Justice Minister Pavlo Petrenko is doing everything he can to ensure the EU lifts sanctions on the Family's businesses.
Pavel Petrenko, Minister of Justice
The actions of the Ministry of Justice under Pavlo Petrenko may help members of the Family to lift EU sanctions.
(Read more about it in the article Pavel Petrenko, the "pocket" boy of the Yatsenyuk "Family")
Remember the jubilation of the Maidan when they managed to oust the so-called Family from power? Jubilation gave way to surprise when it turned out that all representatives of the "criminal power," with the passive blessing of the new government, had fled the country virtually unhindered and hid from Ukrainian justice in hostile Russia. Surprise gave way to indignation – the newly minted officials of the "hyena government," so named by Tetyana Chornovol, had seized upon the schemes developed by the Donetsk people and successfully mastered the nuances of tender procurement. (Obozrevatel has written about this repeatedly. Read more in the articles "Death Tenders," "Death Tenders. Continued," "What's good for billionaire Yurushev means death for Ukrzaliznytsia," and "The President is curious about the organization of criminal groups at Ukrzaliznytsia. The government has been covered.")
And here's a new episode in the record of the government that came out of the Maidan. The Ministry of Justice is creating all the conditions for Yanukovych, his sons, and his company to force the EU to lift the sanctions imposed against them. But first things first.
In March 2014, the EU Council froze the assets of 18 Ukrainian officials suspected of embezzlement and involvement in the Maidan massacres. A few months later, former President Yanukovych and his sons, the two Pshenko brothers, the Klyuyev brothers, and young oligarch Serhiy Kurchenko filed lawsuits in European courts against the EU's decision to impose sanctions against them. The lawsuits were filed by individuals against the Council of the European Union. They are to be heard by the General Court of the EU and the European Court of Justice in cases against the Council of the EU.
So what is the Ministry of Justice under Pavlo Petrenko doing? The Ministry of Justice has decided to introduce Ukraine as a third party in the sanctions challenge process. This, in turn, could play into the Family's hands and allow them to unfreeze their frozen assets.
On September 14, 2014, the Ministry of Justice issued a power of attorney to attorney Maitre Kamilla Mehtiyeva. According to the document, the attorney will represent the interests of the Ukrainian state, represented by the Ministry of Justice, in European courts. Search engines do not reveal any information about attorney Maitre Kamilla Mehtiyeva.
Pavel Petrenko
Moreover, Kamilla Mekhteeva, according to the concluded agreement, volunteered to work completely free of charge (where such selflessness comes from in a European lawyer is a big question).
According to Obozrevatel's sources, the decision to have Ukraine join the process was made independently by the Ministry of Justice. This information was confirmed by Inna Yemelyanova, former First Deputy Minister of Justice.
"The Ministry of Justice didn't coordinate this matter with anyone, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As far as I know, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had a different position on this matter and voiced it," Yemelyanova asserts.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Yevgeny Perebyinis, in a comment to Obozrevatel, found it difficult to formulate the Ministry's position: "I'm not sure the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is handling this issue; the Ministry of Justice is responsible for these matters."
Meanwhile, Obozrevatel's sources say that the EU side in this case negatively assessed Ukraine's inclusion in the case as a third party and tacitly recommended withdrawing this request after determining who initiated such an accession and for what purpose.
"The EU side believes that Ukraine's initiative to join the process is counterproductive and does not take into account all the negative legal and political consequences of this step," the source explains.
Here are some of the EU's main arguments:
The EU's imposition of sanctions is a test of the Ukrainian government's willingness to eschew politically motivated interference in legal proceedings. Ukraine's participation in the sanctions challenge process may indicate that our country has failed this test.
— there is a risk that Ukraine’s involvement in the case may be considered politically motivated,
— In addition, Ukraine will have to waive its state immunity and answer questions from EU judges and the plaintiffs' lawyers.
What could they possibly ask the Ukrainian side about? For example, whether investigations were conducted into the involvement of individuals sanctioned in the Maidan shootings and the embezzlement of public funds. And most importantly, what were the results of these investigations. Ukraine will have no answer for this.
"The problem is that sanctions must have a corresponding material basis. For example, has a criminal case been opened that establishes facts that would justify the imposition of sanctions? That is, has it been established that these individuals gave orders to shoot people on the Maidan, to violate human rights and freedoms, to cause damage to the state and individuals, etc. However, such investigations in Ukraine have not been completed, and it is not known whether they are even being conducted," says Stepan Gavrish, a doctor of law and former MP.
Why involve Ukraine in the process if we're exposing problem areas and giving a head start to the "criminals of the century"? It's hard to imagine that our Ministry of Justice doubts the impartiality of the European judicial system or the professionalism of the lawyers representing the EU and defending Europe's decision to impose sanctions on former Ukrainian judges.
The Ministry of Justice's official motivation is unclear. Obozrevatel sent a request to clarify.
But everything falls into place if we assume that the Ministry of Justice’s goal is to play along with the plaintiffs.
"The European Court's decision (if it's in favor of Yanukovych and Co. – Author) can be appealed, but even then, reimposing sanctions against them for the same reasons will be virtually impossible. Sanctions can only be imposed based on newly discovered circumstances, for example, once the criminal investigation in Ukraine is completed and their guilt is proven," Gavrish explains the implications of the European Court's decision.
Judging by the pace and effectiveness of the investigation of these cases, it is obvious that they will not be concluded anytime soon.
Former First Deputy Minister of Justice Inna Yemelyanova does not recall a single similar case from the legal practice of other countries in which the state intervened in a case regarding the application of sanctions.
"I believe Ukraine should not join this process. We have no connection to the EU, and we do not represent these individuals. There are certain risks that Ukraine will have to make some comments. If, God forbid, even a partial approval of the plaintiffs' complaint to lift the sanctions is granted, it could be interpreted as implying that the Ministry of Justice joined the process precisely for this purpose," suggests Inna Yemelyanova, former First Deputy Minister of Justice.
But Pavel Petrenko is obviously not afraid of this if he is so persistently trying to interfere in the European justice process.
After all, you always need money to buy black caviar for 7,5 hryvnias and sit in expensive restaurants...
Pavel Petrenko
In June 2014, Petrenko was spotted at the upscale Kyiv store Good Wine, where, according to eyewitnesses, he was buying black caviar for 7500 hryvnias. A photo was published on Olga Bondarenko's blog.
Yulia Lavrysyuk, Columnist
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