Is this just the title of a romantic comedy or will it be a film concerning Ukraine's attempts at democracy? The following excerpt from the Kyiv Post will give you some understanding of the difficulties we will be facing in the months and years to come.
The 2006 parliamentary elections in Ukraine were heralded by international observers as the most free and fair elections since independence in 1991. Lost in this euphoria was a deeper understanding of the impact of Ukraine's new parliamentary system and the repercussions for the future development of Ukraine's democracy. Most attention focused on the constitutional changes which shifted more power to the prime minister. Less attention focused on the change from a representational electoral system to a proportional one based on party lists. A key difference between the two is the lack of any district or other geographically based representation in the current system. As a result, public reception rooms places where citizens could meet with representatives were abolished as elected officials no longer represent a specific district or region. Indeed, elected officials on a local city council need not even be residents of the city, and at the national level, there is no system in place to ensure that all regions of the country have adequate representation. Coupled with the law on parliamentary immunity the result is a system where members of parliament feel more accountable to their parties than their citizens.
There is insufficient time before the upcoming September elections to address these structural deficiencies. There is also insufficient political will or consensus about how to address it. President Yushchenko recently proposed a two chamber parliament, one based on geographic representation. However, his plan has garnered little support or produced suggestions for alternatives.
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