Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-10-20-Speech-3-618"
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"en.20101020.25.3-618"2
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".
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the people of Ukraine have come out impressively in favour of a European future for their country again and again. Disturbing reports from Ukraine, however, indicate developments that distance the country from Europe. That is why we are having this debate ahead of the municipal elections. We will be able to discuss economic reforms in November in connection with the EU-Ukraine summit.
We therefore need to talk about intimidation by the secret police and restrictions on the freedom of the press and the ability to take part in the elections unhindered. Developments like this cannot be balanced out by positive news in the economic sphere. ‘Economic prosperity through authoritarian rule’ is a Chinese approach, not a European one. Those who hold power in Ukraine today should not be allowed to believe that they can escape just because the broad European public takes no notice or because the previous government admittedly did have failings in relation to good governance and combating corruption. These things are true, yet there was no atmosphere of being watched, there were no visits from the secret police, as has been experienced by the rector of the Catholic University of Lviv and by young people involved in NGOs and opposition parties. Cutting off power to businesses, seizing computers, occupying party offices on the grounds of supposed risks of attacks – the whole gamut of the
is on show in Ukraine. There is method to it. The secret police is headed by Mr Khoroshkovsky, who actually runs a media empire and is now also a member of the committee to appoint the most senior judge in the country. That, too, distances Ukraine from Europe. There is little left of equality of opportunity in the political contest before the municipal elections. The opposition is being partially excluded from the elections, while puppet parties are being spontaneously formed and authorised to take part in the elections by compliant local authorities. In Kiev, the district councils are being unceremoniously abolished so that no elections are taking place there – the governing party knows that it will not win there are the moment. The power vertical has the objective of achieving control over regions that have previously been inclined to disagree with it.
We put forward our European experience as an alternative. Our Member States took important decisions in democratic consensus between government and an opposition ready to take responsibility – for European reforms, for the rule of law, for a competitive market economy, for European integration. We want Ukraine to continue down this road with us."@en1
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