Ukraine's parliament to consider restoring power of anti-corruption agencies amid Zelensky backlash
"I really want parliament to vote (for the new measure) just as quickly as it did last time," said protester Kateryna Kononenko, 36, referring to last week's fast-tracked approval of the controversial amendments.
Activists also called for demonstrations near parliament ahead of Thursday's vote in an attempt to pressure lawmakers to approve the new bill.
Eradicating graft and shoring up the rule of law are key requirements for Kyiv to join the EU, which Ukrainians see as critical to their future as they fend off a Russian invasion.
Last week's amendments had given Zelensky's hand-picked general prosecutor the power to transfer cases away from the anti-graft agencies and reassign prosecutors - a step critics had said was designed to protect allies from prosecution.
While much smaller, the rallies of the past week have sparked comparisons to Ukraine's 2014 Maidan revolution, when protesters toppled a president they accused of corruption and heavy-handed rule. More than two-thirds of Ukrainians support the recent protests, according to a recent survey by Ukrainian pollster Gradus Research.
CORRUPTION FIGHTERS
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) have stepped up a closely watched campaign against graft since Russia's February 2022 invasion.
They have produced charges against lawmakers and senior government officials, including a then-deputy prime minister who was accused last month of taking a $345,000 kickback. Speaking to Reuters last Friday, after Zelenskiy's reversal, NABU chief Semen Kryvonos said he expected pressure against his agency to continue, fuelled by what he described as corrupt forces uninterested in cleaning up Ukraine.
He added that he and other anti-corruption officials felt a greater sense of responsibility following the protests, but also called on the country's leadership to help their effort.
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