What did Ukraine's Constitutional Court ruling mean for anti-corruption rules?
A look back at the ruling of 28 October 2020 and Belarus's border closures a day later.
What was at stake for Ukraine's anti-corruption framework on 29 October 2020, the day after the Constitutional Court of Ukraine issued its ruling? As reported at the time, the decision of 28 October 2020 meant the end of electronic asset declaration. It also removed the powers of the National Agency on Corruption Prevention to carry out full checks and to monitor lifestyles.
The ruling's reach went further. It meant the abolition of liability for illicit enrichment, of the confiscation of assets acquired through corruption, and of liability for false declarations. In practical terms, the main tools used to scrutinise public officials' wealth were affected at once.
On 29 October 2020 Ukraine also faced a development on its northern frontier. Belarus abruptly closed its borders with Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine, while leaving the border with Russia open. The move came amid ongoing protests against President Alexander Lukashenko, who insisted that it was meant to restrict the spread of COVID-19.
The two developments were separate, but both landed on the same day in Ukraine's public life: one reshaping the domestic rules on integrity in office, the other altering a neighbouring border during a pandemic.
