A Kiliya City Council member was issued a citation for speaking in Russian

An administrative report was filed against a member of the Kiliya City Council for using Russian during a speech at a council session. His arguments regarding the city’s multiethnic character and the lack of translation were rejected.

This was reported by Anna Nerush, a representative of the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language.

The official noted that after discussing items on the approved agenda, one of the council members spoke in Russian. He explained his use of a non-official language by stating that 

• the speech concerned an issue that was not on the agenda;
• he used Russian to ensure he was understood by the residents of a multinational city;
• he had not studied Ukrainian in school or at a technical college.

The council member also cited the provisions of Part 2 of Article 12 of the Law, which stipulates that “if a language other than the state language is used during a session, event, or meeting, translation into the state language must be provided.” He described this provision as a certain conflict.

In response, Anna Nerush stated that, according to Article 9 of the Law, local council members are required to be proficient in the state language and to use it while performing their official duties. 

The law also stipulates that the official language of local self-government bodies—including the language of sessions, events, meetings, and day-to-day communication—is the official language. 

The official also pointed out that Part 2 of Article 12 regarding translation could have been applied if the speaker had been a person who is not legally required to use the official language.

A representative of the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language reported that language violation reports were also filed against the Odesa Clinical Hospital of the Southern Region. The basis for this was a complaint regarding a fluorography examination report written in Russian. The hospital’s director general explained that the X-ray machine lacked Ukrainian-language software. He attributed the Russian-language stamp to an oversight.

Юлія Калабайда