The Opposition Platform – For Life (; , OPZZh) was a
pro-Russian
Russophilia is the identification or solidarity with, appreciation of, or support for the Russia, country, Russians, people, Russian language, language, and history of Russia. One who espouses Russophilia is called a russophile. Its Opposite ...
and
Eurosceptic
Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies and seek refor ...
political party in Ukraine
There have been numerous political parties active in Ukraine in the past and present. Currently, as of 1 January 2020, there are 349 officially registered political parties in the country.2022 Russian invasion.
The party was the successor of For Life (,
Russian
Russian(s) may refer to:
*Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*A citizen of Russia
*Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages
*''The Russians'', a b ...
Espresso TV
Espreso TV () is an Internet television station in Ukraine that started to operate in November 2013. Espreso TV enabled the Euromaidan protests to be broadcast worldwide.
Ownership
The channel is owned by the media company Goldberry LLC.
(5 July 2019) In the 2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election, the party won 37 seats on the nationwide party list and six constituency seats. Although it espoused
pro-Russian
Russophilia is the identification or solidarity with, appreciation of, or support for the Russia, country, Russians, people, Russian language, language, and history of Russia. One who espouses Russophilia is called a russophile. Its Opposite ...
policies, the party publicly denounced the
Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
on 8 March 2022.
On 20 March 2022, its activities were suspended by the
National Security and Defense Council
The National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, ( NSDCU; , ''RNBOU'') or RNBO, is the coordinating state body of the executive power under the President of Ukraine on issues of national security and defense.
It is a state agency tasked wi ...
for the period of
martial law
Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...
due to allegations of having ties to Russia made by the Council. On 14 April, the party's
parliamentary group
A parliamentary group, parliamentary caucus or political group is a group consisting of members of different political party, political parties or independent politicians with similar ideologies. Some parliamentary systems allow smaller politic ...
was dissolved in Ukraine's parliament. On 21 April, twenty-five of the party's former deputies formed a new parliamentary group called "
Platform for Life and Peace
The Platform for Life and Peace (, ; PZZhM/) was a parliamentary group in Ukraine created after the ban on the Opposition Platform — For Life and the dissolution of the parliamentary group of the same name following the 2022 Russian invasion of ...
" (). On 20 June, the party was banned by court. On 15 September 2022, the final appeal against this ban was dismissed by the
2002 Ukrainian parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Ukraine on 31 March 2002.Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) ''Elections in Europe: A data handbook'', p1976 The Our Ukraine–People's Self-Defense Bloc, Our Ukraine bloc emerged as the largest faction in ...
legislative
A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers ...
elections
An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...
2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election
Fourteen or 14 may refer to:
* 14 (number), the natural number following 13 and preceding 15
* one of the years 14 BC, AD 14, 1914, 2014
Music
* 14th (band), a British electronic music duo
* ''14'' (David Garrett album), 2013
*''14'', an un ...
, the party joined
Opposition Bloc
The Opposition Bloc (, ) was a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine that was founded in 2014 by the merger of six parties that did not endorse Euromaidan. Legally, the party was created by renaming the lesser-known party "Leading Force".
along with other five parties; in these elections Opposition Bloc won 29 seats.Opposition Bloc boosts rating by distancing itself from Yanukovych era
Kyiv Post
The ''Kyiv Post'' is Ukraine’s first and most prominent English-language newspaper. It was founded in 1995 in Kyiv by American businessman Jed Sunden.
In 2018, the publication was acquired by prominent Ukrainian businessman Adnan Kivan, foun ...
Kyiv Post
The ''Kyiv Post'' is Ukraine’s first and most prominent English-language newspaper. It was founded in 1995 in Kyiv by American businessman Jed Sunden.
In 2018, the publication was acquired by prominent Ukrainian businessman Adnan Kivan, foun ...
The Daily Beast
''The Daily Beast'' is an American news website focused on politics, media, and pop culture. Founded in 2008, the website is owned by IAC Inc.
It has been characterized as a "high-end tabloid" by Noah Shachtman, the site's editor-in-chief ...
