The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine will remove Shufrych, who is suspected of treason, from his position as the head of the Committee on Freedom of Speech

The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is expected to remove the arrested Member of Parliament Nestor Shufrych from his position as the head of the parliamentary committee on freedom of speech this week.

This was announced by Ukrainian MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak in his Telegram channel.

“We are awaiting the resolution to be posted on the website,” Zheleznyak added.

To recap, on September 15, the Pechersky District Court of Kyiv ordered the detention of Ukrainian Member of Parliament Nestor Shufrych for 60 days without the possibility of bail, on suspicion of state treason.

The Security Service of Ukraine suspects Shufrych of state treason, alleging that he systematically spread pro-Russian statements. Shufrych himself denies these accusations and considers them to be absurd.

It’s worth noting that before his arrest, Nestor Shufrych, a Member of Parliament from the now-banned party “Opposition Platform – For Life,” attended sessions of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, spoke from the podium, and headed the Committee on Freedom of Speech. In April 2022, a group of MPs from the banned party formed the parliamentary group “Platform for Life and Peace.”

As analysts from the “HONEST Movement” pointed out in February 2023, after Russia’s full-scale invasion, Shufrych effectively became the spokesperson for the “Servant of the People” party.

“In reality, Nestor Shufrych is quite active in the session hall; he often takes the floor and speaks. He remained silent until early April, and then, when they announced the creation of the new group, he started speaking. So, he became a kind of spokesperson,” said parliamentary analyst Alexander Salijenko in an interview with Radio NV.

“Moreover, former MPs from the Opposition Platform – For Life now finish their speeches in the session hall with slogans like ‘Glory to Ukraine! – Glory to the Heroes!’ They have become such fervent patriots who constantly say in their speeches that they have always been for Ukraine and the EU,” the HONEST Movement analyst expressed surprise.

After the start of the full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022, members of the 206th Territorial Defense Battalion in Kyiv detained Shufrych for photographing a checkpoint.

In 2022, Ukrainian journalists discovered that Nestor Shufrych’s family owned land plots and property on the southern coast of Crimea, acquired in 2013. After the annexation, this property was registered under Russian law. Additionally, the family of the Member of Parliament continued to purchase real estate in Crimea even after the annexation, following only Russian laws.

Recall that we previously examined in detail why MPs from the banned party “Opposition Platform – For Life” continue to work in the parliament and support all the bills proposed by the Zelensky regime.