Ukraine: Remove the language issue from politics

[Bridget Goodman]

Opinion Editorial in the English-language newspaper Kyiv Post, "A Better Compromise," discusses Ukrainization, the impact on Russophile life and politics, and solutions for the functional allocation of the Ukrainian and Russian languages.

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Bridget Goodman
Graduate School of Education
University of Pennsylvania
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A better compromise
by Editorial, Kyiv Post
Mar 06 2008, 00:16

Let’s not deny the obvious: the Ukrainian government is leading a Ukrainization campaign.

With the exception of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, most schools now teach exclusively in the Ukrainian language. Court procedures and documents are also in Ukrainian. The main issue is whether the population supports Ukrainization.

Judging by the recent elections and subsequent events, a majority of Ukrainians support, or at least don’t oppose, Ukrainization, while a strong minority in eastern and southern regions is directly opposed. This became apparent in Siverskodonetsk this past weekend, where more than 4,000 supporters of the Russian language and culture came to voice their discontent.

Their numbers lend validity to their arguments, as well as the popularity of Russian-oriented parties. Imposing a language upon a large minority population is a foolish policy. It's equally short-sighted to allow the Party of Regions of Ukraine to gain so many votes from exploiting the language issue. A better compromise is needed.

The government should issue documents in both the Russian and Ukrainian languages in the Russophile regions. Courts should continue allowing judges, plaintiffs and defendants to express themselves in Russian.

Decades of academic wealth and technical texts, acquired with the Russian language, should still be used and accessible. Though instruction should remain in Ukrainian at state educational institutions, students should have adequate Russian-language instruction to command their preferred language.

Television can remain Ukrainian, but local cinemas need autonomy.

More such compromises will remove the contentious language issue from the political arena will allow lawmakers to expend their energies on more pressing matters, such as health care, education and the economy.

Source:
http://www.kyivpost.com/opinion/editorial/28533/


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