What did Ukraine's court ruling on illicit enrichment mean?
A retrospective on a Constitutional Court decision reported in the days before 28 February 2019, alongside Ukraine's Eurovision withdrawal.
What was happening in Ukrainian public life around 28 February 2019? Two developments reported in the preceding days stood out, one legal and one cultural.
On 26 February 2019, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine declared Article 368-2 of the Criminal Code unconstitutional. The article set out punishment for officials for illicit enrichment. Criminal liability of this kind had been introduced in 2015 at the request of the EU, as part of visa liberalisation, and of the IMF.
On 27 February 2019, the National Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine announced that Ukraine would not take part in the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest. The announcement followed the refusal of the singer MARUV to sign the contract, and the withdrawal of the groups Freedom Jazz and KAZKA from participation.
Taken together, the reports from those days show a court ruling that touched on commitments made to international partners, and a national broadcaster stepping back from a major international contest.
