Yulia Tymoshenko’s defense counsel at the next hearing in Kharkiv will file a motion asking the court to clarify the legal basis for the surveillance cameras that are in the courtroom where the trial of Yulia Tymoshenko involving activities of United Energy Systems of Ukraine from 1997-1998 will take place, according to Official web site of Yulia Tymoshenko. "I don’t know who installed these video cameras, I don’t know on what legal grounds these video cameras are there and are filming what takes place in the courtroom. The judge clearly said that all video recording is prohibited. I don’t know who’s recording this despite the court’s decision. We will raise this issue during the next hearing," said lawyer Serhiy Vlasenko.
He pointed out that on April 20 the court ignored Article 20 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine on the openness of court proceedings and denied the defense request to allow television and photo journalists to attend the trial, thus deliberately preventing the publicity of the new trial against the ex-premier. "For some reason journalists aren’t allowed inside but some unknown person is filming everything and it’s not clear how this footage will be used," he added.
The defense arrived in the Kharkiv court today to find that a glass box has been installed in the courtroom in the defendant’s area especially for Yulia Tymoshenko. Inside are two tables, chairs, two file cabinets, a microphone, fresh flowers and paintings. For the first time in court practice, they found space for a plasma screen that shows footage from court surveillance cameras.
