Conflict in Kropyvnytskyi: mother of fallen soldier defends Russian-language inscription on son’s gravestone

A conflict has erupted in Kropyvnytskyi over the gravestone of fallen Ukrainian serviceman Ivan Petukhov, because the inscription on it is written in Russian.

This was reported by Suspilne.

The soldier’s mother, Ella Petukhova, said that Ivan had volunteered for the front at the start of the full-scale war. According to her, he communicated in Russian — both at home and at the front — and considered this a matter of principle.

“My son had that position, and I support it. He said: ‘I consciously went to defend the sovereignty of Ukraine and spoke Russian with the guys at the front.’ He did not switch to Ukrainian. This once again proves that it is not only Ukrainian-speaking Ukrainians who defend the country, but Russian-speaking ones too. My son, a Russian speaker, went to defend Ukraine and died,” said Ella Petukhova.

She also relayed her son’s words about the language situation at the front. According to her, his fellow servicemen raised no objections about the language he used.

“When my son was serving, I would ask: ‘How are things with language there?’ And he would answer: ‘Mum, we have no issues. It’s you civilians who have issues — you’re at each other’s throats,'” the mother of the fallen soldier quoted her son as saying.

The Russian-language inscription on the gravestone angered Inha Dudnyk — the mother of another fallen servicewoman buried in the same cemetery. Dudnyk considers the use of Russian in such a place unacceptable and has already submitted an appeal to the city council demanding an inspection and the establishment of a requirement for the mandatory use of Ukrainian on gravestones.

The city council said it would forward the appeal to the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language with a request to clarify the rules on language use on gravestones.