[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 133 (Thursday, November 18, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11512-S11513]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 URGING THE GOVERNMENT OF UKRAINE TO ENSURE A DEMOCRATIC, TRANSPARENT, 
                       AND FAIR ELECTION PROCESS

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 473, which was 
submitted earlier today by Senator McCain.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 473) urging the Government of Ukraine 
     to ensure a democratic, transparent, and fair election 
     process for the Presidential run-off election on November 21, 
     2004.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, 
the preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid on the 
table, and any statements relating to this matter be printed in the 
Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 473) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 473

       Whereas the establishment of a democratic, transparent, and 
     fair election process for the 2004 Presidential election in 
     Ukraine and of a genuinely democratic political system are 
     prerequisites for that country's full integration into the 
     Western community of nations as an equal member, including 
     into organizations such as the North Atlantic Treaty 
     Organization (NATO);
       Whereas the Government of Ukraine has accepted numerous 
     specific commitments governing the conduct of elections as a 
     participating state of the Organization for Security and 
     Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), including provisions of the 
     Copenhagen Document;
       Whereas the election of Ukraine's next President will 
     provide an unambiguous test of the extent of the Ukrainian 
     authorities commitment to implement these standards and build 
     a democratic society based on free elections and the rule of 
     law;
       Whereas the second round of the Presidential election takes 
     place against the backdrop of past elections and 
     improprieties in the first round of the election, which did 
     not fully meet international standards;
       Whereas it is the duty of government and public authorities 
     of Ukraine at all levels to act in a manner consistent with 
     all laws and regulations governing election procedures, and 
     to ensure free and fair elections throughout the entire 
     country, including preventing activities aimed at undermining 
     the free exercise of political rights;
       Whereas a genuinely free and fair election requires a 
     period of political campaigning conducted in an environment 
     in which administrative action, violence, intimidation, or 
     detention do not hinder the parties, political associations, 
     and the candidates from presenting their views and 
     qualifications to the citizenry, including organizing 
     supporters, conducting public meetings and events throughout 
     the country, and enjoying unimpeded access to television, 
     radio, print, and Internet media on a non-discriminatory 
     basis;
       Whereas a genuinely free and fair election requires that 
     citizens be guaranteed the right and effective opportunity to 
     exercise their civil and political rights, including the 
     right to vote and the right to seek and acquire information 
     upon which to make an informed vote, free from intimidation, 
     undue influence, attempts at vote buying, threats of 
     political retribution, or other forms of coercion by national 
     or local authorities or others;
       Whereas a genuinely free and fair election requires 
     government and public authorities to ensure that candidates 
     and political parties enjoy equal treatment before the law 
     and that government resources are not employed to the 
     advantage of individual candidates or political parties;
       Whereas a genuinely free and fair election requires the 
     full transparency of laws and regulations governing 
     elections, multiparty representation on election commissions, 
     and unobstructed access by candidates, political parties, and 
     domestic and international observers to all election 
     procedures, including voting and vote counting in all areas 
     of the country;
       Whereas increasing control and manipulation of the media by 
     national and local officials and others acting at their 
     behest raise grave concerns regarding the commitment of the 
     Ukrainian authorities to free and fair elections;
       Whereas efforts by the national authorities in Ukraine to 
     limit access to international broadcasting, including Radio 
     Liberty and the Voice of America, represent an unacceptable 
     infringement on the right of the Ukrainian people to 
     independent information;
       Whereas efforts by national and local officials of Ukraine 
     and others acting at their behest to impose obstacles to free 
     assembly, free speech, and a free and fair political campaign 
     have taken place in Donetsk, Sumy, and elsewhere in Ukraine 
     without condemnation or remedial action by the Government of 
     Ukraine;
       Whereas numerous substantial irregularities have taken 
     place in recent Ukrainian parliamentary by-elections in the 
     Donetsk region and in mayoral elections in Mukacheve, Romny, 
     and Krasniy Luch;
       Whereas intimidation, violence, and fraud during the April 
     18, 2004, mayoral election in Mukacheve, Ukraine, represent a 
     deliberate attack on the democratic process;
       Whereas in the period leading to the first round of the 
     Presidential election, the government power structures used 
     state resources such as schools, state factories, hospitals, 
     and public transport systems to force students, state 
     workers, and citizens who rely on state services for their 
     livelihood to campaign against their will for the government-
     backed candidate;
       Whereas there was notable partisan engagement of security 
     services, military, and local police in support of the 
     government-backed candidate;
       Whereas there was a failure of national and local state-
     owned and private electronic media to provide impartial and 
     fair coverage of, or access to, opposition candidates;
       Whereas some election commission members affiliated with 
     opposition candidates were dismissed from their duties just 
     prior to election day;
       Whereas there was collaboration with a foreign government 
     to allow a foreign President to appear in Ukraine and express 
     his opinions on one of the candidates just days before 
     election day, in an effort to influence the vote, and a 
     military parade, which was held in Kyiv 3 days prior to the 
     election, was clearly an effort to intimidate voters; and
       Whereas in the first round of the Presidential election in 
     Ukraine that occurred on October 31, 2004, international 
     observers noted fraud and other significant problems, 
     including poorly maintained voter lists, which resulted in 
     people being denied their right to vote, as well as many 
     additional names on voter rolls for which no accounting could 
     be made, prevalent interference by unauthorized persons into 
     the electoral process, and credible reports of busing of 
     voters among oblasts and polling stations for the purpose of 
     multiple voting: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) acknowledges and welcomes the strong relationship 
     formed between the United States and Ukraine since the 
     restoration of Ukraine's independence in 1991;
       (2) recognizes that a precondition for the full integration 
     of Ukraine into the Western community of nations, including 
     as an equal member in institutions such as the North Atlantic 
     Treaty Organization (NATO), is its establishment of a 
     genuinely democratic political system;
       (3) expresses its strong and continuing support for the 
     efforts of the Ukrainian people to establish a full 
     democracy, the rule of law, and respect for human rights in 
     Ukraine;
       (4) urges the Government of Ukraine to guarantee freedom of 
     association and assembly, including the right of candidates, 
     members of political parties, and others to freely assemble, 
     to organize and conduct public events, and to exercise these 
     and other rights free from intimidation or harassment by 
     local or national officials or others acting at their behest;

