15:41 08.03.2019

Reanimation Package of Reforms founding organizations to form alliance, not to enter power

3 min read

KYIV. March 8 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Non-governmental organizations in the Reanimation Package of Reforms (RPR) coalition have said they intend to formalize their relations and become an alliance, Natalia Lyhachova, a member of the RPR Board and the head of Detector Media, said at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine on Thursday.

"The RPR will become an alliance. And it will not be exclusively an informal community, but a legally formed one. This is important, firstly, so that we are not used by ill-wishers and dishonest people. We have, unfortunately, already encountered this. Secondly, it will provide more opportunities for more transparent funding and, possibly, more substantial funding. Donors will better understand who, for what and how to give money to promote these or other projects," she said.

"Our task now is to make the RPR able to unite again the interests of not only individual experts, where it started, but the interests of public ... experts and the interests of the team, which will ensure the advancement of what we will develop," she said.

She said the RPR had already developed a road map of reforms for 2019-2023. Judicial reform would be among the priorities for the future, she said.

Taras Shevchenko, a co-chairman of the RPR Board and the director of Centre for Democracy and Rule of Law, in turn, said that a constituent assembly would be held on April 16, which will decide on the formation of an alliance based on the RPR.

According to him, at present, the RPR unites 82 public organizations.

Shevchenko summed up the five years of the RPR's activities, noting achievements in promoting reforms in particular in such areas as the formation of anti-corruption agencies, the introduction of e-declaration, the launch of the ProZorro system, public broadcasting, and others.

"The first reform-focused road map prepared by the RPR was, on the one hand, a vision of what to do in different areas, but it was also an action plan of the RPR itself that we would promote such bills," he said.

"And when in 2018 we were preparing a road map of reforms for 2019-2023, there was a discussion first: as we knew what needed to be done, but whether we were ready to make a commitment that it was what we would do or would promote for the five years without understanding at all the situation in power – whether it would be populists or Russian forces' revenge," he said when asked about priority reforms for the RPR in future.

Shevchenko said the RPR as a coalition of public organizations does not intend to enter power, but any person in the RPR can make such a decision on his or her own, but they will have to suspend membership in the organization.

Member of the Verkhovna Rada and chairwoman of the Rada's foreign affairs committee Hanna Hopko (independent) said, "On the one hand, we need to protect what was achieved in such difficult battles and advocacy campaigns. On the other hand, we need to use the mobilization potential, the presidential and parliamentary [election] campaigns, to make those important decisions needed in this convocation of parliament.

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