NEWS AND VIEWS
Vote of no confidence reflects alliance between Communists and oligarchs
by Askold Krushelnycky
RFE/RL Newsline
An alliance of Communists and political parties loyal to Ukrainian oligarchs on April 26 carried the majority in the Parliament in a no confidence vote against Prime Minister Viktor Yuschenko.
In two votes, 263 deputies out of the 450-strong Verkhovna Rada determined they did not have confidence in Mr. Yuschenko. The prime minister then quit his post.
The anti-Yuschenko alliance had accused the government of failing to improve the economy and leading the country to ruin.
Mr. Yuschenko promised his supporters he would fight on for the issues he believes are important to ensure democracy and economic prosperity.
He thanked his supporters in Parliament and about 15,000 supporters outside Parliament - the largest demonstration Ukraine has seen since pro-independence rallies held in the late 1980s. Mr. Yuschenko told them he would not abandon politics: "I am not going away from politics. I am going to return. I thank you again for your attention and support."
The Communists had been unhappy throughout Mr. Yuschenko's 16-month tenure in office with his market reform and privatization policies and his pro-Western stance.
The "oligarch" parties turned against Mr. Yuschenko for taking action against corruption and reducing money-making opportunities for many of them.
The vote against Mr. Yuschenko came despite an upturn in Ukraine's economy and popular moves by his government, such as paying millions of dollars in back pay and pensions owed to those depending on state funds.
Earlier in the week, Mr. Yuschenko said the desire of some oligarchs to continue lining their pockets and to secure their positions in parliamentary elections scheduled for next year, rather than the government's economic record, is the real issue.
"The reasons for this (dismissal) are the economic considerations and interests of groups of different (criminal) big shots in Ukrainian politics," Mr. Yuschenko said. "Those interests have become particularly aggressive recently because of approaching parliamentary elections."
After the vote, Mr. Yuschenko thanked the crowd of supporters who had rallied outside the Parliament building. He said the government had been captured by "a group that stands against the national interests" and said he would stand with the people in combating the forces that had thrown him out of office.
Ivan Lozowy, director of the Institute for Statehood and Democracy, an independent Ukrainian think-tank, said Prime Minister Yuschenko's removal may be the beginning of more turmoil in Ukraine. He said people realize the popular will is being ignored by Parliament and that could lead to a feeling that direct action at the street level is the only way to press for changes.
"We will understand the significance of this event in a little while. The removal of Mr. Yuschenko, as it happened, opens the doors to a renewed political revolution," he said.
Many observers believe President Leonid Kuchma was instrumental in Mr. Yuschenko's removal. Mr. Kuchma has allies among the oligarchs' parties, and it is believed he could have tipped the balance in Mr. Yuschenko's favor had he really wanted to do so.
Earlier in the week, President Kuchma had expressed support for Mr. Yuschenko and in the evening of April 25 he held a meeting between the prime minister and political party leaders, ostensibly to broker a compromise.
However, according to sources close to Mr. Yuschenko (who were unwilling to be named), the prime minister refused to make compromises with his opponents and to give them a share in government by offering them portfolios in his administration.
President Kuchma himself is the target of mass demonstrations because of accusations that he was involved in the disappearance of an opposition journalist and is blamed for the widespread corruption gripping Ukraine. He is known to be unhappy about Mr. Yuschenko's popularity in opinion polls, his enthusiasm for market reform, and the former prime minister's Western leanings.
Askold Krushelnycky is an RFE/RL correspondent based in Prague.
The following breakdown of the voting in the Verkhovna Rada on April 26 on the no-confidence motion in the Yuschenko Cabinet was provided by Taras Kuzio, research associate at the Center for International and Security Studies at York University in Toronto
| Communists | |
| For: | 105 |
| Against: | 0 |
| Absent: | 7 |
| Democratic Union | |
| For: | 20 |
| Against | 3 |
| Not Voted: | 3 |
| Absent: | 3 |
| Fatherland | |
| For: | 0 |
| Against: | 5 |
| Not Voted: | 17 |
| Absent: | 3 |
| Greens | |
| For: | 9 |
| Against: | 2 |
| Not Voted: | 2 |
| Absent: | 4 |
| Labor Ukraine | |
| For: | 41 |
| Against: | 2 |
| Abstained: | 2 |
| Absent: | 1 |
| National Democrats | |
| For: | 8 |
| Against: | 1 |
| Abstained: | 1 |
| Not Voted: | 2 |
| Absent: | 5 |
| Reforms-Congress | |
| For: | 0 |
| Against: | 13 |
| Absent: | 1 |
| Regions of Ukraine | |
| For: | 14 |
| Against: | 3 |
| Abstained: | 1 |
| Not Voted: | 1 |
| Absent: | 1 |
| Rukh - Kostenko | |
| For: | 0 |
| Against: | 11 |
| Not Voted: | 12 |
| Rukh - Udovenko | |
| For: | 0 |
| Against: | 11 |
| Not Voted: | 4 |
| Absent: | 1 |
| Social Democrats (United) | |
| For: | 31 |
| Against: | 1 |
| Abstained: | 1 |
| Absent: | 2 |
| Socialists | |
| For: | 2 |
| Against: | 0 |
| Abstained: | 14 |
| Solidarity | |
| For: | 1 |
| Against: | 7 |
| Abstained: | 7 |
| Not Voted: | 8 |
| Absent: | 3 |
| Yabluko | |
| For: | 13 |
| Abstained: | 1 |
| Absent: | 1 |
| Unaligned | |
| For: | 19 |
| Against: | 10 |
| Abstained: | 2 |
| Not Voted: | 4 |
| Absent: | 8 |
| Overall results of voting | |
| For: | 263 |
| Against: | 69 |
| Abstained: | 24 |
| Not Voted: | 53 |
| Total: | 409 |
Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, May 6, 2001, No. 18, Vol. LXIX
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