At the end of 2008 the president of Ukraine Victor Jushchenko suggested the Supreme Rada to enter amendments to the agreement on conservation of bats in Europe. It's said about it in a bill №0109 "About Acceptance of the Amendment to the Agreement on Conservation of Bats in Europe" registered in Rada on December, 15.
Press-service of the president informed then that forwarding of that bill to Rada was connected to performance of international obligations by Ukraine: "Actually it's a question of the next step within the framework of systematic adjoining of our state to a number of international documents which takes place in the context of the European integration of Ukraine".
It's stated in the message that the president directed 17 such bills to the parliament from the beginning of the year, including "About Ratification of the Report on Introduction of Ukraine into WTO", "About Ratification of Agreement between European Union and Ukraine about Defining of the General Scheme of Participation of Ukraine in Operations of EU on Settlement of Crises", "About Ratification of the European Convention on Trans-border TV". It's also marked that the bill brought by the Cabinet "About Acceptance of Amendment to the Agreement on Preservation of Bats in Europe" which the president passed to the parliament is called to fix new name of the corresponding agreement legislatively.
The agreement on protection of populations of the European species of bats was developed on the base of Bonn Convention and was opened for signing in 1991. The agreement, in particular, provides that each of the parties should forbid deliberate take, catching or murder of bats without permission of responsible (competent) body.
It's stressed in the document unsatisfactory state of affairs with protection of that kind of animals in Europe. Thus it's marked in the document that bats perished because of degradation of biotopes and also because of application of pesticides. For this reason all 45 European species of chiropterans are recognized as protected species. Ukraine joined the agreement in 1999.
However on January, 14 deputies did not protected bats. "The Supreme Rada of Ukraine did not support the bill About Acceptance of the Amendment to the Agreement on Conservation of Bats in Europe. 173 national deputies from 409 registered in a session hall voted for the given document.
People's Deputy from CPU Sergey Gordienko named approach of Secretary of the President to entering of the bills which were urgent strange in the given situation. He noted that "bats are not guilty" and such approach - "is diagnosis for authority, diagnosis for administration of the President". By Gordienko's words, "today when Ukraine freezes, when such challenges are placed in front of Ukraine", "it's warm and bees fly" in the Secretary of the President, "it's possible to take care of bats in such atmosphere".
In his turn People's Deputy Taras Chornovil (fraction of Party of Regions) declared that he would not vote for that bill as there's nothing said in it about one more specie of bat - "balogonosiy red vampire".
From editorial board: I have learned about grandiose victory of opposition in the Supreme Rada of Ukraine over all Europe casually: they voted down extremely important in conditions of world crisis bill "About Acceptance of the Amendment to the Agreement on Conservation of bats in Europe" which was brought by the president Jushchenko. Though I have a cold, nevertheless I smell corruption whiff. Poor bats: nobody cares of them in the Supreme Rada because, as against bankers, they cannot pay for the necessary voting for themselves. While we continue discussing gas and pipes...
Vladimir Akimov
