Ukraine: Party of Regions, including mandate, leaders, power base, structure, membership and membership cards; whether the party is still active or dissolved into other parties; whether authorities are able to identify Party of Regions members; state protection available for members targeted by militias or other forces

Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ottawa

1. Party of Regions Overview

The Political Handbook of the World (PHW) 2014 states that the Party of Regions (Partiya Rehioniv, PR) was formed in March 2001 and was a merger of five centrist parties: the Labor Party of Ukraine (Partiya Pratsi Ukrainy, PPU), the Party of Regional Revival of Ukraine (Partiya Rehionalnoho Vidrodzhennya Ukrainy, PRVU), the Party "For a Beautiful Ukraine" (Partiya "Za Krasyvu Ukrainu", PZKU), the "All-Ukrainian Party of Pensioners" (Vseukrainskoi Partiya Pensioneriv, VPP) and the "Party of Solidarity of Ukraine" (Partiya Solidarnosti Ukrainy, PSU) (PHW 2014, 1497-1498). According to Global Security, a website that provides news on defence, intelligence and security (Global Security n.d.), the PR was created to "represent the interests of Russian-speaking Ukrainians in the south and east of the country" (ibid. 26 June 2014). The PHW 2014 states that in the 2004 presidential elections, the PR "advocated 'strong ties' to the EU but opposed NATO membership. Yanukovych [the PR leader] also pledged to pursue official language status for Russian[s] and improvements in relations with Russia in general" (PHW 2014, 1498). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

Global Security indicates that the PR has held a parliamentary majority since 2007 (Global Security 26 June 2014). Election Guide, which is published by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, an international non-profit organization "dedicated to strengthening electoral democracy" (Election Guide n.d.), indicates that the PR won 175 of 450 parliamentary seats to the Supreme Council (Verkhovna Rada) in the 2006 and 2007 elections (ibid. 26 Mar. 2006; ibid. 30 Sept. 2007). Sources indicate that the PR secured 185 seats to the Supreme Council in the October 2012 election (ibid. 28 Oct. 2012; PHW 2014, 1498; Professor of history 28 Aug. 2015). During these three elections, Election Guide notes that Viktor Yanukovych was the leader of the party (Election Guide 26 Mar. 2006; ibid. 30 Sept. 2007; ibid. 28 Oct. 2012). The PHW notes the following leaders for the PR in 2013 and 2014:

2013 - Viktor Yanukovych (President of Ukraine, Party Leader, and Former Prime Minister), Mykola Azarov (Prime Minister and Leader of the Party), and Oleksandr Efremov (Chair) (PHW 2013, 1506).

2014 - Viktor Yanukovych (President of Ukraine and Honorary Party Leader), Mykola Azarov (Prime Minister and Chair of the Party), Oleksandr Yefremov (Parliamentary Leader), and Volodymyr Rybak (Speaker of the Supreme Council) (ibid. 2014, 1498).

Sources indicate that in February 2014, Yanukovich reportedly fled Ukraine (The Guardian 23 Feb. 2014; Global Security 26 June 2014), after anti-government protests took place in the country in February 2014 (ibid.). According to information published on the PR's website in March 2014, the party's Congress approved Yanukovych's resignation from the party and expelled the following members from the party: Mykola Azarov, Serhiy Arbuzov, Oleksandr Klymenko, Eduard Stavytskyi, Andriy Shyshatskyi and Valeriy Konovalyuk (PR 29 Mar. 2014b). According to the PR's website, the new members of the Presidium of the PR's Political Council are the following: Oleksandr Vilkul, Volodymyr Rybak, Mykhailo Dobkin, Oleksandr Yefremov, Borys Kolesnikov, Vadym Novinskiy, Mykola Levchenko, and Oleksandr Ledida (ibid. 29 Mar. 2014a).

