By Taras Kuzio
On July 4, a new
law on languages was adopted in its second reading amid massive infringements
of parliamentary procedures (see analysis of the transcript at http://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2012/07/5/6968170/).
Over 200 changes proposed by opposition deputies were ignored.
Parliamentary Chairman Volodymyr
Lytvyn “resigned” in what most believe was a theatrical show reminiscent of
Parliamentary Speaker Leonid Kravchuk resigning from the Communist Party (KPU)
politburo after the KPU had been banned on August 24, 1991. Lytvyn claimed he
knew nothing of the impending vote and had been deliberately removed from
parliament by an invitation to a meeting at the presidential administration.
Lytvyn has a history of not attending
delicate votes, passing the baton to his personal friend, Communist deputy
speaker Adam Martyniuk (http://www.kyivpost.com/opinion/op-ed/lytvyn-is-no-hero.html).
Most Ukrainians are skeptical of Lytvyn’s claims because of his chameleon-like
political past and since his future political life depends on him distancing
himself from the controversial language law. Lytvyn is seeking election in Zhitomir oblast, to the west
of Kyiv, which is 100 percent against the law. He has lobbied for unprecedented subsidies, a
record-breaking 100 million hryvnia this year, for the district he is
campaigning in (http://www.pravda.com.ua/articles/2012/07/5/6968192/).
The
chameleon-like nature of Lytvyn could also be seen in his faction’s 20 deputies
who voted for the law. They are not concerned about the fate of the People’s
Party (former Agrarian Party) because it will not cross the 5 percent threshold
in the October 30 parliamentary elections.
Leaked Party of
Regions documents detailing internal plans for the elections confirm the
language law is an additional element in “political technology” (http://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2012/07/6/6968275/).
Like the populist social policies outlined in March, it is meant to mobilize
the Russophone voters in eastern-southern Ukraine.
According to a recent poll by the
Razumkov Center think tank, two thirds of
respondents (between 52-79 percent) described the language law as pure
electioneering. Forty-four percent support Ukrainian as the only state language (60-84 percent
of western-central Ukrainians do), while 25 percent support Russian receiving
official status (40-48 percent of eastern-southern Ukrainians support Russian) (http://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2012/07/5/6968135/).
Opinion polls
have consistently shown over the last two decades that the language question is
not a priority for most Ukrainians compared to “bread and butter” issues such
as employment, corruption, and inflation. Yuriy Lukanov, head of the
Independent Trade Union of Journalists, told the Jamestown Foundation that “Language is the last
card for the government as all other areas of its program have failed. They
have adopted a law that will only bring chaos into Ukrainian political
life.” This will certainly be the case.
Ukraine was a major center
of computer education in the USSR,
and on February 1, its modern day hackers brought down the web sites of the
government, presidential administration and parliament in protest of the
closure of the file sharing web site ex.ua. Ukrainian hackers
have teamed up with international hackers “Anonymous,” threatening to repeat
this again. In a taped appeal by “Anonymous” they state, “We should not be
afraid of the authorities, the authorities should be afraid of us”
Meanwhile, protests have
spontaneously grown throughout Ukraine,
some of which have been brutally dispersed by riot police (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnedD8Cp3Mo&feature=player_embedded).
The crowds in Kyiv have been small – although violent – and tear gas and pepper
spray was used by both the police and opposition. Growing violence is not a
good sign and makes these protests different from earlier non-violent
opposition protests under President Leonid Kuchma, including the peaceful
Orange Revolution. Vitaliy Klichko, whose Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reforms (UDAR)
party is polling 10 percent, was injured during clashes in Kyiv. Although from Donetsk himself, he sarcastically
said “Why is the main language in Germany German? […] Why is the main language
in France French?” (New York Times, July 4).
Language
is a red line in every country, whether Canada,
Spain, Belgium or Ukraine, as it is a very emotional
question. President Viktor Yanukovych therefore shows how cut off he is from
reality when he says “I am interested in stability in the country” (New York
Times, July 4). For example, the opposition’s refusal to join the
Constitutional Assembly will now be permanent making it impossible, as the EU
and Council of Europe insist, to adopt a new constitution through dialogue
between the opposition and the authorities.
Severe criticism of the law by
the opposition, NGOs, Church leaders (http://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2012/07/4/6968067/)
and intellectuals (http://blogs.pravda.com.ua/authors/pantyuk/4ff48eaf53cab/, http://1-12.org.ua/2012/07/04/776) is both well placed and disingenuous. Imprisoned
Yulia Tymoshenko described the adoption of the language law as not only directed
against democratic values but a declaration of war against independent Ukraine
(http://www.tymoshenko.ua/uk/article/yulia_tymoshenko_05_07_2012_01). Arseniy
Yatseniuk used similar language when he called for the overthrow of the “bandit
regime” (http://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2012/07/6/6968267/).
The 1989 law on languages,
adopted three years before the USSR
disintegrated, is out of date and badly in need of replacing and
“Europeanizing.” President Viktor Yushchenko, a champion in Ukrainian language
rhetoric, did little to improve the status of Ukrainian or propose a new law on
languages. In fact, the greatest contribution to expanding Ukrainian in
education was undertaken by Kuchma.
Lukanov
told Jamestown,
“The opposition also does not demonstrate its principles. The opposition’s
defense of the Ukrainian language mobilizes its electorate but, apart from
language, the opposition has failed to offer a realistic alternative program.”
The
language law is likely to provide dividends in the upcoming elections for the
Party of Regions and the nationalist Svoboda (Freedom) party. Many Ukrainians
believe it has always been the authorities’ intention to push western
Ukrainians into the arms of Svoboda so that “Zapadyntsi” (Westerners) can be
depicted – as in Soviet times – as crazy nationalists, thereby mobilizing
eastern Ukrainians to vote for the Party of Regions as their “protectors.”
