President of Ukraine
Heads of the VRU Committee on Law Enforcement
Heads of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union
Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on human rights
People’s deputies of Ukraine
Members of the Ukrainian Business Council, which includes 112 business associations of various sectors of the economy, whose members are 28,000 enterprises, analyzed the law of Ukraine on strengthening the independence of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (No. 3509-IX dated 08.12.2023) and address you with the following:
From January 1, 2024, Law No. 3509-IX entered into force, which repealed some of Lozovoy’s “amendments”, namely, from January 1, 2024, the period of pre-trial investigation is calculated from the moment the person is notified of the suspicion until the day of the appeal to the court with the indictment, the request for application of coercive measures of a medical or educational nature, a motion to release a person from criminal liability, a motion to close criminal proceedings or until the day of a decision to close criminal proceedings.
Specialists of the Ukrainian Business Council have analyzed in detail the innovations of Law No. 3509 and express their objective concern regarding the following:
In essence, this law provides an opportunity to conduct a pre-trial investigation without notifying the person of suspicion and closing the case for decades, without any control by the judicial corps and with clear violations of the provisions of Art. 2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, according to which the tasks of criminal proceedings are to ensure a quick, complete and impartial investigation and trial, so that no person is subjected to unjustified procedural coercion.
With the implementation of these norms, the law enforcement agencies essentially no longer have the need to periodically contact investigating judges in order to extend the terms of the pre-trial investigation. This creates significant potential for abuse and pressure on citizens and businesses, and will lead to unwarranted procedural coercion by law enforcement officers, who in the past have often abused the right to search, seize property, and seize taxpayer accounts and assets. Due to these legislative innovations, persons whose rights or legal interests are restricted during the pre-trial investigation may wait for years for justice, return of confiscated or seized property, etc.
Changes to the Code of Civil Procedure determined by Law No. 3509-IX will significantly affect the development of business in Ukraine and have already led to the narrowing of the rights and freedoms of Ukrainian citizens. Society expects state institutions to ensure effective equality before the law for all without exception, and the inevitability of punishment for committed crimes with strict adherence to the norms of procedural law without the possibility of “juggling” them.
Currently, according to the Office of the Prosecutor General, there are already about 1.1 million criminal proceedings for which a decision (on termination or suspension) has not been made before the beginning of the reporting period. As a result of the adopted changes to the Criminal Procedure Code, this number will increase even more, which will affect both the quality of investigations and the investment climate.
Summarizing what has been said, we appeal to the People’s Deputies of Ukraine to make appropriate amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine and provide the necessary safeguards for a quick and impartial pre-trial investigation by introducing judicial control over the terms of pre-trial investigation in all criminal proceedings.
Best regards
Business associations
Members of the Ukrainian Business Council