Zelenskyy signs law on education in languages of Ukraine’s national minorities and indigenous peoples
On October 12, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law on the educational rights of national minorities. It is needed to open negotiating clusters in EU accession talks.
This is stated in the law’s status record on the Verkhovna Rada website, Censor.NET reports.
Details
Earlier, Verkhovna Rada lawmakers passed bill No. 16119 in its entirety with 266 votes in favor.
Following the law’s adoption, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha informed his Hungarian counterpart Anita Orbán and expressed hope that two negotiating clusters in Ukraine’s EU accession talks would open as early as tomorrow, October 13.
What does the bill provide for?
The bill aims to "create appropriate conditions for improving the quality of instruction in the state language and the languages of Ukraine’s national minorities (communities) and indigenous peoples by improving the legislative regulation of the educational rights of the persons concerned, enabling the use of the languages of Ukraine’s national minorities (communities) and indigenous peoples in the educational process alongside the state language, and taking their linguistic, cultural and educational needs into account," the Verkhovna Rada website stated.
The bill introduces the concept of general secondary education institutions with the status of an institution of a national minority (community) of Ukraine. An institution may obtain this status if more than 50% of its students receive instruction in the language of a national minority (community).
The curriculum must include the study of national history and the preservation of material and spiritual culture associated with national identity.
Parents also gain the right to request duplicate copies of their children’s education documents in minority languages.
Background
- An organization representing Hungarians in Ukraine previously said it was satisfied with the proposed bill. Budapest, in turn, promised to unblock two negotiating clusters on October 13, provided Ukraine adopted the law on education in national minority languages.
