On July 7, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine will consider a constitutional inquiry of 51 MPs regarding constitutionality of the law on ensuring the functioning of the Ukrainian language as the national language.
The plenary sitting in the form of oral proceedings will start at 10:00, the press service of the Constitutional Court said.
The authors of the inquiry insist on the unconstitutionality of the disputed law, since it “is aimed at discriminating against Russian and other languages of national minorities of Ukraine, discrimination against citizens on linguistic grounds.”
MPs believe that the language law violates the constitutional rights of citizens to use and protect their native language, the development of the language identity of indigenous peoples and national minorities of Ukraine, and also reduces the content and scope of existing rights and freedoms.
The authors of the inquiry also believe that the law was adopted with violations of the constitutional procedure, which “threatens the application of such an integral element of the supremacy of law as the principle of legal certainty.”
As reported, on April 25, 2019 the Verkhovna Rada adopted at second reading the bill on the Ukrainian language, which provides for the mandatory use of the national language by government agencies, local self-government and in other spheres of public life. The relevant bill at second reading was generally supported by 278 MPs.
The law provides for fines for violating the law on ensuring the functioning of the Ukrainian language, but the rules on administrative responsibility will only come into effect three years after the law enters into force.
Officials of all levels, judges, law enforcement officers, contract soldiers, education, medical, officials of state-owned and communal enterprises, lawyers and notaries will have to be fluent in Ukrainian.
The language of the educational process will be Ukrainian, but the government will contribute to the study of languages of international communication, especially English.
The government will also ensure the use of the national language in the field of culture. The language of television and radio will be Ukrainian.
