President signs controversial language law

President Viktor Yanukovych yesterday signed into law a controversial bill on the status of regional languages. He also ordered Cabinet to create a “working group” to “improve language legislation in Ukraine.” The law effectively allows the use of the Russian language in eastern and southern Ukraine on par with Ukrainian in state bodies and courts.

Alexander Paraschiy: The law’s signing isn’t a surprise since it is a proxy for the ruling party’s and the president’s pre-election promise to make Russian a second official language in Ukraine. The order to “improve” the controversial act looks like an attempt to take the wind out of the protest sails in western and central Ukraine, where the bill has been fiercely contested. The law could still be modified or even cancelled, but we don’t expect this will come before the late-October parliamentary elections in Ukraine.