Radio Liberty
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a media organization broadcasting news and analyses in 27 languages to 23 countries across Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and the Middle East. Headquartered in Prague since 1995, RFE/RL ...
. 14 September 2014
For life
In July 2016, former members of Opposition Bloc
Vadim Rabinovich
Vadim Zinovyevich Rabinovich ( Ukrainian: Вадим Рабінович, Hebrew: ; born 4 August 1953) is an Israeli and formerly Ukrainian oligarch and Jewish community leader. He is a former leader of the banned Opposition Platform — For Li ...
and
Yevhen Murayev
Yevheniy Volodymyrovych Murayev (; born 2 December 1976) is a Ukrainian politician and media owner. He was the leader of the now-banned political party Nashi.
Murayev has been a deputy of the Kharkiv Oblast Council (two convocations) and a de ...
reconstituted the party under the name ''For Life''. In September 2018, Murayev left For Life and five days later created the new political party Ours (Nashi). The
Ministry of Justice of Ukraine
The Ministry of Justice of Ukraine (), Мінюст �країни Minjust f Ukraine is the main body in the system of central government of Ukraine that regulates state legal policy. It is one of the oldest ministerial offices of the country ...
Ukrayinska Pravda
''Ukrainska Pravda'' is a Ukrainian socio-political online media outlet founded by Heorhii Gongadze in April 2000. After Gongadze’s death in September 2000, the editorial team was led by co-founder Olena Prytula, who remained the editor-in ...
/
Civil movement "Chesno"
Chesno () is a Ukrainian public campaign that emerged late 2011 to advance a fair election process. It is widely known for its critical analysis and evaluation of politicians and the Verkhovna Rada (parliament) in Ukraine. The organization provi ...
(2017)
Foundation of Opposition Platform – For Life
According to ''
Ukrayinska Pravda
''Ukrainska Pravda'' is a Ukrainian socio-political online media outlet founded by Heorhii Gongadze in April 2000. After Gongadze’s death in September 2000, the editorial team was led by co-founder Olena Prytula, who remained the editor-in ...
'', the negotiations on the unification of the parties For Life and
Opposition Bloc
The Opposition Bloc (, ) was a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine that was founded in 2014 by the merger of six parties that did not endorse Euromaidan. Legally, the party was created by renaming the lesser-known party "Leading Force".
started in the summer of 2018. ''Ukrayinska Pravda'' claims these talks were instigated by Serhiy Lyovochkin who, along with
Dmytro Firtash
Dmytro Vasylovych Firtash (; born 2 May 1965) is a Ukrainian businessman who heads the board of directors of Group DF. He was highly influential during the Yushchenko administration and the Yanukovych administration. As a middleman for the R ...
, controlled one of the wings of Opposition Bloc, whereas
Rinat Akhmetov
Rinat Leonidovych Akhmetov (born 21 September 1966) is a Ukrainian billionaire and businessman. He is the founder and president of international investment group System Capital Management (SCM), and is the wealthiest man in Ukraine. Akhmetov i ...
Russian President
The president of Russia, officially the president of the Russian Federation (), is the executive head of state of Russia. The president is the chair of the Federal State Council and the supreme commander-in-chief of the Russian Armed Forces. I ...
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
's closest associates and chief of staff to former Ukrainian President
Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Danylovych Kuchma (, ; born 9 August 1938) is a Ukrainian politician who was the second president of Ukraine, serving from 19 July 1994 to 23 January 2005. The only president of Ukraine to serve two terms, his presidency was marked by demo ...
,
Viktor Medvedchuk
Viktor Volodymyrovych Medvedchuk (; born 7 August 1954), also known as Viktor Vladimirovich Medvedchuk (), is a former Ukrainian lawyer, business oligarch, and politician who has lived in exile in Russia since September 2022 after being handed ...
was elected chairman of the party For Life political party's council. Medvedchuk was also leader of the Ukrainian Choice NGO, a socially conservative pro-Russian political group and partially prohibited in Ukraine as openly anti-Ukrainian.
