The UA Permanent delegation to PACE took part in the debate on “Follow-up to the report of the Independent Investigation Body on the allegations of corruption within the Parliamentary Assembly”
A fast track procedure was applied to the debate which took place on April 26.
O.Sotnyk, speaking on behalf of the PACE Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, drew attention of the parliamentarians to the fact that voters expect them to be held accountable. “Transparency, responsibility and integrity are the qualities that determine legitimacy of a parliamentarian,” stated she.
S.Kiral, as a representative of the European Conservatives Group, stressed that the Council of Europe has been, is and will be the polar organization in Europe whose goal is to prevent interstate violence, degradation of society, cruelty and barbarity, which have repeatedly occurred in the 20th century.
L.Yemets took note of the fact that corruption is a terrible disease for any country. If it is allowed to develop uncontrollably, then there will soon be no legitimate judicial decision or government in the country. All state institutions will have nothing to their own citizens, as they’ll know that any position or solution can be obtained if someone has enough money. Enough said, any external enemy can easily destroy or subdue a state weakened by corruption.
A Ukrainian delegate O.Honcharenko underscored that, in his opinion, not all names involved in corruption were mentioned in the report and that this corrupt group still keeps working in the Assembly. Their next goal is to return Russia to the Assembly without any sanctions. They will use any mechanisms to achieve their own goals.
Another delegate from the Ukrainian team S.Vlasenko underlined that corruption can sometimes be used as a form of hybrid warfare by one member state of the Council of Europe against the other, as well as for interference in elections, and this is completely unacceptable.
The deputy head of the delegation S.Sobolev emphasized that corruption’s not a national problem, but it’s a problem for the whole world. "After months of investigations within the Parliamentary Assembly, we have 198 pages of facts, and only one name has been referred to as a suspect. This is not enough at all," he said. S.Sobolev also expressed his opinion that this year would there be able to stop corruption at the PACE, because, according to the Code of Conduct, the parliamentarians make electronic declarations, and all the gifts, hotels and services must be included in the e-declarations.
B. Bereza stressed the report shows that the Assembly’s structures still are under strong unwholesome influence, and if there is no punishment, this would further discredit the Parliamentary Assembly and its institutions. The report should become the beginning of the process of ridding, not new concealments. Every time there is a question of corruption, Russia is up mentioned, and the Parliamentary Assembly simply closes its eyes. Russia violates all its treaties, does not implement any resolutions, ignores the human rights and actually destroys European democracy, including through its lobbyists. Perhaps, the members of the Assembly ought to finally admit that Russia does affect developments not only here, but also in the European Parliament and other institutions.
(Entitled to updates)