ANALYSIS: Kuchma's proposed referendum draws criticism from abroad (03/12/00)

ANALYSIS

Kuchma's proposed referendum draws criticism from abroad

by Lily Hyde
RFE/RL Newsline

KYIV - Ukrainians might have an unprecedented chance in April to express both their lack of faith in a split Parliament and their confidence in the newly re-elected president.

A national referendum, called by President Leonid Kuchma last month, is due to ask voters if they agree to express no confidence in the Verkhovna Rada.

If approved by the public, six major changes to the Constitution of Ukraine would strip national deputies of their immunity from prosecution and create a second chamber of the Parliament. Those amendments would also allow the president to dismiss the legislature if a majority is not formed within one month of elections or if a budget is not passed within three months.

Recent opinion polls indicate Ukrainians will approve all six points if the referendum goes ahead.

President Kuchma has said he hopes the proposed changes will end the years-long stalemate between the Parliament and the presidency. But opponents say he is trying to impose rule by Ukraine's oligarchs - a small group of extremely wealthy individuals who are said to use their seats in the Verkhovna Rada and stakes in the media to further their own ends.

Opponents also say that the referendum would violate the Constitution and would allow the quick passage of far-reaching legislation ostensibly endorsed by the electorate.

Those arguing that the referendum is unconstitutional say that, under the law, the president can call a direct popular vote on constitutional changes only after the Parliament has approved the proposals. The only relevant law, dating back to 1991, says a referendum can be called only by the Verkhovna Rada.

Those concerns have been echoed in a letter sent to President Kuchma by the president of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly, Russell Johnston, and in the comments of two assembly rapporteurs who visited Ukraine two weeks ago. At the time, rapporteur Hanne Severinsen told journalists in Kyiv that President Kuchma had not been very sympathetic to their concerns.

"We are very concerned in the Council of Europe what influence this referendum will have for the democracy of Ukraine," she said. "The president of our assembly launched an appeal two weeks ago to your president not to continue with the referendum if it is not in accordance with the ruling of the Venice Commission [the council's chief legal consultative body]. Unfortunately we have got no promise. On the contrary, Mr. Kuchma said he would not follow this advice."

The Council of Europe's Venice Commission is due to issue a report on the referendum at the beginning of April, only two weeks before the vote is scheduled. At the same time, more than 100 Ukrainian deputies have appealed to the country's Constitutional Court to rule on the referendum's legality. President Kuchma has said that he will respect the court's ruling.

The proposed referendum has prompted comparison with Belarus, where President Alyaksandr Lukashenka used a direct popular vote to disband the Parliament and extend his term in office. Belarus was then an associate member of the 41-nation Council of Europe, which asked Miensk not to carry out the referendum after the Venice Commission had found it undemocratic. Mr. Lukashenka refused, and Belarus lost its associative status.

By contrast, Moldova, a Council of Europe member, sought to carry out a similar referendum but later heeded the council's advice and canceled the vote.

Ms. Severinsen said she does not want Ukraine to go down the same path as Belarus, which under President Lukashenka has one of the poorest human-rights records in Europe. "We don't like to compare the situations, but there are some similarities [to Belarus] and we think therefore it's very important for [Ukraine] that what the Venice Commission is saying about legality is also followed, so we don't run the risk of having a referendum that is unconstitutional," she noted.

The Council of Europe has some leverage if Mr. Kuchma refuses to heed a Venice Commission ruling against the referendum. Since Ukraine joined the organization in 1995, the council has threatened to suspend Ukraine's membership several times because Kyiv has not fulfilled many of its obligations as a member. This time, it could carry out the suspension threat.

One of President Kuchma's arguments for holding the referendum is that the long-standing conflict between the president and the Parliament - where leftist deputies have blocked all government-sponsored draft laws - has to be resolved.

But the mere proposal of the referendum, which Mr. Kuchma characterized as "an axe hanging over the head" of lawmakers, may have already broken the deadlock in Parliament.

After President Kuchma called for the referendum, the Verkhovna Rada formed a pro-government majority. Some lawmakers have already dubbed that breakthrough Ukraine's "velvet revolution."

Lily Hyde is an RFE/RL correspondent based in Kyiv.

| Home Page |