Ukraine's Parliament convenes, names temporary Presidium

by Roman Woronowycz
Kyyiv Press Bureau

KYYIV - Trying to fulfill what so many newly elected parliamentarians promised, Ukraine's first democratically elected Parliament attempted to get down to business immediately. But on opening day organizational procedures bogged them down. By lunch time they had agreed only on a temporary Presidium and the need to discuss the specifics of what a parliamentary faction should consist of.

It could have been a gem. Almost all of the 338 deputies elected convened on May 11 to develop plans for Ukraine's future. The proceedings opened with the president of the Central Electoral Commission, Ivan Yemets, announcing the formal convocation of Parliament. President Leonid Kravchuk sat at his left. The national anthem was played.

At 10:10 a.m., Mr. Yemets announced that all those present had been fully accredited. Although no gavel was pounded, when he said, "The first session of the 14th convocation of Ukraine's Supreme Council has officially begun," the parliamentarians as well as a jam-packed press box and the diplomatic corps present fell quiet.

After that it was a downslide into bickering over organizational structure and how political factions should be registered.

About all they decided was that five, not seven as had been proposed, should comprise the temporary Presidium. The choices suggest the future make-up of the parliamentary power center. Former Deputy Chairman of Parliament Vasiliy Durdynets, Socialist Oleksander Moroz, Communist Petro Symonenko, the rehabilitated Agrarian Party representative Vitaliy Masol and Rukh leader Vyacheslav Chornovil all sat atop the tribunal after Mr. Yemets removed himself.

The concept of political actions was developed by the deputies' Initiative Group, which had started meeting just after the elections to get a jump on moving the legislative agenda forward.

As decided by the Initiative Group, a faction consists of at least 25 individuals "who are like-minded" (of a political party), and who will caucus to agree on issues and then present them via the faction leader. Many believe one of the reasons for the paralysis of Ukraine's previous Parliament was that each deputy spoke as an individual.

But 22 individuals had spoken by 2 p.m. of the first day attempting to explain why 40 parliamentarians in a faction is more effective than 25. Others said that perhaps only 20 were needed as the minimum to register a faction. Developing the figures must have become tiresome, because at 2 p.m., the normal end of their second daily session, they decided not to have a third. They also agreed that no need existed for a full session on May 12: the factions should get together and decide just what a faction is.

They did not address who the new parliamentary speaker might be, or whether elections for the office of president should be held.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, May 15, 1994, No. 20, Vol. LXII

| Home Page |