On 9 November 2018, Opposition Bloc chairman
Yuriy Boyko
Yuriy Anatoliyovych Boyko (, ; born 9 October 1958) is a Ukraine, Ukrainian politician who served as one of the Second Azarov government, Vice Prime Ministers of Ukraine between 2012 and 2014,
and ''For Life'' signed an agreement (called Opposition Platform – For Life) for cooperation in the
2019 Ukrainian presidential election
Presidential elections were held in Ukraine on 31 March 2019. As none of the 39 candidates on the ballot received an absolute majority of the initial vote, a runoff was held on 21 April between the top two vote-getters: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a t ...
Kyiv Post
The ''Kyiv Post'' is Ukraine’s first and most prominent English-language newspaper. It was founded in 1995 in Kyiv by American businessman Jed Sunden.
In 2018, the publication was acquired by prominent Ukrainian businessman Adnan Kivan, foun ...
Vadym Novynskyi
Vadym Novynskyi (; born 3 June 1963 Liga.net) is a Russian-born Ukrainian billionaire businessman, priest an ...
and
Borys Kolesnikov
Borys Viktorovych Kolesnikov (, born 25 October 1962) is the leader of the political party Ukraine is Our Home. He is the former secretary of the Party of Regions' presidium, former people's deputy in Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine's national parliamen ...
claimed the agreement was a "personal initiative" of Boyko and that the party had not taken any decisions on cooperation with For Life.
Opposition Bloc members, Ukraine – Forward! and Party of Development of Ukraine joined the Opposition Platform – For Life alliance on 17 November 2018.Партія «Опозиційна платформа – За життя»: програма, обіцянки, перші номери, гроші та скандали , ''Opinionua.com'' (17 July 2019) The same day, Opposition Platform – For Life nominated Boyko as its candidate in the 2019 Ukrainian presidential election.
After Boyko was excluded from the parliamentary faction of the Opposition Bloc (the reason given was "because they betrayed their voters'" interests), on 20 November 2018 he announced the creation of a new parliamentary group called Opposition Platform – For Life. Interfax-Ukraine (20 November 2018) According to Boyko, part of Opposition Bloc is to join this new parliamentary group and he claimed "we have several offers from MPs belonging to other groups".
On 13 December 2018, it was announced that a new party, called ''Opposition Platform – For Life'', had been formed.
Boyko's official nomination was announced on 17 November. Because Opposition Platform – For Life was not yet registered as a party in January 2019, it could not nominate him as a presidential candidate. Hence on 17 January 2019 Boyko submitted documents to the
Central Election Commission of Ukraine
The Central Election Commission of Ukraine (, commonly abbreviated as , ); sometimes referred to as the Central Electoral Commission of Ukraine) is a permanent and independent collegiate body of the Ukrainian state that acts on the basis of th ...
for registration as a self-nominated candidate.Boyko began registering as a presidential candidate ''Ukrayinska Pravda'' (17 November 2018) In the election Boyko took fourth place with 11.67% of the total vote.
Central Election Commission of Ukraine
The Central Election Commission of Ukraine (, commonly abbreviated as , ); sometimes referred to as the Central Electoral Commission of Ukraine) is a permanent and independent collegiate body of the Ukrainian state that acts on the basis of th ...
2019 parliamentary election and 2020 local elections
In the
2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Ukraine on 21 July 2019. Originally scheduled to be held at the end of October, the elections were brought forward after newly inaugurated President of Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dissolved parli ...
the party won 37 seats (13.05% of the total votes) on the nationwide party list and 6 constituency seats.CEC counts 100 percent of vote in Ukraine's parliamentary elections
Ukrayinska Pravda
''Ukrainska Pravda'' is a Ukrainian socio-political online media outlet founded by Heorhii Gongadze in April 2000. After Gongadze’s death in September 2000, the editorial team was led by co-founder Olena Prytula, who remained the editor-in ...
(21 July 2019) 11.4% of the party's elected deputies were women.
In the October
Ukrayinska Pravda
''Ukrainska Pravda'' is a Ukrainian socio-political online media outlet founded by Heorhii Gongadze in April 2000. After Gongadze’s death in September 2000, the editorial team was led by co-founder Olena Prytula, who remained the editor-in ...
