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Interview with Oleksii Khmara, President of Toro Creative Union, part of the Transparency International network

Toro Creative Union based out of Kirovograd, Ukraine, is a civil society organisation that strives to develop democratic procedures and citizen participation in the Ukraine. Since 2009 this human rights watch organisation has also been acting as Transparency International’s contact in the Ukraine.

Приехав в Украину, вы обязательно ощутите незабываемый вкус колоритной национальной традиции – взяточничества! Так приветствует всех желающих посетить Украину один из международных туристических порталов.

I have been living in Kirovograd, Ukraine for nine weeks, and it feels strange that I am about to leave. I feel that my time here has passed so quickly, but I have been able to accomplish and experience so much. I have made some great friends in Kirovograd and have met a lot of very interesting people.

Since the 1st of July 2010, the Ministry of Justice is aimed at looking for the factors fostering corruption in the projects of normative-legal acts, which are prepared by the officials of different levels. For conducting an expertise, the Ministry has developed a special document - the guidelines which define those factors and the methods of their detection. What are the opportunities to prevent corruption and what risks contain the document, explained the experts of the Creative Union "TORO", Transparency International - National Contact in Ukraine.

На сайте ТОРО доступна для скачивания книга Пола Раду "Следите за деньгами: Пособие для журналистов, разоблачающих коррупцию".

The overall effectiveness of the local administrations in the Kirovohrad region to implement the Concept of promoting the civil society development by the executive authorities does not exceed on the regional level 65% and on the district level 25%. At the same time, 3 of the 9 district state administrations which were submitted to the expertise, in actual fact did not even take part in the implementation of the Concept.

In the full of summer heat in Kiev was hot for another reason. In Ukraine, involving more than 70 representatives of ministries and departments, a special training on the implementation of the new legislation on conflict of interests has taken place. Within this framework, one of the leading international experts in the field of integrity, a Board member of Transparency International Belgium, Evert Jan Lammers visited Ukraine. Mr. Lammers found an opportunity to meet with the editorial staff of the newsletter “On the way to integrity” and to answer in the short interview some questions about similarities and differences in approaches to preventing corruption in Ukraine and Belgium.

Civil society activists of the Kirovohrad region will control the conduction of consultations with civil society during the decision-making by authorities; the experts of Transparency International Czech Republic will assist them and the local authorities will provide with information. Those results were achieved during the round table composing of civil society activists, authority’s representatives and experts from Transparency International Czech Republic, on the 15th of July 2010.

So far I have been in Ukraine for only a week, but it feels as though it has been much longer. In Kirovograd, I am living with a family, who from the moment I arrived has made me feel like part of their family.

In  Lviv, on the 8th of June, the representatives of the Consortium composed of non-governmental organizations of Ukraine, as well as the representatives of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation and the members of the Office of Government Commissioner for anti-corruption policies discussed the Anti-corruption strategy. In particular, during the discussion the matters of an anti-corruption legislation and the role of civil society in this process were considered. The event was supported by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation.

The Ukrainian President and government announce that they want to conduct anticorruption reforms. This became the stimulus for the new research with the assistance of the international organization, Transparency International.

ARTICLE 19 and International Media Support (IMS) are calling on President Viktor Yanukovych and his administration to ensure that Ukraine upholds its commitments to freedom of expression and in particular press freedom under the European Convention of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.  Since the end of February 2010, the press freedom situation in the country has deteriorated markedly. 

Despite the end of the academic year, activists of Kharkiv youth organizations decided to continue training. At a time when other students were listening to the last school bell and attending graduation parties, these young activists were organizing and conducting a training seminar called “How Public Youth Organizations Can Resist Corruption.”

This conclusion can be taken from the discussion “How the community can resist Corruption: Approaches of Transparency International,” which was held on May 20th in Kiev.

Ukrainian Vice-Prime Minister, Volodymyr Sivkovich and Andrey Bogdan, who is the Deputy Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers and the government representative concerning anticorruption politics, held a working discussion with Miklosh Marshal, the Regional Director in Europe and Central Asia Region of Transparency International (Berlin, Germany).

KIEV, Ukraine (AP) -- Ukrainian prosecutors say they are reopening a bribery investigation involving former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko that was suspended in 2005.

Такие выводы содержатся в отчете о ходе выполнения в Украине Европейской политики соседства, который был обнародован Европейской комиссией.

Нам и раньше доводилось слышать о том, какой разительный контраст составляет жизнь Винницы и других городов сходного масштаба, об уникальном городском голове этого города и его достижениях. Поэтому «УЦ» сразу откликнулась на приглашение Виктора Андреева, начальника Главного управления ЖКХ облгосадминистрации, посетить соседний областной центр вместе с делегацией коммунальников Кировоградщины и увидеть все своими глазами. Результат превзошел все мыслимые и немыслимые ожидания!

About 60 representatives of the CSOs and departments of justice from seven regions of Ukraine took part in the seminar.  The main topics for discussion were: improving the practice of the CSO registration, legal assistance to the CSOs in reporting and compliance with their statutory requirement and acting legislation, as well as legal mechanisms of citizen participation in the government policy development and implementation. Civic leaders had an opportunity to hear first-hand from Olena Semyorkina, Director of the Department of CSO legalization and registration of printed media of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, as well as from the independent experts.

The first seating of the National Anticorruption Committee within the President of Ukraine set out the necessity of involving the community in corruption counteraction. Therefore, the President Viktor Yanukovich instructed the Executive Secretary of the Committee to work out the format of increasing the Committee by involving the community.

During the first seating of the National Anticorruption Committee Viktor Yanukovich offered the Prime-Minister of Ukraine to initiate the change of the Governmentally Authorized Person in Anticorruption Policy. The President sees Minister of Justice O.Lavrinovich as a coordinator of state anticorruption policy. The community supposes this step to be the beginning of the end of existence of the institution of the Governmentally Authorized Person.

President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych chaired a meeting of the National Anti-Corruption Committee.

In his speech the President stressed that fighting corruption in Ukraine remains the main nationwide problem. "This is the issue that directly affects the interests of every citizen and has been a "national headache"," he said.

В Кировограде пройдут общественные слушания по вопросу ликвидации районных советов

Anticorruption initiatives of the new authorities leave aside the sphere of punishment execution of Ukraine. During the year 2010, 1500 civil servants and officials who conduct work regarding corruption prevention, will undergo special professional development training. At the same time there is not a single employee of Criminal-executive system of Ukraine among them.