Out of €39 million allocated by the EU for the "Pravo-Justice" project, Ukrainian grant organizations spent €30 million on consulting each other – media
Kyiv • UNN
Out of €39 million from the EU, the Pravo-Justice project spent €30 million on consultations and roundtables. The funds were received by affiliated non-governmental organizations.
Ukrainian grant recipients – the "Pravo-Justice" project – have been accused of writing off 30 million euros for expert consultations, roundtables, and analytical reports out of nearly 39 million euros received from the European Union. Funds were received by the Ukrainian Bar Association, the DEJURE Foundation, Transparency International, and others. This is stated in the investigation materials, reports UNN.
"Out of the colossal sum of 38.6 million euros, the organizers (of the 'Pravo-Justice' project – ed.) managed to more or less document the provision of real technical assistance for only about 8 million euros – mainly purchases made for the needs of the prosecutor's office and courts. About 30 million euros were simply written off for so-called 'soft' components: expert consultations, strategic sessions, roundtables, trainings, and the writing of analytical reports," the investigation states.
According to the author, EU money was redistributed among members of a closed grant community: structures affiliated with Denys Buhay (Ukrainian Bar Association), Mykhailo Zhernakov (DEJURE Foundation), Andriy Vyshnevsky (Transparency International), and Svitlana Matvienko. These organizations spent years writing strategies for each other and holding joint events, receiving European fees for this, while the country's judicial system was in a state of institutional collapse, they reported.
The investigation also highlights the purchase of tactical equipment for the "Cyclone" paramilitary rapid response unit.
"Spending funds from a European project, whose direct statutory goal is 'building the rule of law and justice,' on military needs is a direct violation of the intended use of the funds. This indicates a complete loss of control over budget utilization by structures in Brussels," the journalists noted.
According to the investigation data, state bodies – the Ministry of Justice, the High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ), and the High Council of Justice (HCJ) – confirmed in their official responses that they do not possess information regarding the exact amounts spent by the project on their needs.
According to his information, the "shadow reports" that "Pravo-Justice" uses to report to the European Union are written by non-governmental organizations funded by the project – the UBA, DEJURE, and others.
"They construct a conclusion for Brussels: the Ukrainian state has failed, therefore external control must be continued and even more European millions must be allocated to support their expert syndicate," the investigation concludes.
Recently, journalist and veteran of the Russian-Ukrainian war Volodymyr Boiko noted in his commentary that in Ukraine, unlike in the US, the income of non-governmental organizations constitutes a commercial secret.
"Unlike in the US, in Ukraine, the income and expenditures of some 'Anti-Corruption Action Center,' 'AutoMaidan,' or 'DEJURE' constitute a commercial secret of professional 'civic activists.' This is despite the fact that these pseudo-NGOs are funded by aid to Ukraine provided by the governments of Western countries," he emphasized.