Ukraine Parliament Approves Vote Reforms

Ukraine's 16-day political crisis neared resolution yesterday when parliament passed a reform package designed to smooth the way to a repeat presidential vote on Boxing Day that the opposition is poised to win.

A large majority of MPs passed the reforms to constitutional and electoral laws which the opposition leader, Viktor Yushchenko, hailed as a "historic compromise" that "opens the way for my victory".

The prime minister, Viktor Yanukovich, condemned them as a "slow coup", and said MPs had made decisions under force. He told Interfax: "Arbitrariness is reigning today."

The reforms altered election laws over absentee voting - one of the main alleged causes of the electoral fraud that marred the November 21 run-off - and passed amendments to the constitution that weakened the powers of the president.

The opposition pledged the reforms would end blockades of government buildings. Past such promises have proved ineffective, and Pora, the youth activist group behind some of the barricades, said last night it would still not let members of the old government into the cabinet of ministers.

MPs cheered when the outgoing president, Leonid Kuchma, unusually signed the bills into law in the parliament chamber, minutes after they had been voted upon.

He said: "Over the last 100 years, Ukraine has more than once suffered through a crisis, but there was always enough common sense to find a way out and a decision."

Mr Kuchma has long sought to weaken his successor's powers and had insisted electoral reform be accompanied by constitutional amendments. Several influential MPs backed this position last week, a further obstacle to halting the crisis.

Mr Yushchenko's campaign has resisted government attempts to weaken the post of president. Yesterday, his fiery deputy, Yulia Tymoshenko, immediately called the amendments "illegal" and pledged to challenge them in the constitutional court.

But Oleg Ribachuk, Mr Yushchenko's chief of staff, said: "Yushchenko now has a clear status of national leader. It is fantastic news and now we are hearing that some of the most notorious ministers will be kicked out of the government."

He said some governors could also be sacked.

Mr Ribachuk also said the constitutional changes would not come into effect until January 2006 after parliamentary elections that could change the make-up of parliament in Mr Yushchenko's favour.

"Yushchenko will have the same authority [as Mr Kuchma did] to clean the country up," said Mr Ribachuk. "I don't know who is stupid enough now to support Yanukovich financially."

The amended constitution envisages a "parliamentary-presidential republic" in which the government is made up of a coalition of parties.

Parliament is also entitled to appoint the prime minister, defence minister, security minister and foreign minister, but they must first be people whom the president has nominated. It appeared to be a watered down version of a bill Mr Kuchma tried to pass earlier this year.

A pro-opposition analyst, Markian Bilynskyj, said the deal forced Mr Yushchenko to make an awkward concession on the constitution. "It is a forced compromise, and not the best of deals. The trade-off was to make sure that he wins the presidential elections."

He said Mr Yushchenko would then have between nine and 12 months "to stamp his signature on the presidency" before the constitutional changes came into effect.

"Kuchma must see this as a big step in stamping his name on the legacy of the presidential role. It must seem like a strategic victory for him."