PRESIDENT POROSHENKO SIGNS UKRAINIAN LANGUAGE BILL INTO LAW
On May 15, 2019 Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has signed bill No. 5670-d into law "On ensuring the functioning of the Ukrainian language as an official one." During the signing he referred to it as one of the most important acts for the formation of Ukrainian statehood. "The language is definitely a platform, a foundation on which the nation and state are built," the Head of State said.
“On this day, I, President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, am honored to be given the unique opportunity of signing the bill to ensure the functioning of Ukrainian as the state language,” Poroshenko said during an official ceremony in which he signed the bill into law on Wednesday, May 15, 2019.
“Today is a very big day, an epochal one, even. Ukrainians have been waiting for this day for many years. (…)An act is being made; one of the most important in terms of forming Ukrainian statehood,” Poroshenko said.
The Verkhovna Rada (VR) [Ukrainian Parliament] adopted the language bill on April 25 which was signed by the VR Chairman Andriy Parubiy on May 14 after the lawmakers rejected all four draft resolutions proposing that the parliament's decision to adopt the draft law be repealed.
The law stipulates that the citizens of Ukraine know Ukrainian as the language of their citizenship. The state shall organize Ukrainian language courses for adults and provide an opportunity for citizens of Ukraine to learn the national language free of charge if they had no such opportunity.
