On Tuesday evening, Dniprovsky District Court of Kyiv lifted Hennadii Korban’s detention, placing him under house arrest. Korban was released immediately, no electronic wristbands were attached. The preventive measure will be valid until April 15.
Given that the feud between the president and the government have once again deteriorated to a sharp confrontation, many were under the impression that this court decision secured Korban’s freedom in exchange for loyalty of the group “Privat” to Poroshenko concerning the replacement of the prime minister. On the other hand, Korban trial had been demonstrating the obvious selectivity of the persecution, especially in contrast to those who live freely in the capital despite having brought the war to Ukraine. Thus, the trial against Korban could not bring Poroshenko or his force any political dividends, and in the context of failed pro-European projects it had only aggravated the situation.
But those are only versions. The problem lies elsewhere. Are people in Ukraine really being imprisoned and released by an order “from above”? After all, that would be the verdict for today’s power system, for which the police and the courts are merely tools, and the law is but a convention. And we are not talking here about European values and slogans of European integration. These are the basic requirements for the evolution of public administration and of people’s co-existence in general. Finally, as we face the aggression, is this flaw not the weak link the enemy aims for?
Photo by Ruslan KANIUKA, The Day
When we talk about Savchenko case and are appalled by the injustice of Russian dictatorial system, in which the court receives orders from the government “to punish or pardon,” is it not about time to be terrified that our Ukrainian judicial system is mirroring the Russian? The only difference is that whereas the Kremlin pursues the imperial interest (and hence its actions, albeit perverse, serve to preserve the statehood), our government pursue the interests of specific clans, and no public interest is being served at all.
“THE KORBAN TRIAL IS POLITICIZED AND SELECTIVE”
Viktor NEBOZHENKO, political scientist:
“The President really needs the votes to remove the prime minister. These voices are being secured in a variety of ways. He might promise something to somebody, or he may release someone from prison. So Korban’s release is not about Korban.
“Law-enforcement system is really rotten, but it is only a tool for the achievement of specific political objectives. So, the backdrop for Korban’s release is a sharp conflict that has unfolded between the president and the prime minister. By freeing Korban, Poroshenko hopes for an acknowledgment from the deputies of UKROP and of Ihor Kolomoisky himself. Now we should wait for a statement by, for example, Self Reliance. They might say that peace is better than war and show loyalty to the president by agreeing to remove the prime minister from office.
“But the fact is that there is no alternative to Yatseniuk. Not because he is good, but because no one else would be better – be it Hroisman, Turchynov, or Lutsenko. And the president has no serious candidates for the head of the government. Of course, Yatseniuk uses the situation.
“The Korban trial itself has demonstrated the total subservience of law-enforcement agencies and courts to the political agenda, as well as their apparent selectivity. And all these actions, including the prosecution of volunteers, for example, will have some grave long-time consequences. In politics, unfortunately, we have not left anything living; anything that was alive is only being burned down. This affects both young and old. Everything that appears as an alternative falls under the influence of the clan-oligarchic structure in the end. All these processes only demonstrate that today’s political environment is swamp, in which all hope is drowned.”
