The Verkhovna Rada proposed banning speaking Russian in schools, even during breaks

Natalia Pipa, a member of parliament from the “Holos” faction, is submitting a draft law to the Verkhovna Rada that proposes changes to the law on education, aiming to ban the use of the Russian language in public schools. According to the document, private educational institutions would also not be allowed to choose Russian as the language of instruction.

Journalists obtained access to this document.

The proposed law does not apply to other minority languages. The draft states that “teaching alongside the state language in the languages of national minorities that are official languages of the European Union or of indigenous peoples is not considered a violation of the obligation [to create a Ukrainian-language educational environment].”

It is important to note that Pipa became well-known after a language controversy in Lviv, where she confronted a teenager for performing songs by Viktor Tsoi. Under her pressure, a Lviv court found the 17-year-old musician from Odesa guilty of petty hooliganism.