Ukraine MPs reopen Yushchenko poison case

UKRAINIAN lawmakers reopened their investigation yesterday into Viktor Yushchenko's allegations that authorities tried to kill him, after doctors in Austria determined the presidential candidate had been poisoned by dioxin.

The decision by a parliamentary commission followed a similar move by the country's prosecutor general on Sunday.

Mr Yushchenko had asked investigators to wait until after the December 26 run-off so as not to influence the outcome of the vote. The commission will be led by Volodymyr Sivkovych, a lawmaker who has supported Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, Mr Yushchenko's opponent in this month's election.

The vote is a re-run of the disputed November 21 run-off, which the Ukrainian Supreme Court voided because of fraud. The results had Mr Yanukovych winning.

"The results of the most recent expertise in Vienna are giving us grounds to renew our work," Mr Sivkovych said. "However, we are not convinced that deliberate poisoning can be proved."

Mr Yushchenko fell ill on September 5 and was treated at the Rudolfiner clinic in Vienna. Doctors suspected poison but said they needed to conduct more tests. Mr Yushchenko returned to the clinic last week after winning his battle for a new runoff.

Doctors said the new tests proved beyond a doubt that Mr Yushchenko's illness, which caused dramatic facial disfigurement, was caused by a massive dose of dioxin, possibly slipped into his food. Mr Sivkovych urged Mr Yushchenko to immediately hand over results of the latest tests.

An earlier commission led by Mr Sivkovych investigated the case in October and decided that Mr Yushchenko suffered a combination of a viral infection and several other diseases.

Prosecutors had closed the investigation before the November 21 second round of voting, saying that they could not determine whether he was poisoned.

Mr Yushchenko praised Prosecutor General Svyatoslav Piskun on Sunday for reopening the criminal investigation. But he asked that it be conducted after the December 26 rerun so as not to influence the vote "either positively or negatively".

"This question will require a great deal of time and serious investigation," Mr Yushchenko said as he confirmed that his opponents wanted to assassinate or disable him rather than take the risk he would defeat the Kremlin-backed Yanukovych in the presidential election.

Mr Yanukovych campaigners rejected suggestions that he could have been involved in the poisoning.

While high concentrations of dioxin, a byproduct of industrial processes, remain in his blood, doctors said Mr Yushchenko's organs have not been damaged and he is fit for the campaign trail.