Ukrainians protest as Zelenskyy submits new anti-corruption bill
發佈日期: 2025-07-25 22:20
TVB News
Ukrainians took to the streets for a third day to protest against a new anti-corruption law.
This, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy submitted a new bill that would restore the independence of his country's anti-corruption agencies in an effort to defuse tensions.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy submitted a new bill that he said would restore the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies.
Zelenskyy said parliament would review the new bill. The controversy surrounding the initial bill submitted earlier this week has threatened to undermine public trust in Ukraine's leadership after more than three years of fighting Russia's full-scale invasion.
Critics said the first law stripped Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies of their independence by granting the government more oversight of their work.
It sparked an outcry and protests, the first major demonstrations since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began and prompted criticism from the European Union.
The protests haven't called for Zelenskyy to be removed from office, but are the first major anti-government demonstrations since Russian invaded Ukraine started in February 2022.
Zelenskyy initially argued the law was needed to speed up investigations, ensure more convictions and remove Russian meddling.
It was not immediately clear when the new bill will be voted on in the parliament. The protests are likely to continue until the law is passed.
Zelenskyy said the new legislation "guarantees real strengthening of Ukraine's law enforcement system, the independence of anti-corruption bodies, and reliable protection of the legal system from any Russian interference."
Ukraine's two main anti-graft agencies welcomed Zelenskyy's revamped proposal, saying it restores all their procedural powers and guarantees their independence.
The agencies said they helped draft the new bill, and urged lawmakers to adopt it "as soon as possible" to prevent threats to ongoing criminal cases.
The Ukrainian president said the new bill reverses the earlier changes and also introduced additional measures aimed at "combating Russian influence," including mandatory polygraph tests for law enforcement officers.
The new draft underlines the prosecutor general and his deputies cannot give orders to anti-graft agencies or interfere in their work.
