Ukraine’s Parliament bans activities of the Moscow church in Ukraine
On August 20, the VRU adopted as a whole revised draft law (#8371) on the ban of the activities of religious organizations on the territory of Ukraine, in particular those associated with the Russian Federation. Two hundred and sixty-five MPs supported the legislative initiative. The law will come into force in 30 days, but the communities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate will have nine months to break their ties with the Russian Orthodox Church. The draft law, widely considered to have historic impact, was introduced by the decision of the National Security and Defense Council in December 2022 and the decree of the President of Ukraine. In general, the legislative procedure of the draft law took more than a year and a half, and before its adoption, President Zelenskyy discussed the draft law with members of the Council of Churches and Religious Organizations, emphasizing that it is a “guarantee that there will be no manipulation of the Ukrainian church by Moscow.”
Verkhovna Rada makes several decisions during August 20 plenary session
On August 20, 2024, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine confirmed the following:
Resolution:
The MPs adopted the following laws:
In the first reading:
Verkhovna Rada makes several decisions during August 21 plenary session
On August 21, 2024, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine confirmed the following:
The MPs adopted the following laws:
In the first reading:
Resolutions:
RANG plays a crucial role in supporting the TSC on IDPs Rights Protection by facilitating stakeholder engagement, contributing to policy-making, and aiding in the implementation of oversight functions. Notably, the concept for draft law #11281 was a key topic at the "Housing for IDPs" forum, which took place with RANG’s support in Zakarpattia on May 15-17. This forum brought together key stakeholders to discuss critical issues surrounding housing for the IDPs.
Also, RANG’s consultants provided expert input throughout the drafting process of the legislation, ensuring that the proposed laws were well-informed and aligned with best practices.
RANG has also been instrumental in supporting several events focused on enhancing the TSC’s oversight capabilities. On June 17, RANG facilitated a roundtable organized by the TSC on IDPs titled "Monetary Assistance to Internally Displaced Persons," where discussions centered around improving financial support mechanisms for IDPs. RANG supported a TSC field meeting in the Odesa region from August 8-10, which aimed to strengthen oversight and enhance citizen engagement in the policymaking process. This meeting was critical for ensuring that the voices of IDPs are heard and that their needs are adequately addressed in ongoing policy developments.
Verkhovna Rada makes several decisions during August 22 plenary session
On August 22, 2024, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine confirmed the following:
Resolution:
The MPs adopted the following laws:
In the first reading:
RANG-supported roundtable addresses balance of maintaining the workforce during mobilization
On August 19, the Economic Development Committee held a roundtable discussion on “Legislative approaches to the booking of employees of enterprises.” The participants were MPs, representatives of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, and business associations.
Participants of the event discussed bills No. 11331, No. 11331-1, and No. 11332-2, that could introduce the mechanism of "economic reservation" on enterprises, which acknowledges that Ukrainian enterprises need to retain a certain number of their workers in order to support with taxes the costs of training people mobilized to fight in the current war with Russia. The “economic reservation” mechanism could stabilize the situation for businesses experiencing staff shortages while contributing to filling the state budget with additional funds for maintaining the military.
Second of three lectures on EU integration held
On August 20, RANG conducted a lecture regarding EU integration, and in particular, the requirements for applying for EU membership, for staffers at the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. The lecture was the second of three in a mini-course delivered by Westminster University professor of EU law, Adam Lazovsky.
RANG partner holds conference to feature importance of rural priorities in Parliamentary decision-making
On Wednesday, August 21, the NGO "Union of Rural Green Tourism of Ukraine" held the final online conference within the framework of the project “Parliament for the village: legal awareness of the rural population as a tool for decision-making.” One hundred people attended the conference, that stressed the importance of rural populations’ needs and expectations regarding Ukraine’s Parliament.
RANG and VRU agree on terms for physical accessibility audit of Ukraine’s Parliament
On August 22, RANG met with Ilya Lazarenko, the first deputy head of the Department of Affairs of the VRU Secretariat, and expert Volodymyr Vysotsky, to organize work on conducting a physical accessibility audit, which will address obstacles people with disabilities face in physically accessing Parliament. The start of the audit and organizational issues were agreed upon.
RANG and VRU agree on terms for digital accessibility audit of Ukraine’s Parliament
On August 23, RANG held a meeting with representatives of the IT Department of the VRU Secretariat and expert Dmytro Popov regarding the organization of the audit of the digital accessibility of the VRU web resources. The digital accessibility audit will deal with obstacles Ukrainians face in accessing Parliament via its online access points. The start of the audit and organizational issues were agreed upon.