11:31 18.09.2014

Verkhovna Rada deputy claims Donbas special status law altered after endorsement

2 min read

Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada deputy Anatoliy Hrytsenko (Batkivschyna) claims that law No. 5081, which defines a special status of certain districts in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, was altered after its endorsement.

"I confirm. The text of the law No. 5081 'On the Special Status' has been changed," Hrytsenko wrote on Facebook on Wednesday evening.

According to the deputy, the text of the law published on the Verkhovna Rada Web site significantly differed from the presidential edition supported by 277 parliamentarians.

"For instance, the territories of Donbas to enjoy 'the special status' will be chosen not by the Verkhovna Rada [as compelled by the bill] but by Security Service Lt. Gen. Vasyl Hrytsak, head of the Ukrainian Security Service Antiterrorism Center," Hrytsenko wrote.

He said he still had a copy of the bill presented to deputies on the morning of September 16.

"It was submitted by the president, registered in the Rada on the same day [there is a registration stamp on it], and it bore the president's signature. Deputies did not see any other draft. A total of 277 deputies 'approved' the draft as a whole, without holding any debates or making amendments," Hrytsenko emphasized.

In his opinion, the president has no moral right to sign this law but must initiate an inquiry and bring the culprits to justice.

At a closed meeting on September 16, the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada passed the presidential bill introducing a special self-government procedure for some districts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions for the period of three years and scheduling early local elections in those regions for December 7, 2014.

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