Ukraine Lawmakers Restore Anti-Corruption Agencies Following Public Protests

Updated by Faith Barbara N Ruhinda at 1755 EAT on Monday 15 December 2025

Ukraine’s parliament on Thursday voted to restore the independence of two key anti-corruption agencies, seeking to defuse the country’s biggest political crisis since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Lawmakers approved the bill unanimously, 331–0, after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy submitted the legislation last week amid pressure from thousands of protesters and senior European officials.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed the bill into law within hours of its passage, thanking lawmakers “for passing my bill” in a video message posted on X.

Public anger had flared after amendments pushed through parliament on July 22 by Zelenskyy’s ruling party granted the president’s hand-picked general prosecutor authority to transfer cases away from the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), as well as to reassign prosecutors.

The move triggered some of the largest protests in Ukraine since Russia’s invasion began, with thousands taking to the streets of Kyiv. Demonstrators continued to gather even after Zelenskyy announced he would reverse the amendments, remaining outside parliament on Thursday as lawmakers voted and breaking into applause when the bill passed.

“Everyone is a winner, but first and foremost democratic Ukraine,” Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian president’s office, wrote on social media.

Speaking in parliament ahead of the vote, opposition lawmaker Yaroslav Yurchyshyn said Ukrainians had stopped the government “one step from the abyss” of autocracy.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomed the legislation, writing on X that it marked a step toward strengthening the rule of law and aligning Ukraine more closely with European Union standards.

Al Jazeera’s Charles Stratford, reporting from outside parliament in Kyiv, said there was a palpable sense of relief among protesters following what he described as the “largest political crisis” President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has faced since the war began.

“The last couple of weeks have been a huge embarrassment to President Zelenskyy and his cabinet,” Stratford said. “A lot of questions are being asked about why he changed the law in the first place.”

Stratford said public anger was not the sole factor behind Zelenskyy’s decision to reverse the amendments. He cited intense pressure from Ukraine’s international backers, who were alarmed by the move, as well as signals from the European Union that some funding could be at risk and that Ukraine’s bid for EU membership could be jeopardised.

Zelenskyy initially justified stripping powers from the anti-corruption agencies by citing concerns they had been infiltrated or compromised by Russia.

“But if you speak to MPs, they will tell you there were concerns that these investigative bodies were closing in on individuals within the government’s inner circle,” Stratford said, adding that raids targeting members of the anti-corruption agencies took place the night before the original amendments were passed.

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