In correspondence with the Research Directorate, a professor at the School of Political Studies of the University of Ottawa, whose research focuses on politics in Ukraine, Russia and Moldova, indicated that before February 2014, the PR

had control over most regions of Ukraine, specifically all regions in the East and South. The governors and local councils of these regions [were] dominated by the Party of Regions. Since the overthrow in February of 2014 of the national government controlled by the Party of Regions, this party lost control of all regions, since all their governors (heads of regional administration) were replaced. … The Party of Regions is now de facto disintegrated. The party is prohibited in many regions of Western Ukraine and its local branches there are closed. (Professor of political science 28 Aug. 2015)

In correspondence with the Research Directorate, a professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs of the University of Ottawa, who has written for international media on political issues and has conducted research on Russian history, military history and defence policy, similarly stated that the PR, which operated throughout all of the Ukraine, is now "defunct, having fallen apart following the overthrow of President Yanukovich in February 2014. It is not in control of any part of Ukraine" (Professor of international affairs 30 Aug. 2015). In correspondence with the Research Directorate, a professor of history at the University of Alberta, who is also the Director of the Stasiuk Program on Contemporary Ukraine at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Alberta and whose research focuses on Ukraine and Belarus, likewise stated that the PR is now disintegrated (Professor of history 28 Aug. 2015).

Sources indicate that some PR members joined other parties (ibid.; Election Guide 26 Oct. 2014). The Washington Post reports that some of the former members of the PR joined the Party of Development of Ukraine, the Industrial Ukraine party and the Strong Ukraine party (6 Sept. 2014). According to sources, the Opposition Bloc party has been described as a rebranded Party of Regions (Election Guide 26 Oct. 2014; Kyiv Post 24 Oct. 2014) with most of its support from the Donetsk and Luhansk regions (ibid.). The Professor of political science stated that the PR,

now de facto disintegrated … became transformed into the Opposition Bloc, which represents an alliance of major factions of this party and several smaller parties. The October 2014 parliamentary elections and public opinion polls show that this bloc has most support in the Eastern and Southern regions, but at lower levels compared with the Party of Regions before February 2014. (Professor of political science 28 Aug. 2015)

Kyiv Post, an English-language newspaper in Ukraine, similarly reports that the Opposition Bloc "comprises parties consisting of former Party of Regions members and parties associated with the Yanukovych regime" (Kyiv Post 24 Oct. 2014). However, the Professor of history noted that the Opposition Bloc "contains some former [Party of] Regions members. But it is not made up exclusively of them" (Professor of history 1 Sept. 2015). According to Election Guide, the Opposition Bloc secured 29 seats to the Supreme Council in the October 2014 election (Election Guide 26 Oct. 2014). The website of the Opposition Bloc lists the following individuals as the party's members: Yuriy Boyko, Alexander Vilkyn, Yuriy Voropaev, Sergey Levochkin and Evgeniy Bakulin, among others (Opposition Bloc n.d.).

For additional information on the PR, see Response to Information Request UKR104895.

2. Party of Regions Membership

Without providing details, the Professor of historystated that PR members used to have membership cards and paid membership fees, however, the PR does not presently maintain its membership structure (Professor of history 28 Aug. 2015). The Professor of political science said "it is not clear if the Party of Regions now maintains its membership structure, membership cards and membership fees" (Professor of political science 28 Aug. 2015). According to sources, the PR's website has stopped posting any new information (ibid.; Professor of history 28 Aug. 2015). Further information on membership cards and the membership structure of the PR could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

3. Ability of Authorities to Identify Party of Regions Members

Without providing detail, sources indicated that members of the PR could be identified by government officials, militia, pro-government sources and the police, based on their public identification as members of the PR in the media and during the elections (Professor of history 28 Aug. 2015; Professor of political science 28 Aug. 2015). The Professor of history expressed the opinion that prominent members of the PR, such as former members of Parliament or business people, could be identified, but that ordinary members of the PR cannot be identified (Professor of history 28 Aug. 2015). Further and corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

4. State Protection

Sources indicate that some former leaders of the PR face "criminal investigations" in Ukraine (Professor of history 28 Aug. 2015; Professor of political science 28 Aug. 2015), "primarily on charges related to support[ing] separatism and corruption" (ibid.). According to the Professor of political science,

[m]ost of [the PR's former leaders] fled to Russia after [Yanukovych was] overthrown in Ukraine in February 2014. … Many of the former or nominal Party of Regions leaders and leading activists were subjected, since February 2014 to violent attacks by far right organizations, such as the Right Sector. The police generally did not interfere during these attacks and did not detain the attackers or prosecute them. (ibid.)

