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Not to be confused with Verkhovna Rada of Crimea.
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Верховна Рада України; English: Supreme Council of Ukraine) is Ukraine's parliament. The Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral parliament composed of 450 deputies, one of them is chairman (speaker) who presides over parliamentary sessions. It meets in the Verkhovna Rada building in Ukraine's capital Kyiv. In the Verkhovna Rada elections, the 450 seats are divided among all parties that achieved a minimum 3% nationwide vote tally. The number of seats that are allocated to each party, over the 3% participation rate quota, is calculated using the Hamilton method of apportionment.[1] The Verkhovna Rada was established as the national parliament of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1938. Since then, 17 convocations of the Verkhovna Rada were held. But the parliament of the fourteenth convocation officially changed the numbering of the convocations proclaiming itself the Verkhovna Rada of the third convocation in order to consider that the first convocation was one of 1990, being the first really democratic convocation. Therefore now the Verkhovna Rada of the 6th convocation works. The latest elections to the Verkhovna Rada were held on September 30, 2007
[edit] NameThe name Rada (Ukrainian: Рада) means "council". It originated in medieval Rus', and in the 10th century represented a boyar council.[2] It was also used by Dnieper Cossacks in the 17th and 18th centuries for the meetings where major decisions were made and new councils were elected by popular vote.[3] This name was later used by the Ukrainian Revolutionary government between March 17, 1917 and April 29, 1918 (Central Rada).[4] Verkhovna, is an adjective of feminine gender meaning supreme. It is derived from the Ukrainian word "Верх" meaning "top." [edit] HistoryThe first convocation of the Verkhovna Rada of the Ukrainian SSR assembled for the its first session in 1938. The first Secretary was Georgy Pyatakov, who was posthumously politically rehabilitated.[5] The first real election to select deputies to the Verkhovna Rada were held March 1990.[6] Although the Communist Party still remained in control, a so-called "Democratic Bloc" was formed by numerous parties, including People's Movement of Ukraine (Rukh), Helsinki Watch Committee of Ukraine, Party of Greens of Ukraine, and many others.[6] The Verkhovna Rada of Ukrainian SSR of the twelfth convocation proclaimed the state sovereignty of Ukraine on July 16, 1990, and declared Ukraine's independence and the creation of the Ukrainian State on August 24, 1991, at approximately 6 p.m. local time.[7] At the time, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada was Leonid Kravchuk. The Act of Ukrainian Independence was overwhelmingly supported in a national referendum held on December 1, 1991. The Constitution of Ukraine[8] was adopted by the Verkhovna Rada of the thirteenth convocation on June 28, 1996, at approximately 9 a.m. local time. The parliament's fourteenth convocation officially changed the numbering of the convocations proclaiming itself the Verkhovna Rada of the third convocation. After the Orange Revolution, a set of amendments were adopted to the constitution on December 8, 2004,[9] by the Verkhovna Rada of the fourth (fifteenth) convocation. [edit] Location
The Verkhovna Rada meets in a neo-classical building on Kyiv's Hrushevskoho St. The building adjoins a picturesque park and the 18th century Mariyinsky Palace, designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli, which serves as the official residence of the President of Ukraine. After the transfer of the capital of the Ukrainian SSR from Kharkiv to Kyiv in 1934, a whole set of government buildings was planned for the city.[10] In 1936, a contest was held for the winning architect for the construction of the new parliament building, after which architect Volodymyr Zabolotny was chosen. Construction for the original building was done from 1936-38. Having been destroyed in the Second World War, the building was reconstructed in its original style in 1945-1947, with the glass dome being rebuilt one metre higher than the original one.[10] [edit] Mission and authority
The Verkhovna Rada is the sole body of legislative power in Ukraine. The parliament determines the principles of domestic and foreign policy, introduces amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine, adopts laws, approves the state budget, designates elections of the President of Ukraine, impeaches the president, declares war and peace, appointments the Prime Minister of Ukraine, appoints or approves appointment of certain officials, appoints one-third of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, elects judges for permanent terms, ratifies and denounces international treaties, and exercises certain control functions.[11] [edit] Oath of officeBefore assuming office, the Verkhovna Rada's deputies must take the following oath before the parliament: In original Ukrainian:
In English translation:
[edit] CompositionThe Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral legislature with 450 national deputies (Ukrainian: народний депутат) elected on the basis of equal and direct universal suffrage through a secret ballot. The deputies possess full personal legal immunity during the term of office.[14] On the one hand, this may help certain individuals avoid criminal responsibility; on the other hand, the immunity serves as a guarantee for the existence of political opposition. In cases of egregious malfeasance, the Prosecutor General of Ukraine or the Head of the Supreme Court of Ukraine can request that a deputy's immunity be revoked; the decision whether to revoke is up to the Verkhovna Rada.
