The Committee on Ukraine’s integration into the EU ranks first in the openness rating

The CHESNO movement conducted monitoring of the openness of the Verkhovna Rada’s committees’ work under martial law. According to the results, the Committee on Ukraine’s integration into the EU shared first place with six other committees: medical, anti-corruption, social policy, energy, government organisation and human rights. The rating was compiled for the second half of 2023. The transparency of the committees’ activities was evaluated according to the following criteria: presence in the public space, regular updates, including recordings of meetings and their timely publication, informing about the decisions made etc.

The Chair of the Committee on Ukraine’s integration into the EU noted that she appreciates the high evaluation of the openness of the Committee's work. “We are very pleased that the Committee is among the leaders today, but I will be very frank with you. I want to emphasise that we need to join the efforts of public organisations that monitor the work of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and its committees to analyse if the criteria proposed are purely formal or if they have the potential to advance the work approach of the committees,” she said. According to Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, the focus should be made not only on the formal criteria of openness of the committees but also on improving the approach and organisation of their work. For example, the communication activities of the Committee on Ukraine's EU Integration are supported by the EU project Association4U but this does not change the situation institutionally. The expert support of European donors to Ukrainian authorities is limited in time. It is important to ensure the institutional capacity of the Verkhovna Rada and its committees. According to Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, the Committee on Ukraine’s integration into the EU, which now employs only nine specialists, has repeatedly requested the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada to strengthen its institutional capacity. Among all the committees, it bears the greatest administrative burden of analysing and providing conclusions on the compliance of draft laws with EU law. She thanked the representatives of the secretariat, who helped to ensure the availability of the Committee’s YouTube channel, as well as the posting of information and broadcasts of the Committee’s meetings on YouTube and Facebook.

According to Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, the CHESNO movement could work with the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to ensure institutional changes. She also emphasised the need for transparency in the work of the Parliament. “I think you missed online meetings of the Conciliation Council of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. They must be open and broadcast. I believe that your voice would help to get back to conducting Conciliation Councils in an open mode,” said Ivanny Klympush-Tsintsadze. She also emphasised the need to restore journalists’ access to Parliament and committee meetings. The CHESNO Movement conducted a survey regarding the resumption of live broadcasts of Verkhovna Rada meetings. According to it, 65% of Ukrainians spoke in favour of resuming these broadcasts. Now, according to Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, the Verkhovna Rada sessions are recorded between two and six in the morning. “I don't think many people are willing to watch at this time what is happening in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. Even if we are talking about recordings, we must ensure that they are broadcast at the time when people can watch them,” the Chair of the Committee noted. She also emphasised that it is necessary to restore the control function of the Parliament during martial law, as well as the system of balances and counterbalances so that Ukraine does not lose the gains of an open, democratic society, which it has worked on for years.