General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Do political pundits who deny the Russian invasion of Crimea deserve to be taken seriously at DU? [View all]JonLP24
(29,322 posts)There is no real separation of powers between the judicial & government branches. Constitutional court judges are easily dismissed for "oath violations".
The judicial system of Ukraine is outlined in the 1996 Constitution of Ukraine.[1] Before this there was no notion of judicial review nor any Supreme Court since 1991's Ukrainian independence.[2] Inherited most of its principles from the court system of the Soviet Union and the Ukrainian SSR, the court system of Ukraine is slowly being restructured.
Although judicial independence exist in principle, in practice there is little separation of juridical and political powers. Judges are subjected to pressure by political and business interests.[3] Ukraine's court system is widely regarded as corrupt.[4]
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Juridical corruption
"There could even be cases of the revocation of investment, because legal uncertainty is very deep, and the actions of regional authorities are willful."
German Ambassador to Ukraine Hans-Jurgen Heimsoeth, late September 2011[37]
See also: Judicial system of Ukraine, Mazhory and Murder of Oksana Makar
Ukrainian politicians and analysts have described the system of justice in Ukraine as "rotten to the core"[38][39] and have complained about political pressure put on judges and corruption.[40] Independent lawyers and human rights activists have complained Ukrainian judges regularly come under pressure to hand down a certain verdict.[41] Ukraine's court system is widely regarded as corrupt.[42] A Ukrainian Justice Ministry survey in 2009 revealed that only 10% of respondents trusted the nations court system. Less than 30% believed that it was still possible to get a fair trial.[38]
Although judicial independence exists in principle, in practise there is little separation of juridical and political powers. Judges are subjected to pressure by political and business interests.[43]
An August 2014 Ukrayinska Pravda article claimed that the brides judges receive ("from a few to many thousands of dollars" are sometimes much higher their salaries (of 915 US dollar).[44] (An example of this could be) on May 22, 2012 Volodymyr Rokytskyi, Deputy Head of Ukraine's Security Service, was photographed in public wearing a US$32,000 luxury wristwatch despite the fact that its price amounts to his yearly official income. The instance happened at a joint Ukrainian-American event dedicated to fighting illegal drugs.[45] Ukrainian judges have been arrested while taking bribes.[46]
Critics have also complained that officials and their children (the latter ones are known as "mazhory"[47]) receive favourable sentences compared with common citizens.[48][49]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_in_Ukraine#Juridical_corruption
There are several politicians currently under investigation, mostly those who did well in vote counts in the East.