(18 November 2020) (The highest number of seats in the election was won by
Servant of the People
Servant of the People (; ''SN'') is a Liberalism, liberal, Centrism, centrist, Pro-Europeanism, pro-European List of political parties in Ukraine, political party in Ukraine. Since both the 2019 Ukrainian presidential election and the 2019 Ukra ...
with 17.59% of local deputies nominated in the election by this party. Second place was for
Fatherland
A homeland is a place where a national or ethnic identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethnic nation ...
with 12.39%.) The party was successful in
South
South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
and
Eastern Ukraine
Eastern Ukraine or East Ukraine (; ) is primarily the territory of Ukraine east of the Dnipro (or Dnieper) river, particularly Kharkiv, Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts (provinces). Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts are often also regarded as ...
, although the local parties of city mayors (in particular in
Odesa
Odesa, also spelled Odessa, is the third most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern ...
,
Mykolaiv
Mykolaiv ( ), also known as Nikolaev ( ) is a List of cities in Ukraine, city and a hromada (municipality) in southern Ukraine. Mykolaiv is the Administrative centre, administrative center of Mykolaiv Raion (Raions of Ukraine, district) and Myk ...
and
Sloviansk
Sloviansk is a city in Donetsk Oblast, northern part of the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. The city was known as ''Tor'' until 1784. While it did not actually belong to the raion itself, Sloviansk served as the administrative center of the S ...
) cost them support compared with its predecessor
Opposition Bloc
The Opposition Bloc (, ) was a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine that was founded in 2014 by the merger of six parties that did not endorse Euromaidan. Legally, the party was created by renaming the lesser-known party "Leading Force".
in the
2015 Ukrainian local elections
On 25 October 2015 local elections took place in Ukraine. The elections were conducted a little over a year since the 2014 snap local elections, which were only held throughout parts of the country. A second round of voting for the election of ...
.
Oleksandr Popov
Oleksandr Pavlovych Popov (; born 22 November 1960) is a Ukrainian politician, businessman, former head of the Kyiv City State Administration.
Biography
He graduated Tyumen Civil Engineering Institute and Higher School of the KGB in Kyiv.
From ...
, former head of the
Kyiv City State Administration
Kyiv City State Administration (, commonly abbreviated as KMDA ) is the national-level branch of the Government of Ukraine that administers Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. The current Head of the Kyiv City State Administration is Vitali Klitschko; ...
, was a candidate for
Mayor of Kyiv
The Head of Kyiv City (), unofficially and more commonly the Mayor of Kyiv (), is a city official elected by popular vote who serves as a head of the Kyiv city state administration (the capital of Ukraine) and a chairperson the Kyiv City Counc ...
nominated by OPFL. In the election he received 68,757 votes, securing second place but losing the election to incumbent Mayor
Vitali Klitschko
Vitalii Volodymyrovych Klychko (; ; born 19 July 1971), known as Vitali Klitschko, is a Ukrainian politician and former professional boxer. He serves as mayor of Kyiv,mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
of
Kryvyi Rih
Kryvyi Rih ( ; , ), also known as Krivoy Rog ( ), is a city in central Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Kryvyi Rih Raion and its subordinate Kryvyi Rih urban hromada in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. The city is part of the Kryvyi Rih Metropo ...
.
Grenade attack and call for impeachment
On 3 July 2020, a
grenade
A grenade is a small explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a Shell (projectile), shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A mod ...
was thrown into the party's office in
Poltava
Poltava (, ; , ) is a city located on the Vorskla, Vorskla River in Central Ukraine, Central Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Poltava Oblast as well as Poltava Raion within the oblast. It also hosts the administration of Po ...
, and one person was injured as a result of the explosion.
Following the enactment of Ukrainian sanctions imposed on fellow party member
Taras Kozak
Taras Romanovych Kozak (; born 6 April 1972) is a pro-Russian Ukrainian politician, state servant, businessman and media proprietor, and a close associate of the pro-Russian oligarch Viktor Medvedchuk. He was elected in the 2014 Ukrainian parlia ...
and his media outlets on 2 February 2021, the party's deputies began moving to initiate an
impeachment
Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements.