[[Page S11513]]

       (5) urges the Government of Ukraine to meet its 
     Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) 
     commitments on democratic elections and to address issues 
     previously identified by the Office of Democratic 
     Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) of the OSCE in its 
     final reports on the 2002 parliamentary elections and the 
     1999 Presidential elections, such as illegal interference by 
     public authorities in the campaign and a high degree of bias 
     in the media;
       (6) urges the Ukrainian authorities to ensure--
       (A) the full transparency of election procedures before, 
     during, and after the second round of the 2004 Presidential 
     election;
       (B) free access for Ukrainian and international election 
     observers;
       (C) multiparty representation on all election commissions;
       (D) unimpeded access by all parties and candidates to 
     print, radio, television, and Internet media on a non-
     discriminatory basis;
       (E) freedom of candidates, members of opposition parties, 
     and independent media organizations from intimidation or 
     harassment by government officials at all levels, including 
     selective tax audits and other regulatory procedures, and in 
     the case of media, license revocations, and libel suits;
       (F) a transparent process for complaint and appeals through 
     electoral commissions and within the court system that 
     provides timely and effective remedies;
       (G) vigorous prosecution of any individual or organization 
     responsible for violations of election laws or regulations, 
     including the application of appropriate administrative or 
     criminal penalties;
       (H) remedies to all improprieties reported in the first 
     round of the Presidential election in Ukraine, including--
       (i) the replacement at a polling station of any Territorial 
     Election Commission member found to have engaged in fraud;
       (ii) a complete review of voter lists in each polling 
     station in order to correct inaccuracies;
       (iii) equal time on state media and equal access to private 
     media for the two runoff candidates; and
       (iv) immediate prosecution of individuals who have violated 
     the election law;
       (7) further calls upon the Government of Ukraine to 
     guarantee election monitors from the ODIHR, other 
     participating states of the OSCE, Ukrainian political 
     parties, representatives of candidates, nongovernmental 
     organizations, and other private institutions and 
     organizations, both foreign and domestic, unobstructed access 
     to all aspects of the election process, including unimpeded 
     access to public campaign events, candidates, news media, 
     voting, and post-election tabulation of results and 
     processing of election challenges and complaints;
       (8) urges the President to fully employ the diplomatic and 
     other resources of the Government of the United States to 
     encourage the Government of Ukraine to ensure that the 
     election laws and procedures of Ukraine are faithfully 
     adhered to by all local and national officials, by others 
     acting at their behest, and by all candidates and parties, 
     during and subsequent to the Presidential campaign and 
     election-day voting;
       (9) strongly encourages the President to clearly 
     communicate to the Government of Ukraine, to all parties and 
     candidates in Ukraine, and to the people of Ukraine the high 
     importance attached by the Government of the United States to 
     this Presidential campaign as a central factor in determining 
     the future relationship between the two countries;
       (10) strongly encourages the President to consider visa 
     bans and other targeted sanctions on those responsible for 
     encouraging or participating in any efforts to improperly 
     influence the outcome of the election, whether through direct 
     or indirect involvement; and
       (11) pledges its enduring support and assistance to the 
     people of Ukraine for the establishment of a fully free and 
     open democratic system, the creation of a prosperous free 
     market economy, the establishment of a secure independence 
     and freedom from coercion, and Ukraine's assumption of its 
     rightful place as a full and equal member of the Western 
     community of democracies.

                          ____________________