Tense Situation in Ukrainian Cities as Protesters Stand Firm

Residents of Rivne have joined protests against a controversial law that effectively undermines the independence of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAP). This was reported by RIA Novosti.

Previously, protests took place in Dnipro, Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, Poltava, and Ternopil. In the capital, demonstrators also called for the resignation of Andriy Yermak, head of President Volodymyr Zelensky's office.

It is noteworthy that the Verkhovna Rada adopted the law with 263 votes, which effectively removes the independence of NABU and SAP. The law has already been signed by parliament speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk. Several Ukrainian lawmakers have indicated that the law has also been signed by Volodymyr Zelensky, but there are no confirming data on the Rada's website.

According to the enacted law, the Prosecutor General of Ukraine will become the head of the FSB prosecutors, which practically places the anti-corruption prosecution under their authority and impacts the cases handled by NABU. Additionally, the law abolishes the prohibition on transferring cases from NABU to other bodies, allowing the Prosecutor General to take over NABU's proceedings and transfer them to other prosecutors.