The MPs from the “Ukrainian Association of Patriots – UKROP” will not vote for the so-called judicial reform (bill № 6232). The party representatives emphasize that the proposed amendments to the Commercial Code, the Civil Procedural Code, the Code of Administrative Procedure and a number of legislative acts open the opportunities for abuse of judges and limit human right to judicial protection.
“Some of the innovations open a large field for arbitrary interpretation of the rules of law. This will lead to chaos and speculation. At the same time, there will be corruption risks, with which the judicial system is already so plaguing. Deputies from UKROP do not support such a reform. We will not vote for it,” state the UKROP representatives, adding that the introduction of the amendments to a number of acts by one bill testifies the authorities’ desire to push the innovations that are beneficial to them.
Among the shortcomings of the draft law № 6232, according to the UKROP members, there are creation of the chambers of appeal in higher specialized courts, which will not allow to ensure an independent and fair appeal process, restriction of the rights of a person to submit a cassation appeal and the probable increase of corruption risks in this regard. The right of the judges of the Supreme Court to decide, at their discretion, which cases to consider, also raises some concerns. In addition, the “Ukrainian Association of Patriots” emphasizes that the proposed amendments to a number of codes contain the risks of courts’ mass rejecting to consider claims and may violate the adversarial nature of the trial. Besides, if the bill is adopted, the cases on cancellation of the certificates of political parties will be considered exclusively by the District Administrative Court of Kyiv. This will not only create an unjustified burden on it, but it can also lead to increased political repression because of decision-making according to the orders from above, states UKROP. Against the background of the adopted bill on the Constitutional Court, which made this body profitable for the president, judicial reform is more like an attempt to usurp power in the country, say the party representatives.
“Judicial reform, in the form it is proposed, is an attempt of the president to finally usurp power and to remain the head of state in any way,” stressed the MP from UKROP Vitaliy Kupriy.