The Professor of international affairs similarly indicated that

[f]ollowing the overthrow of Yanukovych, there were a number of cases of offices of the Party of Regions being ransacked or burnt, of council members who were party members being forced by armed gangs to resign etc. Others were beaten up. … Others are subject to legal prosecution, or to lustration - a process by which those associated with the former government are deprived of their jobs. The situation was worse immediately after Yanukovych's overthrow. (Professor of international affairs 30 Aug. 2015)

The Professor of international affairs further stated that in his opinion, he

would not expect the police to be much help, given that there are armed militias in Ukraine who heavily outgun the police, and also given that the police are undergoing a large scale restructuring with big turnover of personnel, meaning that they are not at present well placed to fulfill many duties. (ibid.)

According to sources, a number of former PR leaders committed suicide (Professor of history 28 Aug. 2015; Professor of international affairs 30 Aug. 2015; Professor of political science 28 Aug. 2015) in the beginning of 2015 "because of government investigations of their activities" (ibid.). The Guardian, a UK-based daily newspaper, reports that "many" of the PR members were facing "trials for corruption, extortion, abuse of office and even murder" (The Guardian 23 Mar. 2015). Media sources report that the following members of the PR committed suicide: Mikhail Chechetov, Stanislav Melnik, Alexander Peklushenko (The Guardian 23 Mar. 2015; RTL andAFP 14 Mar. 2015; Itar-Tass 13 Mar. 2015), Nikolay Sergiyenko, Alexey Kolesnik, Sergey Valter and Alexander Bordyuga (ibid.). According to CNN, an Opposition Bloc media office stated that the deaths were "politically motivated" (CNN 17 Apr. 2015). The Guardian reports that

[t]here is no evidence to back theories that there may be foul play involved in the spate of suicides, but opposition MPs say the trend points to a wave of intimidation at the very least.

Members of the party who remain in Ukraine are feeling scared and reluctant to talk about the cases against them in public. "Everyone's afraid. They don't want to have to jump from windows, shoot themselves - or be helped," said one former Party of Regions member who has moved to the Opposition Bloc. (23 Mar. 2015)

Sources indicate that a former member of the PR was assassinated in Kyiv in April 2015 (Gazeta.ru 16 Apr. 2015; The New York Times 18 May 2015; Professor of political science 28 Aug. 2015), "after publicly reporting in the media that he received death threats" (ibid.). According to the Professor of political science, the "police generally ha[ve] not reacted in this and other cases of such threats" (ibid.). The New York Times reports that an investigation was initiated into the case, but prosecutors did not believe that the killing and the party suicides were connected (18 May 2015). According to CNN, the police were investigating the death of the former PR member as a murder (CNN 17 Apr. 2015). Further information on the results of the investigation could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

According to sources, the majority of ordinary former or nominal members of the Party of Regions are not subjected to violence or threats (Professor of history 28 Aug. 2015; Professor of political science 28 Aug. 2015). According to the Professor of history, ordinary members of the PR

could face threats in Western parts of the country (cities such as Lviv, Ternopil) from militant nationalistic groups. If a Party of Regions member faces violence or threats, he or she can turn to the police. However, the police would be more reluctant to help members of the Party of Regions in Western regions of the country where there was little support for the Party of Regions. (28 Aug. 2015)

Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

For further information on state protection available for PR members, see Response to Information Request UKR104895.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Cable News Network (CNN). 17 April 2015. "Who's Killing Allies of Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych?" [Accessed 3 Sept. 2015]

Election Guide. 26 October 2014. "Ukraine - Election for Verkhovna Rada (Supreme Council)." [Accessed 2 Sept. 2015]

_____. 28 October 2012. "Ukraine - Election for Verkhovna Rada (Supreme Council)." [Accessed 2 Sept. 2015]

_____. 30 September 2007. "Ukraine - Election for Verkhovna Rada (Supreme Council)." [Accessed 2 Sept. 2015]

_____. 26 March 2006. "Ukraine - Election for Verkhovna Rada (Supreme Council)." [Accessed 2 Sept. 2015]

_____. N.d. "About Election Guide." [Accessed 8 Sept. 2015]

Gazeta.ru. 16 April 2015. "Ubit organizator kievskogo anti-maydana." [Accessed 3 Sept. 2015]

