The ruling party's bid to elevate the Russian language is seen as a blow to statehood.
The controversial draft language law that was rushed through a first reading on June 5 could halt the gradual spread of the Ukrainian language, which has started to take root in the nation’s 20 years of independence.
The bill needs to pass a second reading and be signed by the president to take effect, which is expected to happen later this year.
Experts fear that Russian will then become resurgent and Ukrainian, the sole state language, less popular.
The draft law was passed in a quick-fire session in parliament, with lawmakers from the pro-presidential Party of Regions surrounding parliament’s rostrum in order to prevent protests by the opposition, which saw a violent brawl erupt last month during the first attempt to debate the bill.
This time, the scuffling was outside parliament, as around 5,000 protesters clashed with riot police. A smaller number chanted in favor of the bill.
Critics derided the law as an attempt by President Viktor Yanukovych’s Party of Regions to win over supporters in the Russian-speaking eastern and southern heartlands ahead of the Oct. 28 parliamentary elections.
But the draft law could have a lasting effect not only on the country’s language, but also its culture and politics.
The bill provides the national framework for local councils to establish any language used by more than 10 percent of the local population as a regional language.
This would mean that citizens could demand that the language be used in all interaction with state institutions – from hospitals to courts and even in passports.
In theory, this could give the chance for Hungarian and Romanian in western Ukraine and Crimean Tatar in Crimea.
But only Russian is likely to become a regional language, as it will require approval by local councils.
Experts say this could result in Russian becoming a regional language in as much as half the country.
This could undermine the spread of Ukrainian, which has gathered pace since the country gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Andriy Bychenko, a sociologist at the Kyiv-based Razumkov Center, says that over the last decade Ukrainian has become more frequently used.
According to a Razumkov poll in 2011, 53 percent of people favor Ukrainian compared to 44 percent using Russian in their everyday lives.
“If this law is adopted, the sphere of the Ukrainian language usage will shrink,” said Vyacheslav Bryukhovetsky, a linguistics professor and former president of the National University of Kyiv Mohyla Academy.
“Such a situation may threaten Ukraine’s national security and sovereignty, as a language is a key component of a nation’s identity.”
I am not aware of any case when native Russian speakers were discriminated for their language in Ukraine –
Vyacheslav Bryukhovetsky, a linguistics professor and former president of the National University of Kyiv Mohyla Academy
Many Ukrainians, particularly in the country’s west, see language as a critical part of Ukraine’s identity and a buffer against Russian influence in culture and politics.
Russia has for years pushed to elevate the status of the Russian language in Ukraine, claiming that the rights of Russian speakers are being violated.
“I am not aware of any case when native Russian speakers were discriminated for their language in Ukraine,” Bryukhovetsky said. He pointed out that Russian is already widely used, including on television and in print media and, therefore, faces no threat to its survival in Ukraine.
Vadym Kolesnichenko, the bill’s co-author from the Party of Regions who is known for his vociferously pro-Russian views and fierce defense of the Soviet legacy, defended his draft. He said it was not anti-Ukrainian and does not aim to challenge its status as a state language.
Kolesnichenko also said that the bill was drafted according to European standards and was supported by the Venice Commission, an advisory body on laws to the Council of Europe.
But the Venice Commission in fact noted in a December 2011 report that it could pose a threat to Ukrainian and “diminish the integrative force of the Ukrainian language and endanger the role that this language has to play as the sole state language.”
Experts also say that the bill is full of irregularities and contradictions.
A report by the analysts at the Central Scientific Experts Office, a department in the parliament that conducts legal analysis of draft legislation, says that unless these flaws are removed, they would create legal chaos.
In addition, the text of the draft law is full of spelling and punctuation mistakes as well as non-agreement of words within a sentence and contradictions. Some of its clauses contradict existing legislation regarding language usage and minority rights.
In one of its clauses, the bill says a minority language can be used in courts along with Ukrainian in regions where this language is spoken by at least 10 per cent of population in the locality.
At the same time, the Constitution of Ukraine states that Ukrainian – as the state language – is the only language to be used by court officials during trials. Meanwhile, other legislation provides for use of other languages facilitated by an interpreter for those people who do not understand Ukrainian.
Another ambiguity of the law is that in separate regions an oblast council may vote for one language to be regional, while a separate city council within that oblast can vote against this decision, or for a different regional language in their city.
Kyiv Post staff writer Yuriy Onyshkiv can be reached at [email protected].
