H. Res. 339
In the House of Representatives, U.S.,
March 20, 2002.
Whereas Ukraine stands at a critical point in its development
to a fully democratic society, and the parliamentary elec-
tions on March 31, 2002, its third parliamentary elec-
tions since becoming independent more than 10 years
ago, will play a significant role in demonstrating whether
Ukraine continues to proceed on the path to democracy
or experiences setbacks in its democratic development;
Whereas the Government of Ukraine can demonstrate its
commitment to democracy by conducting a genuinely free
and fair parliamentary election process, in which all can-
didates have access to news outlets in the print, radio,
television, and Internet media, and nationally televised
debates are held, thus enabling the various political par-
ties and election blocs to compete on a level playing field
and the voters to acquire objective information about the
candidates;
Whereas a flawed election process, which contravenes com-
mitments of the Organization for Security and Coopera-
tion in Europe (OSCE) on democracy and the conduct of
elections, could potentially slow Ukraine’s efforts to inte-
grate into Western institutions;
Whereas in recent years, incidents of government corruption
and harassment of the media have raised concerns about
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the commitment of the Government of Ukraine to democ-
racy, human rights, and the rule of law;
Whereas Ukraine, since its independence in 1991, has been
one of the largest recipients of United States foreign as-
sistance;
Whereas $154,000,000 in technical assistance to Ukraine was
provided under Public Law 107–115 (the Kenneth M.
Ludden Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Re-
lated Programs Appropriations Act, Fiscal Year 2002), a
$16,000,000 reduction in funding from the previous fis-
cal year due to concerns about continuing setbacks to
needed reform and the unresolved deaths of prominent
dissidents and journalists, such as the case of Heorhiy
Gongadze;
Whereas Public Law 107–115 requires a report by the De-
partment of State on the progress by the Government of
Ukraine in investigating and bringing to justice individ-
uals responsible for the murders of Ukrainian journalists;
Whereas the Presidential election of 1999, according to the
final report of the Office of Democratic Institutions and
Human Rights (ODIHR) of OSCE on that election,
failed to meet a significant number of OSCE election-re-
lated commitments;
Whereas according to the ODIHR report, during the 1999
Presidential election campaign, a heavy proincumbent
bias was prevalent among the state-owned media outlets,
and members of the media viewed as not in support of
the President were subject to harassment by government
authorities, while proincumbent campaigning by state ad-
ministration and public officials was widespread and sys-
tematic;
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Whereas the Law on Elections of People’s Deputies of
Ukraine, signed by President Leonid Kuchma on October
30, 2001, which was cited in a report of the ODIHR
dated November 26, 2001, as making improvements in
Ukraine’s electoral code and providing safeguards to
meet Ukraine’s commitments on democratic elections,
does not include a role for domestic nongovernmental or-
ganizations to monitor elections;
Whereas according to international media experts, the Law
on Elections defines the conduct of an election campaign
in an imprecise manner which could lead to arbitrary
sanctions against media operating in Ukraine;
Whereas the Ukrainian Parliament (Verkhovna Rada) on De-
cember 13, 2001, rejected a draft Law on Political Ad-
vertising and Agitation, which would have limited free
speech in the campaign period by giving too many discre-
tionary powers to government bodies, and posed a serious
threat to the independent media;
Whereas the Department of State has dedicated $4,700,000
in support of monitoring and assistance programs for the
2002 parliamentary elections;
Whereas the process for the 2002 parliamentary elections has
reportedly been affected by violations by many parties
during the period prior to the official start of the election
campaign on January 1, 2002; and
Whereas monthly reports for November and December of
2001 released by the Committee on Voters of Ukraine
(CVU), an indigenous, nonpartisan, nongovernment orga-
nization that was established in 1994 to monitor the con-
duct of national election campaigns and balloting in
Ukraine, cited five major types of violations of political
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rights and freedoms during the precampaign phase of the
parliamentary elections, including—
(1) use of government position to support particular
political groups;
(2) government pressure on the opposition and on
the independent media;
(3) free goods and services given by many political
groups in order to sway voters;
(4) coercion to join political parties and pressure to
contribute to election campaigns; and
(5) distribution of anonymous and compromising in-
formation about political opponents: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives—
(1) acknowledges the strong relationship between
the United States and Ukraine since Ukraine’s inde-
pendence more than 10 years ago, while understanding
that Ukraine can only become a full partner in Western
institutions when it fully embraces democratic principles;
(2) expresses its support for the efforts of the
Ukrainian people to promote democracy, the rule of law,
and respect for human rights in Ukraine;
(3) urges the Government of Ukraine to enforce im-
partially its newly adopted election law, including provi-
sions calling for—
(A) the transparency of election procedures;
(B) access for international election observers;
(C) multiparty representation on election com-
missions;
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(D) equal access to the media for all election
participants;
(E) an appeals process for electoral commis-
sions and within the court system; and
(F) administrative penalties for election viola-
tions;
(4) urges the Government of Ukraine to meet its
commitments on democratic elections, as delineated in
the 1990 Copenhagen Document of the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), with re-
spect to the campaign period and election day, and to
address issues identified by the Office of Democratic In-
stitutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) of OSCE in its
final report on the 1999 Presidential election, such as
state interference in the campaign and pressure on the
media; and
(5) calls upon the Government of Ukraine to allow
election monitors from the ODIHR, other participating
states of OSCE, and private institutions and organiza-
tions, both foreign and domestic, access to all aspects of
the parliamentary election process according to inter-
national practices, including—
(A) access to political events attended by the
public during the campaign period;
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(B) access to observe voting and counting pro-
cedures at polling stations and electoral commission
meetings on election day, including procedures to
release election results on a district-by-district basis
as they become available; and
(C) access to observe postelection tabulation of
results and processing of election challenges and
complaints.
Attest:
Clerk.