Ukraine's 2007 Political Crisis
Power Struggle Between Coalition of National Unity and Opposition
Political problems continue to plague Ukraine two and a half years after the Orange Revolution enabled Viktor Yushchenko's ascention to the country's presidency.
The latest in a series of crises began in the fall of 2006 during a power struggle between President Yushchenko and the Verkhovna Rada (parliament). The parliament is currently made up of two main groups, The Coalition of National Unity (formerly the Anti-Crisis Coalition) and the opposition. The Coalition of National Unity is comprised of the Party of Regions, the Communist Party of Ukraine, and the Socialist Party of Ukraine, while the opposition is led by Yushchenko's Our Ukraine alliance and the Yulia Tymoshenko bloc. Skirmishes have arisen due to a shift in the Rada's majority which now lies in the hands of The Coalition.
Power Shift
This power change was quite evident when the Rada passed a law that essentially made the Cabinet of Ministers independent of the president. Another example was Yushchenko's failed attempt to appoint Vladimir Ogryzko as foreign minister. Soon, the opposition parties began boycotting the parliament's plenary sessions, causing a paralyzing deadlock in the government.
Ukrainian Parliament Dissolved
On April 2, 2007, eight months after these troubles truly began, President Yushchenko, in a risky decision, dissolved parliament and signed a decree ordering new parliamentary elections. The triggering event for the decree was the defection of many members of Our Ukraine and the Yulia Tymoshenko bloc to the majority coalition. Amongst other gains for The Coalition, these defections would provide enough votes to override any presidential veto.
Yushchenko's attempt to salvage the political results of the Orange Revolution was first met with hostility from Prime Minister and head of the Party of Regions, Viktor Yanukovych. The Prime Minister initially declared the decree a usurpation of power, but quickly changed his stance and announced that he would agree to a new election if the President and opposition insisted.
Issues for the New Election
Several battles began over the legitimacy of the new elections and The Constitutional Court of Ukraine began examining the legalities of the parliament's dissolution. Several times, Yushchenko has attempted to fire two of the court's judges over allegations of oath treason. After the second attempt, the court ruled that a law allowing the president to appoint and dismiss certain members of the court is unconstitutional, thereby restricting his influence on the court system.
Finally, on May 27, 2007, the President, Prime Minister, and Chairman of the Parliament, Oleksander Moroz, agreed to hold new Parliamentary elections on September 30, 2007. In a possible preview of the election, the Taras Shevchenko Political and Sociological Studies Institute conducted a survey between June 25 - July 1, 2007 that produced the following polling data (includes party name, party head, and percentage of voters favoring the group):
- Party of Regions - Viktor Yanukovych .......................... 26.3%
- Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc - Yulia Tymoshenko ............... 22.7%
- People's Self Defence ..................................................... 20.1%
- Our Ukraine - Viktor Yushchenko .................................. 10.2%
- Communist Party of Ukraine - Petro Simonenko ....... 3.1%
- Socialist Party of Ukraine - Oleksander Moroz ........... 2.1%
Political Outlook for Ukraine
The Ukrainian political scene seems to change almost daily, but these results do not look good for Yushchenko and the opposition. The United States, supporters of the Orange Revolution and the opposition, will be keeping a close eye on this election, though their involvement in Iraq precludes them from having much influence in this process. On the other hand, Russia favors The Coalition, and would welcome an opportunity to once again exert its influence on Ukraine.
References
Unian News Agency. "6 parties and blocs would enter the parliament - poll." July 5, 2007.
