Maryna Stavniychuk: Draft law on criminal liability for misappropriation of state functions has no prospects
26 March 2024 17:51
ЕКСКЛЮЗИВ
Draft law #11104, which criminalises the misappropriation of state functions, has virtually no chance of being approved by parliament in its current form. This was stated in an exclusive commentary to Komersant ukrainskyi 
by lawyer Maryna Stavniychuk.
The expert stressed that the phrase “representation of Ukraine at international events”, which appears in the draft law, describes a very wide range of activities.
“This initiative looks very strange to me. What does it mean to represent Ukraine? The public sector has the right to represent Ukrainian civil society when, for example, NGOs speak on their own behalf and attend some conferences, forums, etc… Society is not always identical to the state. Especially when it comes to introducing responsibility for certain actions,”
– said the lawyer.
She believes that in order for the law to work, definitions should be clearly spelled out.
“If we are talking, for example, about functions, about replacing state bodies with someone else, then the object of a crime or offence in this law, especially when such a huge criminal liability is introduced, must be clearly defined: what does representing Ukraine mean. Representation of the Verkhovna Rada, for example, or representation of the government or the president – what is meant? The draft law does not contain such a definition.”
– stavniychuk added, noting that the document is currently written in too general terms.
When asked whether she saw any signs of political struggle in the initiative, the lawyer answered in the affirmative, but noted that it was not about the presidential election.
“I don’t think there is a link to the upcoming presidential election. I wouldn’t link it exclusively to the government-opposition struggle, but rather, it could be connected to the internal political struggle. This initiative may also be related to MPs who are formally part of the majority but share different positions,”
– believes Maryna Stavniychuk.
Draft law #11104, which criminalises the misappropriation of state functions, was registered by two MPs from the Servant of the People faction, Mariana Bezuhla and Halyna Tretyakova. The document proposes to establish criminal liability for the misappropriation of state functions by a citizen, including “representation of Ukraine at international events”.
