You're reading: Daily Telegraph: Ukrainian police use tear gas on Russian language protesters

Police in Ukraine used tear gas and batons to disperse hundreds of protesters in Kyiv following the passing of a law to boost the status of the Russian language in the former Soviet republic.

Protesters, led by opposition members of parliament defending the role of
Ukrainian as the only state language, had massed in front of a building
where President Viktor Yanukovich was due to hold a press briefing.

The chamber approved the language bill on Tuesday, July 3, minutes after a surprise
proposal by a pro-Yanukovich deputy, giving opponents little time to cast
their vote and prompting scuffles both in parliament and on the streets.

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