An online petition demanding a ban on Russian-language versions of Ukrainian websites has garnered over 25,000 signatures and formally obliged the Cabinet of Ministers to consider the author’s initiative. The document proposes to explicitly ban the Russian version of web resources in language legislation and provide for liability for its use.
An online petition demanding a ban on Russian-language versions of Ukrainian websites has garnered over 25,000 signatures and formally obliged the Cabinet of Ministers to consider the author’s initiative. The document proposes to explicitly ban the Russian version of web resources in language legislation and provide for liability for its use.
According to the government’s e-petitions website, as of December 10, the petition «Ban Russian-language versions of websites in Ukraine» had received 25,204 votes in support, short of the required 25,000, with six days left to complete the signature collection. This means that the government must officially begin the procedure for considering the petition and provide a response.
The author of the petition, Oleksandr Leonenko, reminds that all citizens of Ukraine are obliged to speak the state language, so Russian-language versions of resources, in his opinion, do not make any sense for the domestic audience. He also raises the question: if such pages are created for foreigners, then it is more logical to use English, and not the language of the aggressor state.
The petition calls Russian-language versions of websites a «colonial vestige» and a threat to information security. The Russian language is described as a tool for cultural and informational expansion, and the preservation of Russian-language pages is described as a factor supporting the enemy’s influence in the Ukrainian online space.
Leonenko proposes to oblige the Cabinet of Ministers to develop a bill on a complete ban on the creation and operation of Russian-language versions of websites in Ukraine. This involves amending Article 27 of the law «On Ensuring the Functioning of the Ukrainian Language as the State Language», which currently allows the existence of versions in other languages alongside Ukrainian. The author of the initiative insists that the Russian language be directly excluded from this list and sanctions for violations be established: from fines to blocking the resource to eliminating violations.
The petition appeared against the backdrop of the ongoing de-Russification of public space and increased requirements for the use of the Ukrainian language in media, services, and digital products. Now it’s up to the government: within a few weeks, it must determine its position on the initiative, and further actions by the Cabinet of Ministers and the Verkhovna Rada will determine whether this language discussion will develop into real restrictions for Russian-language versions of Ukrainian websites.
Previously, dev.ua wrote about how a petition by Ukrainian OnlyFans model Svitlana Dvornikova collected 25,000 signatures, which is necessary for the appeal to be considered by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
