 (47) March 2013|the ukrainian week|3 briefing| 28 February – 13 March The Prosecutor General’s Office report- Eight Days of a Chipmunk’s The Higher Administrative edly closes criminal proceedings against Life by Ivan Andrusiak Court revokes the man- ex-Economy Minister BohdanD anyly- makes it into the White Ra- date of Serhiy Vlasenko, shyn, who has now been granted political vens 2013 annual catalogue opposition MP and mem- asylum in the Czech Republic, based on of the best children’s books ber of ’s the absence of corpus delicti in the world defence team A Failing Strategy

Authors: n March 6, the Higher Ad- who files requests to revoke an Hennadiy Moskal and Vitaliy Oleksandr ministrative Court revoked MP’s mandate to the Higher Ad- Klitschko, as well as several other Kramar, Milan the parliamentary man- ministrative Court. Currently, the MPs. Once the mandate of a dis- Lelich Odate of Serhiy Vlasenko, speaker is the Party of Regions’ loyal MP is revoked and he is leader of Yulia Tymoshenko’s de- Volodymyr Rybak. The third com- stripped of Constitutional immu- fence team in court. The decision ponent is the Higher Administra- nity, the Prosecutor General can was based on the fact that Vlasenko tive Court, which makes final deci- take a closer look at his biography. failed to cancel his lawyer’s certifi- sions and is under the president’s On the other hand, the cate in a timely manner. In the control. The verdict of the Higher Vlasenko case has a geopolitical Court’s opinion, he was thus com- Administrative Court does not flavour to it. According to The bining his activity as an MP with have to be approved by parliament. Ukrainian Week’s sources, the commercial activity as a lawyer, This scheme enables those in Kremlin was seriously concerned which is illegal for MPs. power to revoke quite a few man- with the outcome of the latest On the one hand, this prece- dates of opposition MPs. From Ukraine-EU Summit. Putin in- dent signals that the Presidential UDAR’s Vitaliy Klitschko, for in- structed all authorities and diplo- Administration has finally found a stance, whose sports license is not mats to disrupt the signing of the “yes-man” mechanism to pressure suspended. Or Hennadiy Moskal, Ukraine-EU Association Agree- disloyal MPs, whose Constitutional known for his sharp criticism, be- ment at any cost. First and fore- immunity no longer entirely pro- cause he is listed as a lawyer in the most, they should intensify efforts tects them. According to the Con- Unified State Register of Lawyers. in European capitals. Plus, Vlasen- stitution, MPs vote for a decision to If necessary, interested parties can ko’s revoked mandate looks very revoke their peer’s mandate in par- find such skeletons in the closets of much like yet another attempt to liament. However, legislators many opposition MPs who were add an extra reason for the EU to would not necessarily give this con- once involved in activities other refuse to sign the Association venient decision, due to solidarity than politics. The key to success is Agreement with Ukraine. There is and fear that such a precedent to find any fault, and then catch up no reasonable explanation for the could someday turn against part of on it, using the well-known sce- Vlasenko case after Yanukovych the pro-presidential majority. nario. Moreover, finding one is not signed the document in Brussels Now, the regime no longer needs too difficult since some opposition undertaking, among other things, this parliamentary support as it al- politicians feel surprisingly secure, to solving the selective justice is- ready has control over three other even though they should have real- sue, other than an intentional decision-making components. The ized over the years of Yanukovych’s provocation to focus the EU’s at- first is the parliamentary Proce- presidency that they should always tention on the fact that not only has dure Committee. It decides keep an eye out for pitfalls. the current situation not yet been whether individual MPs can com- As a lawyer, Serhiy Vlasenko resolved, but has reached an ab- bine certain positions. It is cur- should have realized that his valid surd level. Meanwhile, more and rently dominated by the Party of lawyer’s certificate could be used as more appeals are coming up in the Regions and Communist Party an official excuse to launch a case EU, demanding for the latter to re- members and chaired by the Party on charges of combining MP and fuse to sign the Association Agree- of Regions’ Volodymyr Makey- commercial activities. He could ment until Yulia Tymoshenko is enko. The second component is the have terminated the certificate a released, as well as requests for speaker of the , while ago. The same applies to personal sanctions against repre- The month in history 4 March 1849 5 March 1953 6 March 1613 Bukovyna is declared Soviet dictator Zemsky sobor, the first Rus- to be the separate Joseph Stalin sian parliament, elects Mikhail crown land of the dies Romanov as Moscow’s tsar – Austrian Empire the beginning of the Romanov Dynasty

4|the ukrainian week|№ 5 (47) March 2013 |briefing

French MPs send a peti- The opposition EBRD provides a The Ukraini- tion to Brussels request- starts a series of EUR 300mn loan to an women’s ing a ban on oligarchs public assemblies. Ukraine to upgrade its team wins Rinat Akhmetov and The first one takes nuclear power plants the world Vadym Novynsky enter- place in Kyiv to international safety chess cham- ing the EU standards pionship

sentatives and sponsors of the Ya- nukovych regime, such as the peti- tion of 20 French MPs to the EU. There is an assumption that the scheme to revoke Vlasenko’s mandate was orchestrated by