Deputy files suit for slander (06/28/98)

Deputy files suit for slander

by Roman Woronowycz
Kyiv Press Bureau

KYIV - A U.S.-born Ukrainian national deputy has filed a 150 million hrv ($75 million U.S.) defamation lawsuit against a fellow parliamentarian for accusing him of belonging to the Central Intelligence Agency.

The lawsuit brought by National Deputy Roman Zvarych, who is a member of the center-right Rukh faction, was filed in response to a remark that Oleksander Tkachenko, a member of the left-wing Center faction (formerly Socialist Center) made before Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada during the ongoing process of nominating a chairman to lead the rudderless Parliament.

"His exact words were that I am a representative of the CIA. Not even an agent, but a representative. I feel that it is a threat and an insult to my status," explained Mr. Zvarych, who took Ukrainian citizenship in 1995, 17 months after renouncing his U.S. citizenship. He was elected to the Verkhovna Rada this past March.

On June 18 Mr. Tkachenko, who had just been nominated for the post of chairman in the 10th round of voting, stepped up to the main microphone to take questions from the Parliament floor and was confronted by Mr. Zvarych with questions about alleged questionable and illegal business activities of Mr. Tkachenko's business entity, Land and People.

Mr. Tkachenko, who was first vice-chairman in the last Verkhovna Rada, replied that he would not answer questions put forward by "a representative of the CIA."

Mr. Zvarych explained that at the least his reputation and effectiveness in the Verkhovna Rada are at stake. "Such a proclamation by him before a national radio audience, interested diplomats and the entire legislative body is a violation of the Civil Code that guarantees a person his honor and dignity," explained Mr. Zvarych.

Mr. Zvarych filed his suit a day later, on the basis of Article 80 of Ukraine's Civil Code, which removes the legislative immunity that national deputies hold when they make slanderous and insulting statements before the legislative body.

"Mr. Tkachenko must now show a basis for such an accusation," said Mr. Zvarych. "He has to produce evidence; he has to show a smoking gun.

On June 20, in the newspaper Sevodnia, Mr. Tkachenko stated that he has evidence and will produce it when necessary. The Weekly could not reach Mr. Tkachenko for comment. An employee who answered the phone in Mr. Tkachenko's office said, "I don't know anything about it."

Mr. Zvarych told The Weekly that Mr. Tkachenko's remarks are not only a threat to his career, but to his life as well. "Statute 56 of the Criminal Code concerns state treason, within which is found espionage. When a national deputy who has access to secret state information, is accused of such, the consequences are greater still. Statute 7 (1) of the Criminal Code states that I could get the death penalty if I were what he has accused me of being."

The Procurator General's Office launched an investigation into the financial dealings of Mr. Tkachenko's Land and People enterprise in 1993, after Ukraine's Export-Import Bank had to repay a $75 million loan to CitiCorp Bank on which Land and People had reneged. The Export-Import Bank had underwritten the loan.

The money was to be used by the company for the purchase of U.S. corn seed, but the investigation revealed that in addition to seed - much of which was of poor quality and unusable - 32 luxury automobiles and industrial boilers also were purchased.

Land and People also spent $2,740,000 to host 114 American farmers, who voluntarily came to Ukraine to review the state of Ukraine's agrobusiness sector in 1993. That comes out to $24,000 per farmer for the two-week period of their junket.

Many of the documents used by the Procurator General's Office in its investigation into the wheelings and dealings of Land and People were submitted by the Center for Democratic Reform, which Mr. Zvarych directed at the time

As a result of the investigation, Land and People was ordered to repay Ukraine the money it borrowed, but that has not happened to this day, according to Mr. Zvarych.

"And now Tkachenko wants to be speaker - to hold one of the highest offices in the land," said Mr. Zvarych. "That is money that could be used to help pay back wages and pensions that his party insists needs to be a priority for Ukraine."