Ambassador to Austria and UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Vienna
Part of UK in Ukraine
13th December 2011
Rule of law in Ukraine: when more and more means less and less
‘Surely,’ my Ukrainian interlocutor says, ‘you must accept that Tymoshenko is guilty of something, even if it’s impossible to prove. Everybody knows it. Look how many things she is being charged with.’
‘But without a credible legal process,’ I say, ‘the charges are meaningless. Adding more and more charges simply makes the legal process look less and less credible, and more and more politically motivated. A second issue is the selectivity of the charges. Do you think people on one side of the political divide are more likely to be guilty of offences than people on the other?’
‘Well…’ (grins) ‘obviously not.’
I have no opinion on the guilt or otherwise of any of the opposition leaders accused in the current flawed trials. But I record this exchange in the wake of the recent troubling court session against former Prime Minister Tymoshenko held in her prison cell – itself an act harmful to the reputation of Ukraine and the rule of law in this country. There is a risk that, if someone repeats something often enough, people will start to believe it – for example, they might get the impression that if someone is charged with 100 offences, the chance that they are guilty of one of them must rise. In fact the contrary is true: when more and more charges are brought against a single individual, some stretching back over decades and on which experts judge the statute of limitations to have expired, the impression of a politically motivated trial is reinforced. So too is the impression of what EU Commissioner Stefan Fule referred to in Kyiv on 13 December as “selective justice”.
It must be obvious even to the most Liberal minded that there are very sinister developements happening in the Ukraine. Not surprisingly this corrupt and rotten regime has refused Juliya Tymoshenko’s appeal against this immoral prison sentence and continue with their persecution against her and others. Unfortunately she has always demonstrated with her political skills and charisma his obvious political and personnel shortcomings, so it’s not surprising that his insane jealousy of her has turned into hatred.
My friends in Ukraine will tell you that Yanokovich is determined to break her and they fear for her life. They also tell me that the only effective measures to produce a meaningful reaction would be the threat or prevention to Ukraine’s co-hosting of the Euro 2012 Competition because Yanakovich along with his Oligarch friends and supporters will use this competition to feed their super egos and corrupt self interests.
Surely the last thing we should be indicating is any measure of approval to an emerging dictatorship on our doorstep, not morally fit and deserving to host such a prestigeous sporting competition.
Be in no doubt that the majority of the good people of Ukraine will totally understand that we are not punishing them but are at last demonstrating our abhorrence towards Yanakovich and all he stands for.