EDITORIAL: The new Rada begins its work (05/19/02)

EDITORIAL

The new Rada begins its work

In the days leading up to the start of the new convocation of Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada, the most often mentioned characteristic of the legislative body that was to begin its work on May 14 was that it would be more "structured" and "disciplined." Political commentators said the six factions formed from the six political groups that gained entry into the Parliament by obtaining at least 4 percent popular support in the March 31 vote had better defined objectives and more differentiated political markings than previous factions. The pundits also said this would be the first convocation in which the power of the Communists would be substantially reduced.

After the first few hours of the first day everything seemed to be just as the experts predicted, with the lawmakers agreeing to remove a limitation that previously had allowed them to vote only on Thursdays and finding common ground on other organizational matters, including the number of committees and the minimum number of members needed to form a faction. The Communists even seemed to show that they had undergone a process of socialization. In a leaflet handed out on the opening day, which protested that National Deputy Slava Stetsko, whom they scurrilously depict as a Nazi collaborator because of her work within the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, would administer the oath of office, the Communists underscored that, nevertheless, they had decided that "developing democracy and parliamentarism in Ukraine" should be their priority and would accept the oath as read - this in marked contrast to 1998, when they had hooted, hollered and turned their backs on the parliamentary dais as Mrs. Stetsko swore in the new lawmakers.

So we saw progress on several fronts and had every reason to remain optimistic that this Rada would neither become paralyzed by personal and corporate interests nor polarized by an inability to compromise and see the political forest for the trees. Then came the first real test of the new Rada's effectiveness: whether it could find the political sense to quickly elect a new parliamentary chairperson. And the problems began.

Less than a week into the new Rada's first session, four leadership slates for the presidium have been rejected, with only one even coming close to approval. The initial rejections could be considered tactical maneuvering as separate factions proposed them. The problem, however, lies in the fact that for a full day after the first four rebuffs, representatives of the six factions failed to produce new sets of nominations.

It also quickly became apparent that the 66 members of the Communist faction would wield the fulcrum that swings the balance of power in the new Verkhovna Rada. The only faction member found on each of the first four slates was Communist Adam Martyniuk, which shows the degree of power the leftists have retained even with their reduced numbers. Many politicians believe that without jumping into at least a loose coalition with the Communists, no faction has the chance to gain leverage in this Parliament. Our Ukraine, with a good portion of its membership staunchly anti-Communist, will have the hardest time accepting this. But there is a realization among some of its members that there may be no other recourse.

As faction leaders remained sequestered on the session's third day and searched for compromise candidates, Viktor Musiaka of Our Ukraine told reporters that his faction would find common language with the Communists, if only because they were the only two political groups based on ideology and not corporate or personal ambition. He said the point was to get a suitable parliamentary leadership in place, after which the opposing ideological forces could continue along their separate paths.

We hope that the first days of this fourth convocation of Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada are not precedent-setting and that the parliamentary body finally will break free of its historic paralysis and ineffectiveness. To move forward, the lawmakers must look for political consensus and practical solutions to the country's problems. But, above all, they must put the country first.

National Deputy Stetsko, in administering the legislative oath, put it most succinctly when she said:"I expect that this Verkhovna Rada will not concern itself with personal and corporate interests, but only with the matters of the Ukrainian nation."

We wish the national deputies well and believe that if they keep to the standard expressed in the wise words of Verkhovna Rada's oldest national deputy, the Ukrainian people will benefit deeply from their work in the next four years.

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