Verhovna Rada of Ukraine registered a bill on cancellation of local elections in Luhansk and Donetsk regions. Authors of the project of this regulation – are five deputies from Radical Party of Oleg Lyashko. If this regulation will be adopted, residents of controlled by Ukraine areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions will lose opportunity for some period to elect local councils and mayors of cities.
Elections are not for everybody
This legislative initiative of people’s elected representatives is not the first case, when deputies created irresponsible bills without estimating all possible consequences of their adoption. Verhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted new law on local elections on July 14. They were scheduled on October 25th. Everyone knew that electoral legislation was far from perfection.
The new law almost deprives IDPs of the right to vote at local elections. IDP has to get local residence permit to participate in elections (in such case he/she will lose status of IDP).
This condition made public representatives indignant: why IDPs can live, work, study, pay taxes, be subjected to mobilization at new place of residence, but cannot impact formation of local administration bodies? But people, who have power, decided on their own way, they’ve crossed out IDPs from list of full-fledged members of territorial communities with a right to vote. Isitadiscrimination, isn’tit?
It is worth saying that in the EU even citizens of other EU member states can participate in municipal elections, if they live on that territory. They can elect and be elected.
That is why European politicians reacted with bewilderment to this Ukrainian law. Richard Howitt – deputy of European Parliament from Britain opposition Labour party said:
“We are sure that they (IDPs) should have a right to participate in local elections in October. We are sure that current system of registration has to give IDPs opportunity to vote, even if they are not registered officially. They have to be included into the list of voters”, — politician announced. He also expressed a hope that European Parliament will manage to reach mutual understanding with Ukrainian authorities in this question.
A bill for piece of shit
A few deputies of Radical Party of Oleg Lyashko decided to go further on July 27 – they suggested the Parliament legislative initiative, which cancels local elections on all the territory of Luhansk and Donetsk regions, controlled by Ukraine.
Authors of the bill suggested not to set elections of Regional, City, District Councils in settlements of Donbass, which are subordinated to the Military-Civil Administrations.
Arguments of Lyashko and co. included the point that local elections on that territories will create a threat to territorial integrity, sovereignty and national security of Ukraine.
Heads of Luhansk and Donetsk RMCA Georgiy Tuka and Pavel Zhebrivsky supported this legislative initiative.
Tuka stated that there were many supporters of separatism among residents of front-line territories.
One more argument in favor of the bill, which frequently appeared in social networks and media is about electoral sympathies of residents of the east of Ukraine. Residents of Donetsk and Luhansk regions on last Parliament elections gave 40 % of their voices to representatives of “Oppoblock” – ex-members of the Party of Regions and Communists. Some representatives of our authorities suppose that such reasons are enough to deprive those people of electoral rights.
Swirling in depths of “Oppoblock”
“Oppoblock” didn’t lose opportunity to PR and acted as “people’s protectors” — criticized the bill thoroughly.
Aleksey Bely- national deputy from “Oppoblock” wrote on his Facebook page:
“A question rises, what are authorities afraid of: to lose elections in Donbass? To lose opportunity to cut budgets of cities and regions and deprive people of ability to control them? To fail implementing Kiev’s tasks?”
Many users of social networks shared his thoughts. For the moment discussion about reasonability of local elections on territories of Luhansk and Donetsk regions controlled by Ukraine is ongoing.
Talking about local elections in Donbass we have to pay attention to the fact that Regional Councils haven’t been working in Luhansk and Donetsk regions for more than a year. Some of their responsibilities were taken by Military-Civil Administrations. In conditions of military conflict such conditions may seem reasonable, but there are obvious disadvantages. To cancel local elections in “rebel” Donbass means almost the same as to “preserve” dictatorship. Territorial community will have no opportunity to impact authorities and participate in social life of their own villages, cities or regions.
Can we consider cancellation of local elections in Donbass reasonable? In some way – yes. But this way makes universal suffrage unreasonable. Why did we decide that uneducated majority, subjected to suggestion and susceptible to “buckwheat” can elect authorities, which will be able to handle their responsibilities?
Aleksey Chernov for the Informator.lg.ua