Ukraine’s parliament scraps immunity for lawmakers

MINSK, Belarus – Ukraine’s parliament has approved a much-anticipated bill to scrap immunity from prosecution for lawmakers.

The move was one of the main campaign promises for comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who won the presidential election by a landslide in April.

The parliament, dominated by Zelenskiy’s allies, voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to end parliamentary immunity next year.

Zelenskiy’s predecessor, Petro Poroshenko, had also said he would scrap immunity, but never came through on the promise.

Ukraine’s parliament has for years been notorious for hosting businessmen who have used their seats to ward off possible criminal prosecution for corruption or financial crimes.