For more than 11 years the tragic story around the disappearance of journalist Heorhii Gongadze has been unfolding before Ukrainian society. Half a year ago, hope for justice dawned at last. One has to hand it down to the incumbent authorities: they had the nerve to initiate legal proceedings against Ukraine’s ex-President Leonid Kuchma (our readers will surely remember that he is suspected of being involved in illegal actions and the assassination of Gongadze, as well as illegal actions against journalist Podolsky). Although, we would like to reiterate, the first person to dare start a criminal case against the then incumbent President Kuchma in 2002 was Yurii Vasylenko, judge of the Kyiv Court of Appeals, which had wide repercussions. But the Prosecutor General’s Office ruled that it was impossible to open a case against the president.
Just like during the first “cassette scandal” of November, 2002, this year, when the proceedings against him were initiated in March, Kuchma also looked somewhat confused. That was recorded by all video and photo cameras around the Prosecutor General’s Office, where he appeared two or three times each week.
However, this did not last long. Mustering his courage and his men, the ex-president launched a counterattack at all fronts. It goes without saying that he has every opportunity imaginable for this. A vehement campaign for the whitewashing of Kuchma’s image was launched. Firstly, sponsored letters by public figures and artists appeared, along with appeals to have mercy on him. Secondly, renowned Russian film director Andrei Konchalovski made a documentary titled Battle for Ukraine. Thirdly, sponsored articles in some media and a framed-up broadcast of the Freedom of Speech appeared. And finally, an active campaign started to discredit witnesses, in particular, Number-One, Mykola Melnychenko.
However, today we can witness the change of the scenario from “whitewashing Kuchma” into a different quality. The active campaign has now sunk into its final stage. The main witness in “Kuchmagate,” Melnychenko, is outside Ukraine. What is the reason? He has more than once declared that he cooperates with the investigation and openly aids it, since his main objective is to prove Kuchma’s guilt.
We would like to remind that on July 29 this year the Court of Appeals of Kyiv made the ruling of the Pe-chersk raion court of June 23, 2011 a standing judgment. The ruling in question had canceled the decree of Ukraine’s ex-Prosecutor General Sviatoslav Piskun of March 1, 2005 dropping the criminal case against Melnychenko (which was initiated on the indictment of disclosure of a state secret, abuse of power, and forgery). So what actually made Melnychenko leave the country?
While the key witness hid abroad to save his life, the key suspect sat in the VIP box at the Olympic Stadium during the ceremony of opening this main Euro-2012 arena in Kyiv. This man is free to travel within Ukraine and abroad. Early this month, Kuchma flew to Cape Town to attend the 62nd International Astronautical Congress while Yurii Lutsenko and Yulia Tymoshenko remained in custody, although none is suspected of any involvement in or with the murder case.
Characteristically, VR Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn’s demeanor has changed. He looked depressed after Kuchma started being questioned in conjunction with the Gongadze case, and after Melnychenko’s statement about Lytvyn’s complicity he sued him for libel and slander. Lytvyn is back in shape. He won the case and the court ruled that Melnychenko make public apology. Lytvyn is reportedly negotiating merger with the Party of Regions, on condition that Cabinet members be present during VR sessions. He is constantly present in various television programs, talk shows, etc. This is proof of an effective Kuchma-whitewashing scenario.
Europe’s response came when OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatovic, stated October 6: “Unfortunately, the trial that has resumed today remains closed to the media. This raises concerns about transparency. In my September 13 letter to the Ukrainian authorities, I emphasized the importance of free reporting in this ‘case of the decade.’ All the circumstances surrounding the cruel murder of Heorhii Gongadze should become known and public officials implicated should not be shielded using secrecy arguments… the fruitless efforts of the last decade to find the instigators of this killing require the judiciary to show maximum openness at this final stage to ensure the credibility of the final verdict.”