Global Security. 26 June 2014. "Ukraine Political Parties." [Accessed 21 Aug. 2015]

_____. N.d. "Company History." [Accessed 2 Sept. 2015]

The Guardian. 23 March 2015. Katya Gorchinskaya. "Ukraine's Former Ruling Party Hit by Spate of Apparent Suicides." [Accessed 21 Aug. 2015]

_____. 23 February 2014. Shaun Walker. "Ukraine's Former PM Rallies Protesters After Yanukovych Flees Kiev." [Accessed 2 Sept. 2015]

Itar-Tass. 13 March 2015. "Former Governor of Ukraine's Zaporizhia Region Found Dead in his Home. Member of 'Party of Regions'." [Accessed 31 Aug. 2015]

Kyiv Post. 24 October 2014. Oleg Sukhov. "Opposition Bloc Boosts Rating by Distancing Itself from Yanukovych Era." [Accessed 31 Aug. 2015]

The New York Times. 18 May 2015. David M. Herszenhorn. "Ukraine Mired in Political and Economic Chaos Long After Revolution." (Factiva)

Opposition Bloc. N.d. "Deputies." [Accessed 2 Sept. 2015]

Party of Regions (Partiya Rehioniv, PR). 29 March 2014a. "Party Statute was Amended at the Party of Regions Congress." [Accessed 2 Sept. 2015]

_____. 29 March 2014b. "Party of Regions Congress Delegates Satisfied Request of Viktor Yanukovych for Resignation from the Party and Recalled Him from Position of Honorary Leader." [Accessed 2 Sept. 2015]

Political Handbook of the World 2014 (PHW). 2014. "Ukraine." Edited by Tom Lansford. Washington, DC: CQ Press. <<http://library.cqpress.com/phw/document.php?id=phw2014_Ukraine&type=toc&num=191#H2_3> [Accessed 2 Sept. 2015]

_____. 2013. "Ukraine." Edited by Tom Lansford. Washington, DC: CQ Press. <<http://library.cqpress.com/phw/document.php?id=phw2013_Ukraine&type=hitlist&num=0> [Accessed 2 Sept. 2014]

Professor of history, Department of History and Classics, University of Alberta. 1 September 2015. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

_____. 28 August 2015. Telephone interview with the Research Directorate.

Professor of international affairs, Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, University of Ottawa. 30 August 2015. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

Professor of political science, School of Political Studies, University of Ottawa. 28 August 2015. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

RTL and Agence France-Presse (AFP). "Ukraine : mystérieuse épidemie de suicides chez des ex-prorusses." [Accessed 3 Sept. 2015]

The Washington Post. 6 September 2014. Erik Herron and Nazar Boyko. "Ukraine's Next Electoral Challenge." [Accessed 2 Sept. 2015]

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources: Attempts to contact the following were unsuccessful within the time constraints of this Response: academics at Baylor University, Harvard University, The New School in New York, Oxford University, University of Toronto, University of Waterloo, Western University; Party of Regions.

Internet sites, including: ABC News; Amnesty International; Argumenti i Fakti; BBC; Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW); Centre for Research on Globalization; Deutsche Welle; EUObserver; Euromaidanpr.com; Factiva; Freedom House; Human Rights Watch; The Independent; Institute of European, Russian and Eurasian Studies, Carleton University; Interfax - Ukraine; International Crisis Group; Interpol Kiev; Kyiv International Institute of Sociology; Minority Rights Group International; The Moscow Times; The New York Times; Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe; Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty; Reuters; RIA Novosti; RT.com; School of Russian and Asian Studies; Sputniknews.com; Ukraine - Ministry of Internal Affairs, Prosecutor General's Office, State Border Guard Service of Ukraine; The Ukrainian Week; The Ukrainian Weekly; Ukraine Today; Ukrinform; United Nations - Refworld; United States - Department of State, Library of Congress; Voice of Russia; World Affairs.