Civil Network OPORA is concerned about an incident when a group of MPs of Ukraine attempted to conduct the plenary session of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine outside its premises on April 4, 2013. Such approach to the solution of parliamentary conflict is doubtful from legal and political point of view, what creates preconditions for final diminution of the Verkhovna Rada's importance in the political process.
Functioning of two "alternative" parliaments has established precedent which discredits activities of MPs and may bring recurring incidents in the future. All the decisions taken by the group of MPs in the other premises, must be legally reconsidered and re-voted in the Verkhovna Rada premises during its plenary sitting. At the same time, the pro-power majority and opposition minority should find necessary compromises for stable functioning of the Parliament through public negotiations. As long as all political forces without an exception are involved in blocking of the parliament as an utmost measure, the way out of crisis should be found as a result of a wide parliamentary dialog and compromise.
According to the Article 2 (1) of the Law of Ukraine on the Rules of Procedure of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, parliamentary sittings shall be conducted in the premises of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (Kyiv city, Hrushevskoho St. 5). At the same time, the 2nd part of this article provides that the sittings may be conducted in the other premises, if such decision is taken by the majority of the constitutional complement of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine[1]. According to the Article 84 of the Constitution of Ukraine, decisions of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine are adopted exclusively at its plenary meetings by voting[2].
On April 4, the decision to conduct plenary sittings of the parliament in other premises was taken during the meeting of the Party of Regions, the CPU and some non-faction MPs. Therefore, such meeting which has seamlessly moved into the plenary sitting of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine can't be considered as legitimate. To compare, let's remind that the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine took a resolution in 1999, according to which it's solemn sitting and taking the oath by the President of Ukraine L. Kuchma could be conducted in the Ukraine Palace[3]. However, on April 4, 2013 the meeting of MPs of Ukraine, which was announced with this very status, have taken over the powers of the whole Parliament.
MPs of Ukraine, which didn't participate in the meeting of the Party of Regions and the CPU, were not allowed to enter the plenary sitting of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, announced some time later. Even if we consider the parliamentary sitting in the other premises as legitimate, constitutional rights of MPs of Ukraine were violated. In particular, according to the decision of the Constitutional Court No.17-рп/2002 as of 10/17/2002, powers of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine are realized through joint activities of MPs of Ukraine on sessions and sittings of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine[4].
Therefore, hindering opposition MPs to enter the plenary sitting is contradictory to the principle of joint parliamentary activities and has features of usurping powers of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. This very decision of the Constitutional Court provides that plenary sittings, which are regular meetings of MPs of Ukraine of the corresponding convocation at a specified time in a certain place and are held according to the established procedure, shall be the main form of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine activities. OPORA is convinced that all the requirements for the conduction of parliamentary plenary sittings were violated. The time and place of the sitting held on April 4 were not announced in advance, and the meetings of separate factions do not have any authority according to the procedure of plenary sittings.