Zelensky backtracks on controversial anti-corruption bill

Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a controversial new bill that threatened to undermine his country’s efforts to limit corruption. The legislation gave oversight of the nation’s only two independent investigative bodies—the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP)—to the prosecutor general, a position appointed by the same government those bodies were meant to investigate. 

Still, the law was not without its merits. Its stated goal was to limit Russian influence while streamlining an investigative process that too often failed to yield the kind of timely results Zelensky wanted. 

The Ukrainian president pointed to “criminal proceedings worth billions” that have gone years without progress as an example of why a shakeup was needed. Moreover, rooting out Russian influence seems particularly important given that one of NABU’s top detectives, along with another high-ranking officer and at least thirteen other staff members, were recently accused of being Russian spies. 

Still, the bill’s critics question the legitimacy of those arrests, arguing instead that they were used as a pretext to undermine the agency. They see it as the latest and most brazen example of a government sliding back into the corruption that has plagued it for most of the nation’s history. 

In response to the bill’s passage, thousands of Ukrainians took to the streets in what amounted to the largest protests since Russia invaded in February of 2022. 

And it was not just Ukraine’s citizens who took note. Leaders from Germany, France, Sweden, and the UK joined in condemning the bill, with Ursula von der Leyen—the head of the European Commission—warning that the law could imperil Ukraine’s attempts to join the EU. 

That pressure came to a head on Thursday.

What was the point?

News broke yesterday that Zelensky was ready to introduce a new bill that would essentially walk back all the major provisions of the one he signed on Tuesday. However, the protests are likely to continue until it becomes law. 

Considering that the same parliament that passed the previous law would have to approve this one as well, some doubt whether they will be willing to do so. For now, the new bill remains in limbo with a vote set for Thursday, July 31. 

However, the way in which Zelensky moved so quickly speaks to the level of pressure that he faced. While he neglected to give credit directly to the protests of his people and the nations upon whom his government depends, he went so far as to allow the anti-corruption agencies to play a part in crafting this new legislation. 

As a result, the two groups he sought to bring under government control now enjoy an even greater and more explicitly mandated level of independence than before. In return, the only additional change of consequence that occurred due to the controversy seems to be the institution of polygraph tests for law enforcement officers.

In total, the event served as a powerful reminder of how far Ukraine has come as well as how far they have left to go. 

Why the protests matter

William Barclay once wrote, “The fact is that if we realized what some people have to go through, so far from condemning them, we would be amazed that they have succeeded in being as good as they are.” 

No objective analysis of Ukraine would argue that it is a nation free of corruption, and there is good reason to think that remains the case even at the highest levels of its government. But it’s hard to go from one of the world’s most corrupt governments and a society in which large parts were run by the mob to the kind of democracy that its people are ostensibly trying to achieve today. 

It certainly helps that their continued survival depends, in large part, on continuing to uphold those standards as a prerequisite for European support. But, ultimately, its people will determine what kind of government they live under. 

As the protests and unrest of recent days demonstrate, Ukrainian citizens appear more afraid of becoming like Russia than they are of the actual Russians. That is a remarkable change given where they were even ten years ago. And there is an important lesson in their example for each of us today.

Fix your eyes on Jesus

In Paul’s second letter to Timothy, he writes, “So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.” (2 Timothy 2:22) Both parts of that instruction are vital. 

Far too often, our attempts to flee temptation keep our eyes fixed on the sins we’re running from rather than the God we should be running to. When that happens, we may avoid those dangers for a time, but we will inevitably trip and fall eventually. 

Our heavenly Father wants more for our lives than a perpetual avoidance of sin. There is little joy or peace to be found in spending our days trying not to mess up. God didn’t make us for that kind of struggle. 

Instead, Christ’s call was to bring our burdens to him and accept his yoke with the promise that, when we do, we will find rest. (Matthew 11:28–30)

So where is your focus today? Are you more concerned with avoiding sin or serving Jesus? 

Keep your eyes fixed on Christ, and the rest will take care of itself. 

Let’s start today.     

Quote of the day:

“The more we let God take us over, the more truly ourselves we become.” — C.S. Lewis

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