Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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56. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if his attention has been drawn to recent legislation introduced in Ukraine regarding the registration of NGOs in receipt of overseas development; the implications for NGOs; his views on same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8571/14]

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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I am aware of the legislation to which the Deputy refers in his question. The provisions relating to civil society organisations were part of a wider package of highly restrictive legislative measures passed by the Ukrainian parliament with little or no debate on 16 January. The laws were hastily passed in the context of the crisis in Ukraine and were rightly seen as an attempt to stifle the protests.

The specific changes to the Law on additional measures (Law 721-VII) required NGOs receiving foreign funding and engaging in broadly defined “political activities” to register as foreign agents or risk closure. The legislation is similar to earlier Russian legislation concerning “foreign agents” which the Council of Europe described as having a chilling effect on the NGO community in Russia.

In an analysis of the Ukrainian measures, the Council of Europe suggested that the aim was not to ensure the financial transparency of NGOs in general but rather to be able to act against NGOs supporting the current protests. The Council of Europe also noted that the label “foreign agent” is highly derogatory and it is unreasonable to oblige an organisation to assume such a label.

At its meeting on 20 January, the Foreign Affairs Council expressed deep concern about the legislation as a whole and noted that it would seriously curtail the actions of civil society organisations. Following a very strong reaction against the new laws, both domestically and internationally, the Ukrainian parliament took the decision on 28 January to cancel the measures.

At its meeting on 10 February, the Foreign Affairs Council welcomed the decision to revoke the laws while noting that further efforts are necessary to find a durable solution to the current political crisis.