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Ukraine language protests

July 4, 2012

Police in Ukraine have used tear gas on protesters angry about a boost in status for the Russian language. The demonstration follows scuffles in parliament about the speedy adoption of a bill to make the proposal law.

https://p.dw.com/p/15QxV
Riot police block opposition supporters during a rally against the new bill
Image: Reuters

Police fired tear gas as they tried to remove protesters from the building where President Viktor Yanukovych was scheduled to brief journalists about the country's hosting of the Euro 2012 football championship.

Some 1,000 people were reported to have taken part in the demonstrations in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.

Instead of giving his press conference, the president summoned leading figures in the parliament, known as the Verkhovna Rada, to discuss the situation.

Earlier, main speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn - a moderate who has said he opposes the bill - tendered his resignation. His signature would be needed, along with that of the president, for it to be passed into law.

Parliament had approved the contentious proposal only minutes after it was put forward by Yanukovych's Regions Party, which has a majority in the assembly.

Scuffles broke out as members of the opposition protested that they had too little time to oppose it.

The vote saw 248 deputies out of 450 voting in favor of the bill, which upgrades the status of the Russian language in certain parts of the country.

Deputies block the podium during a session in the chamber of the Ukrainian parliament
There were scuffles in parliament when the vote to approve the law was takenImage: Reuters

A full-scale brawl broke out in the parliament in May, when plans were discussed to make Russian an official language in some regions.

Yanukovych's party draws its support from the Russian-speaking east and south of Ukraine. Members of the pro-Western opposition say the bill would remove the incentive for people living in those areas of the country to learn Ukrainian.

Under Russian rule in the 19th century, the use of Ukrainian was banned in schools and on printing presses. Russian was also the preferred language when the country belonged to the USSR.

rc/dr (AFP, Reuters)