In Eur ...
of President
Volodymyr Zelensky
Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy (born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian politician and former entertainer who has served as the sixth and current president of Ukraine since 2019. He took office five years after the start of the Russo-Ukraini ...
.
2022 Russian invasion and banning
As of early 2022, its leadership consisted of Rabinovich and Boyko (co-chairs), Medvedchuk (head of Political Council, chair of Strategic Council) and Serhiy Lovochkin (chair of the Executive Committee).
On 24 February 2022, Russia launched a full scale invasion of Ukraine. On this day party member
Illia Kyva
Illia Volodymyrovych Kyva (2 June 1977 – 6 December 2023) was a Ukrainian politician who was a member of the Verkhovna Rada (the Ukrainian parliament) from August 2019 until March 2022, when he fled to Russia.
Kyva worked as an official and ...
expressed support for the invasion and blamed the war on
Ukrainian President
The president of Ukraine (, ) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations and concludes international treaties. ...
Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy (born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian politician and former entertainer who has served as the sixth and current president of Ukraine since 2019. He took office five years after the start of the Russo-Ukraini ...
and urged him to resign. On 3 March 2022, Kyva was expelled from the party. On 15 March 2022, parliament deprived Kyva of his mandate as a People's Deputy.
On 7 March 2022, the party deprived Medvedchuk, who was charged with
high treason
Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its d ...
in May 2021, of the post of co-chairman of the party; making Yuriy Boyko the sole chairman. Medvedchuk had escaped his house arrest on 28 February 2022. On 14 April, he was apprehended once again.
On 7 March 2022, the party also demanded "from the leadership of the Russian Federation to stop the aggression against Ukraine and calls on the participants of the negotiation process to immediately decide on a ceasefire and withdrawal of all Russian troops from Ukraine." The party also decided to support the participation of members of the Territorial Defense Forces to protect critical infrastructure, housing and looting and to support humanitarian corridors for the withdrawal of civilians.Boyko became the chairman of the political council of the OPZH. Medvedchuk was deprived of the post of co-chairman (8 March 2022)
Opposition Platform – For Life was one of several political parties suspended by the
National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine
The National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, ( NSDCU; , ''RNBOU'') or RNBO, is the coordinating state body of the executive power under the President of Ukraine on issues of national security and defense.
It is a state agency tasked wi ...
on 20 March 2022, along with Derzhava, Left Opposition, Nashi,
Opposition Bloc
The Opposition Bloc (, ) was a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine that was founded in 2014 by the merger of six parties that did not endorse Euromaidan. Legally, the party was created by renaming the lesser-known party "Leading Force".
,
Party of Shariy
The Party of Shariy (; , PSh) is a banned political party in Ukraine founded by political blogger Anatoly Shariy. Its official proclaimed ideology is libertarianism.Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine
The Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine (PSPU) is a banned, pro-Russian political party in Ukraine led by Nataliya Vitrenko. The party was represented in Ukraine's national parliament between 1998 and 2002. The party is considered neo-commu ...
,
Socialist Party of Ukraine
The Socialist Party of Ukraine (, abbreviated SPU) was a social democratic and democratic socialist Political parties in Ukraine, political party in Ukraine. It was one of the oldest parties in Ukraine and was created by former members of the Sov ...
,
Union of Leftists
Union of Left Forces (; SLS) was a political party in Ukraine led by Vasyl Volha from its founding in 2007 to 2019.
At the 24 March 2022 parliamentary sitting five MPs announced their resignation from the Opposition Platform – For Life faction. Meanwhile parliament itself was consulting with the
Ministry of Justice
A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
parliamentary group
A parliamentary group, parliamentary caucus or political group is a group consisting of members of different political party, political parties or independent politicians with similar ideologies. Some parliamentary systems allow smaller politic ...
was dissolved in Ukraine's parliament.
On 21 April 2022, the Opposition Platform – For Life deputies in Ukraine's national parliament formed a new parliamentary group. The group was named "
Platform for Life and Peace
The Platform for Life and Peace (, ; PZZhM/) was a parliamentary group in Ukraine created after the ban on the Opposition Platform — For Life and the dissolution of the parliamentary group of the same name following the 2022 Russian invasion of ...
