Ukraine: Independence of anti-corruption fighters renewed

President Volodymyr Zelenskyi had introduced the bill after young people in Ukraine's major cities in particular protested against a previously passed, controversial law. However, pressure from Western countries and the European Union on Zelenskyi was decisive for the change in the law.

The parliamentary session was broadcast live on television for the first time since the Russian invasion in February 2022.

The law that triggered the protests was hastily passed on Wednesday last week. It effectively placed the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office under the General Prosecutor's Office.

The new law restores the independence of both authorities. However, employees with access to state secrets will have to undergo regular lie detector tests in future. They will be questioned about possible cooperation with wartime opponent Russia.

Both bodies were created in 2015 with Western funding to combat bribery and nepotism among high-ranking state employees and politicians.

In addition to the public prosecutor's office and the police, impoverished Ukraine has a system of bodies to combat corruption in the country, as demanded by the West. Despite the new authorities created after the pro-Western overthrow in 2014, the country remains one of the most corrupt states in Europe according to the non-governmental organization Transparency International.