[edit] Speakers and vice-speakers
The parliament elects from among its ranks the Chairman (Speaker; Ukrainian: Голова Верховної Ради), the First Deputy Chairman, and the Deputy Chairman. Before the Chairman of a newly convoked Rada is elected, parliamentary sessions are presided over by members of a temporary presidium of the first session (Ukrainian: тимчасова президія першої сесії). The temporary presidium is composed of five deputies, representing four largest parliamentary fractions plus the chairman of a preparatory deputy group of the first parliamentary session, however the Rada may enact an ad hoc deviation from this composition rule. The Chairman presides over parliamentary sessions, signs bills and sends them to the President for promulgation, signs and promulgates parliamentary acts (other than bills), organises staff work, etc.[20] The chairman is also allowed to call special sessions of parliament,[21] enact bills vetoed by the president only when the Verkhovna Rada votes to overcome the veto by a two-thirds majority, and participate in meetings of the National Security and Defence Council.[22] In case the post of the President of Ukraine becomes vacant, the Chairman of the Rada becomes acting head of state with limited authority.[23] For instance, the acting president cannot disband the parliament, appoint or submit for parliamentary approval candidates for many key official posts, grant military ranks or state orders, or exercise the right of pardon.[23] The Constitution and Ukrainian legislation contain no provisions for presidential succession in case the posts of President and Chairman of the Rada are both vacant. [edit] ElectionsDramatic political development of Ukraine has caused recurrent changes of the parliamentary electoral system. Each convocation of the Verkhovna Rada has been elected under a different set of laws (gradually evolving from the purely majoritarian scheme of the Soviet era to a purely proportional scheme, effective in 2006 under the transitional provisions of the constitutional amendments). In the 1990 and 1994 elections, all 450 MPs were elected by majority voting. At the time, Ukraine was divided on 450 electoral districts. Each district sent 1 MP to parliament. In order to win the election, the candidate must obtained more than 50% support. If no candidate gained enough support, than two candidates who had greater support ran on the second round. In the 1998 and 2002 elections, 225 MPs were elected by majority voting as earlier (with exception, that the candidate must obtain only a simple majority to win). Another 225 MPs was elected on a proportional basis. These seats were divided between parties who obtained 4% or greater support in general election. From the 2006 election and onward, all deputies was elected by election on the proportional basis. All seats were divided between parties that obtained 3% or more support of voters. For the 2007 election, the threshold percentage was not changed, but some amendments to the election process were made. [edit] Latest election
On April 2, 2007, Viktor Yushchenko, the President of Ukraine, dissolved parliament and signed the presidential decree ordering early parliamentary elections in Ukraine to be held on May 27, 2007, which later triggered a political crisis.[24][25] However, the election was later postponed to June 24, 2007.[26] The Rada has called this decree unconstitutional, prevented funds allocation for elections and continued to function.[27] After more than 1/3 of the deputes resigned and the President, Prime Minister and Chairman reached an agreement the election was scheduled on September 30, 2007.[28]
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