" () and headed by Boyko and consisted of 25 MPs. On 11 May 2022 The Opposition Platform – For Life faction in the
Kharkiv City Council
Kharkiv City Council () is the city council for the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, and is elected every five years to run the city's local government.
History
Until 1870, members of the city council were elected according to the estate order, and ...
ceased to exist. 16 of the party's 18 deputies created the parliamentary group "
Restoration of Ukraine
Restoration of Ukraine, also translated as Repair of Ukraine, (, ) is a parliamentary group in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, founded on 22 May 2022. The chairwoman of the group is Antonina Slavytska. As of December 2024, the group consists of 15 d ...
".
On 20 June 2022, the Eighth Administrative Court of Appeal banned the party. The property of the party and all its branches were transferred to the state.The court banned OPZZh
Ukrayinska Pravda
''Ukrainska Pravda'' is a Ukrainian socio-political online media outlet founded by Heorhii Gongadze in April 2000. After Gongadze’s death in September 2000, the editorial team was led by co-founder Olena Prytula, who remained the editor-in ...
(20 June 2022) The decision was open to appeal at the
Supreme Court of Ukraine
The Supreme Court of Ukraine () is the highest judicial body in the system of courts of general jurisdiction in Ukraine. At the time Opposition Platform – For Life was one of two of the 20 March 2022 suspended parties that was subject to an attempt of getting banned in court, Opposition Platform – For Life was the only party to defend and participate in the case. (The other party was the
Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine
The Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine (PSPU) is a banned, pro-Russian political party in Ukraine led by Nataliya Vitrenko. The party was represented in Ukraine's national parliament between 1998 and 2002. The party is considered neo-commu ...
.) On 15 September 2022, the final appeal against the party's ban was dismissed by the
Supreme Court of Ukraine
The Supreme Court of Ukraine () is the highest judicial body in the system of courts of general jurisdiction in Ukraine.
Policies
The ideological platform of the party is composed of various ideological currents, such as social democracy, Russophilia, and Euroscepticism. The party's electoral program for the 2019 election was entitled "Peace! Responsibility! Care!" It promotes policies such as settlement of the conflict with Russia, reconstruction of Donbas through compromise with Russia and federalism, and establishment of a 'social economy' that would focus on developing social welfare and increasing social spending to provide accessible medicine and social security. The party was decisively positioned on the left economically, but included both conservative and liberal policies in its sociocultural outlook. It was also described as left-populist.
In the party election program for the
2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Ukraine on 21 July 2019. Originally scheduled to be held at the end of October, the elections were brought forward after newly inaugurated President of Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dissolved parli ...
, the party promised to undo
decommunization
Decommunization in former communist states is the process of purging former communist high officials and eliminating communist symbols.
It is sometimes referred to as political cleansing. Although the term has been occasionally used during t ...
,
lustration
Lustration in Central and Eastern Europe is the official public procedure of scrutinizing a public official or a candidate for public office in terms of their history as a witting confidential collaborator (informant) of relevant former commun ...
,
Ukrainization
Ukrainization or Ukrainisation ( ) is a policy or practice of increasing the usage and facilitating the development of the Ukrainian language and promoting other elements of Ukrainian culture in various spheres of public life such as education, ...
CIS countries
The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional intergovernmental organization in Eurasia. It was formed following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. It covers an area of and has an estimated population of 246,200,194. ...
. The group wanted the "neutrality of Ukraine in the military-political sphere and non-participation in any military-political alliances." As a means of fighting poverty, the party advocated the "reduction of gas tariffs for the population of Ukraine to ₴3,800–4,000 per thousand cubic meters due to direct gas supplies from the
Russian Federation
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
." The party wanted to end the
War in Donbas
The war in Donbas, or the Donbas war, was a phase of the Russo-Ukrainian War in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine. The war Timeline of the war in Donbas (2014), began in April 2014, when Russian separatist forces in Ukraine, Russian para ...
by negotiating directly with the
Donetsk People's Republic
The Donetsk People's Republic (DPR; , ) is Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, occupied territory in Ukraine that the Russian Federation has claimed to annex and declared as a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia, comprising parts o ...
and the
Luhansk People's Republic
The Luhansk People's Republic (LPR; , ) is a disputed territory administered as a republic of Russia in the occupied parts of eastern Ukraine's Luhansk Oblast, with its capital in Luhansk. The LPR was proclaimed by Russian-backed paramilitar ...
