What do Ukraine’s defenders say about the Law 12414 that stripped independence of anti-corruption agencies.

Defender of Ukraine Evgen Shybalov reveals.

What personally enraged me about draft Law 12414?

Its title: “On Amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code Regarding the Specifics of Pre-trial Investigations of Criminal Offenses Related to Persons Missing Under Special Circumstances During Martial Law.”

“Missing under special circumstances” – that’s me.

That’s what I was when I turned up in captivity.

That’s what many of my comrades were, left behind on the battlefield, listed as “missing” simply because it took weeks or months under heavy enemy fire to evacuate their bodies.

I can’t even imagine the level of depravity it takes to push forward a self-serving bill while hiding behind the suffering of the missing and the captured.

What gives me hope is the youth – morally sound, clear-eyed, and unwilling to accept this grotesque manipulation.

That’s exactly why I support these protests. And why I’ll be joining them whenever I can – for as long as they last.