The Verkhovna Rada Committee voted on February 22, 2014 MPs voted to “remove Viktor Yanukovych from the post of president of Ukraine” on the grounds that he was unable to fulfill his duties and to hold early presidential elections on May 25.
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The Ukrainian revolution of February 2014 took place after a series of violent events towards protesters in the capital of Kyiv that culminated with the flight and subsequent then-President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych was removed from the office. There were no articles of impeachment against Yanukovych.
The vote came an hour after Yanukovych said in a televised address that he would not resign. He subsequently declared himself to still be “the legitimate head of the Ukrainian state elected in a free vote by Ukrainian citizens”.
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The action did not follow the impeachment process as specified by the Constitution of Ukraine, instead, the Verkhovna Rada declared that Yanukovych “withdrew from his duties in an unconstitutional manner” and cited “circumstances of extreme urgency” as the reason for early elections.
Oleksandr Turchynov was then voted by parliament Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament and acting President and Prime Minister of Ukraine.
Article 80 of the Ukrainian Constitution states that parliamentary immunity is guaranteed to the people’s deputies of Ukraine.
The people’s deputies of Ukraine do not carry a legal responsibility for the results of voting and their saying in the parliament and its bodies, except the responsibility for an insult or defamation.
The people’s deputies of Ukraine also cannot be held criminally liable, detained, or arrested without the agreement of the Verkhovna Rada.
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