. Other positions set out in its electoral programme include granting "autonomous status to Donbas as an integral part of Ukraine" by amending the Constitution and laws of Ukraine; the right to speak, communicate, study in Russian; decentralisation of governance; stronger mechanisms against corrupt politicians; "an end to deindustrialization, degradation and deintellectualization"; a stronger social state; constitutional amendment to ensure neutrality; and "revision of the bondage conditions" of Ukraine's participation in the
World Trade Organization
The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland that regulates and facilitates international trade. Governments use the organization to establish, revise, and enforce the rules that g ...
; and a
free trade agreement
A free trade agreement (FTA) or treaty is an agreement according to international law to form a free-trade area between the cooperating state (polity), states. There are two types of trade agreements: Bilateralism, bilateral and Multilateralism, m ...
with the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
.
At a conciliation council among leaders of parliamentary factions on 17 February 2020, Vadim Rabinovych urged the sending of a Ukrainian delegation to participate in the 9 May victory parade in Moscow and started to sing the Soviet song "
The Sacred War
"The Sacred War", also known as "Arise, Great Country!", is one of the most famous Soviet songs of World War II. The music is by Alexander Alexandrov, founder of the Alexandrov Ensemble and the musical composer of the State Anthem of the Sovi ...
" ("Rise Up, the Mighty Country). The party celebrates
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...
veteran
A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in an job, occupation or Craft, field.
A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in the military, armed forces.
A topic o ...
s by marking occasions like the
Victory Day over Nazism in World War II
Victory Day over Nazism in World War II () was a national holiday and a non-working day in Ukraine from 2015 to 2023.
The holiday was first celebrated on 9 May 2015 and followed the Day of Remembrance and Reconciliation on 8 May (which paid ...
State Duma
The State Duma is the lower house of the Federal Assembly (Russia), Federal Assembly of Russia, with the upper house being the Federation Council (Russia), Federation Council. It was established by the Constitution of Russia, Constitution of t ...
on 10 March 2020. The OPFL delegation was met with a standing ovation in the State Duma. Soon after information about the trip appeared, the press service office of the
Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada ( ; VR), officially the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, is the unicameralism, unicameral parliament of Ukraine. It consists of 450 Deputy (legislator), deputies presided over by a speaker. The Verkhovna Rada meets in the Verkhovn ...
denied that the parliament had commissioned the delegation to conduct any negotiations with Duma representatives and no official documents had been issued for the foreign visit of the delegation.
After Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022 on 8 March 2022 the party voiced its stance on this. The party stated that it "demands from the leadership of the Russian Federation to stop the aggression against Ukraine and calls on the participants of the negotiation process to immediately decide on a ceasefire and withdrawal of all Russian troops from Ukraine." The party also decided to support the participation of members of the Territorial Defense Forces to protect critical infrastructure, housing and looting and to support humanitarian corridors for the withdrawal of civilians.
Election results
Verkhovna Rada
;All-Ukrainian Union Center
;Opposition PlatformFor Life
Presidential elections
Local councils
International cooperation
The party had international cooperation agreements with the following parties:
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United Russia
The All-Russian Political Party United Russia (, ) is the Ruling party, ruling List of political parties in Russia, political party of Russia. As the largest party in the Russian Federation, it holds 325 (or 72.22%) of the 450 seats in the St ...
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National Rally
The National Rally (, , RN), known as the National Front from 1972 to 2018 (, , FN), is a French far-right politics, far-right political party, described as right-wing populist and French nationalism, nationalist. It is the single largest Nat ...
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Yisrael Beiteinu
Yisrael Beiteinu (, ) is a conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may ...