Draft bill #4074-IX of November 20, 2024 

Sponsor: President 

Status: in effect since November 21, 2024 

Who is affected: citizens of Ukraine and individuals who have received state awards 

Summary: 

  • the criminal legislation was amended by the introduction of an additional type of punishment — deprivation of a state award of Ukraine for individuals found guilty of grave or special grave crimes, as well as crimes against the foundations of national security, peace, and international order 
  • it is now allowed to deprive an individual of a state award by: 
    • a guilty verdict by the court  
    • a decision of the National Security and Defense Council to sanction the individual. 
  • individuals deprived of state awards will also lose corresponding rights and benefits. 

What is right: considering martial law and the context of extensive decolonization of Ukraine, the law makes sense: it eliminates the possibility of recognizing individuals who act against the state. It also simplifies the mechanism for depriving traitors of state awards. 

What is wrong: 

  • the mechanism of deprivation of awards is merely an amendment to an outdated system. To prevent such situations in the future, a complete review of the approach to granting awards is necessary 
  • the clause regarding “confiscation of property” as an additional penalty for corrupt individuals was removed from article 77 of the Criminal Code. Thus, there could be issues with the confiscation of property from individuals accused of corruption crimes. 

Background information: on October 29, 2024, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a law allowing individuals accused of corruption to receive a shorter prison sentence if they cooperate with the investigation by exposing accomplices and compensating for damages. In such cases, the court may confiscate the property of the person if this type of penalty is agreed upon. 

On November 20, 2024, the President signed the law allowing to deprive of state awards persons who have committed illegal actions against Ukraine. It turned out that this law removed from article 77 of the Criminal Code the provision allowing to impose an additional penalty in the form of confiscation of property. 

This means that anti-corruption bodies will not be able to confiscate property from individuals accused of corruption who have concluded agreements with the investigation, as this article is no longer in effect. 

Why this is important: the law on plea agreements for individuals accused of corruption is part of Ukraine’s commitments regarding European integration. 

It is worth noting that the insertion of amendments into draft bills regulating non-related areas is a regular trick to “push” the “necessary” changes through the Parliament. 

Alternative solution: 

  • to create an award system that incentivizes achievements and honors the true heroes of our time
  • restore article 77 of the Criminal Code to its previous version, supplementing it with an additional type of penalty: confiscation of property for corruption-related offenses. 

Additional information: article by Oksana Zabolotna and Daria Bevziuk: Who are our heroes? What is wrong with the state award system in Ukraine and how to fix it.