Ukraine’s Parliament voted on Thursday on legislation to restore the powers of the country’s anticorruption agencies. The vote came one week after a move by President Volodymyr Zelensky to undermine the independence of the agencies set off a ferocious domestic and international backlash.
For the first time since Russia began its full-scale invasion in 2022, lawmakers broadcast the session live in an effort to ensure transparency; 331 of 340 lawmakers voted in favor of the law.
Mr. Zelensky is expected to sign the bill, which reverses legislation his administration pressed through on July 22 that would have neutered the two agencies. Those agencies had filed charges against more than 10 lawmakers from his party and against three government ministers, including a deputy prime minister.
In response to the passage of the first bill, protesters took to the streets in cities across Ukraine in the first antigovernment demonstrations since the Russian invasion. With his move threatening to damage national unity and critical international support in the war effort, Mr. Zelensky soon backtracked and proposed the new legislation reinstating the agencies’ authority.
In the last week, European leaders have pressured Mr. Zelensky about the agencies, issuing statements noting the importance of the fight against corruption in Ukraine. The European Union announced last Friday that it would withhold 1.5 billion euros, or $1.7 billion, from a 4.5-billion euro fund, the disbursement of which is dependent on achieving good governance standards.
Ukrainians who have come out in protest were happy to see the new law would pass, alleviating concerns that demonstrations could spiral out of control if it failed.
Yaroslav Zhelezniak, a lawmaker who condemned the original legislation, held up a cardboard sign when he spoke on the floor of the Parliament to praise the thousands of citizens who demanded the government change course.
“People with cardboard signs are the power,” his sign read.
The two agencies at the heart of the controversy — the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office — were created a decade ago with strong Western backing. They are widely seen as essential to combating the graft and grifting that have long plagued the country.
Mr. Zelensky moved to curb their power by placing them under the authority of the nation’s prosecutor general, who is approved by Parliament, where the president’s party holds a majority. Politicians from other parties voted to support the move, a reflection of the fear many have about the agencies.
The anticorruption bureau has charged 42 lawmakers since 2022, and 71 in all since 2016, it said in a statement on Wednesday. More than 30 of those lawmakers currently serve in Parliament, the bureau said.
The most common charges, it said, were misappropriation or embezzlement of property, accepting undue benefits, abuse of power or official position, false asset declarations and illicit enrichment.
Ukraine’s anticorruption agencies “consistently demonstrate that the law applies equally to everyone and that a parliamentary mandate does not grant immunity,” the statement said.
Mr. Zelensky was an outspoken supporter of the agencies when he ran for office in 2019, presenting himself as a fresh face who was not beholden to entrenched interests and who would lead the charge against corruption.
When he moved to curb the agencies’ independence, it was seen as a betrayal by critics already concerned about the steady accumulation of power in the office of the president during the war emergency.
The public outcry quickly escalated into spontaneous demonstrations, with one rally in Kyiv, the capital, drawing an estimated 10,000 people.
A large number of the protesters, who coordinated mostly through online platforms, were in their early 20s. They were children during the 2014 uprising in Ukraine that led to the ouster of a pro-Kremlin president, and they see themselves as defending that revolution’s legacy of justice.
Their demands were narrowly focused on passage of the new law to restore the powers of the agencies.
Zinaida Averina, a 23-year-old consultant in green energy, has emerged as a key organizer of the protests. A newcomer to activism, she said she was spurred to action because she felt as though a “red line” had been crossed toward autocracy.
She started a small group chat on Telegram to coordinate with friends. It quickly swelled to about 3,000 members, becoming a hub for organizing protest actions. Participants notified city administrators and the police about their plans, organized the distribution of water and medical services, coordinated to decide on their demands and even created separate chats for dating and memes.
Organizers were careful to note that they were not calling for a new president or government, emphasizing the need for stability during the war. But they argued that a strong anticorruption system was vital both for the war effort and for Ukraine’s hopes of integrating itself into Europe.
Corruption, the protesters said, offers an opening for control by the Kremlin in Ukraine and undermines military procurement and mobilization.
Marc Santora has been reporting from Ukraine since the beginning of the war with Russia. He was previously based in London as an international news editor focused on breaking news events and earlier the bureau chief for East and Central Europe, based in Warsaw. He has also reported extensively from Iraq and Africa.
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