Tymoshenko: Ukraine high court prejudiced in vote fraud case

Feb 20, 2010, 14:32 GMT

Kiev - Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko on Saturday accused a high court of prejudice against her in a vote fraud case, and said she planned to withdraw her suit.

'Today, I have as a presidential candidate come up against a machine, which operates on principles far from the rule of law,' Tymoshenko told reporters.

'It is clear...they (judges in Ukraine's high administrative court) want to whitewash this (vote) falsification, and act as if it was legal.'

'We do not see the need of a continuing with this court case, we will withdraw our suit,' she said, according to a Korrespondent news magazine report.

Tymoshenko's remarks came after court judges ended the second day of hearings on her complaint that she had lost a February 7 presidential election because of allegedly massive vote fraud.

Former Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych obtained 48.95 per cent of ballots cast in the run-off election, with Tymoshenko obtaining 45.47 per cent, according to data from Ukraine's Central Election Commission (CEC).

The court on Friday, on the first day of two scheduled days of hearings, agreed to review vote counts as compiled by the CEC; but at the same time declined to take into evidence voter rolls alleged by Tymoshenko to have been tampered with by Yanukovych supporters.

The ruling dramatically reduced chances of a court decision in Tymoshenko's favour, as claimed evidence of substantial voter roll tampering formed the basis of her vote fraud allegations, the Interfax news agency reported.

Tymoshenko's comments on plans to withdraw her suit came after court justices had ended hearings, and begun deliberation. By law they must issue a decision on Tymoshenko's complaint by Monday.

An appeal to Ukraine's Supreme Court, were the high administrative court decided against her, was unlikely as 'such an appeal is not allowed by law,' Tymoshenko said.

International monitors generally rated Ukraine's vote as free and fair, with few election law violations.

Yanukovych's inauguration is scheduled for February 25.