Tymoshenko wants her case to be handled by jury

Ukraine's ex-prime minister and leader of the Batkivschyna party Yulia Tymoshenko has demanded that her case be handled by a jury and proposed announcing a recess in the hearings of the "gas case" at the Pechersky district court, so that parliament could pass the relevant law.

"The idea of my request is to replace the farce under the name of 'Pechersky district court' with a jury trial," she said during preliminary hearings of the gas case on Friday.

Tymoshenko proposed announcing a recess in the hearings so the parliament could pass the bill on the jury trial, submitted to the Verkhovna Rada by the BYT-Batkivschyna faction.

"I propose announcing a recess in the hearings, to give time for the president, who has a majority in parliament and, besides that, is engaged in democracy rhetoric in the public space, to pass a law on the jury trial. Only afterwards can political cases, seen as absurd, as an order, as farce and a political reprisal in Ukraine and in the world, as well, be heard" she said.

Tymoshenko submitted the relevant request, saying that the court is biased.