Kyiv, Ukraine – May 1, 2019 – The Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) welcomes the new law that further protects Ukrainian as the official and functional language of Ukraine.
“We congratulate the Parliament of Ukraine for passing this legislation as it will go a long way in enshrining the Ukrainian language into all aspects of life for citizens of Ukraine. This is a fundamental step in consolidating Ukraine as a nation-state, which will ensure its sovereignty and unity,” stated UWC President Paul Grod.
With this new law, public servants and state employees are obliged to be fluent in Ukrainian and use it in performing their duties. Ukrainian will become the language of education and science, culture and the media, and knowledge of Ukrainian will be a prerequisite for Ukrainian citizenship.
The law does not apply to private conversations or religious worship, and does not hinder the free use of national minority languages.
The Ukrainian people have suffered genocide during the Holodomor and decades of linguistic, cultural and religious Russification in an attempt to destroy the Ukrainian nation. Today, as Ukraine defends its sovereignty against Russian aggression, the linguistic identity of the Ukrainian people is even more critical..
The UWC is sincerely grateful to all who contributed to the drafting and adoption of the law – parliamentary fractions and groups, ministries, universities, broad base of community organizations and cultural activists.
Image designed by Andriy Yermolenko
