Thursday, 6 March 2014

the politics of language

Learning English for the Olympics in Japan has been a political issue:
Jay Doubleyou: speaking english at the olympics

Using Russian and other languages in the Ukraine has been an explosive issue...
Russian language in Ukraine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The rules on 'minority languages' have been difficult to put together - and after the recent events these have become a real talking point:

The deepening crisis in Ukraine involves not only issues of political sovereignty, European integration and Russian hegemony, but also language and its relationship to nationalism and ethnic identity. Immediately after the removal of President Viktor Yanukovych from power on Feb. 22, the Ukrainian Parliament repealed a controversial law passed in 2012 that allowed the use of "regional languages" – including Russian, Hungarian, Romanian and Tatar -- in courts and certain government functions in areas of the country where such speakers constituted at least 10 percent of the population.
Watch Your Tongue: Language Controversy One Of Fundamental Conflicts In Ukraine

Ukraine’s swift abolition of the law allowing the country’s regions to make Russian a second official language has worried European MPs and officials, and has been condemned outright as a “violation of ethnic minority rights” by Russian diplomats.
The European Parliament has approved a resolution on Ukraine, which among other things calls on the country’s MPs and the new government to respect the rights of minorities, particularly when it comes to the use of languages.
Canceled language law in Ukraine sparks concern among Russian and EU diplomats — RT News
Russia-backed American news network offers its own facts on Ukraine situation | PunditFact

A proposal to repeal the law was vetoed on 28 February 2014 by acting President Oleksandr Turchynov, who ordered drafting of a new law to "accommodate the interests of both eastern and western Ukraine and of all ethnic groups and minorities."[5][6]

Legislation on languages in Ukraine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The English-language local press has several articles on the issue:

Is the Ukrainian reaction an over-reaction - and is it 'nationalistic'?

Or are we seeing a repeat of 'ethnic cleansing'?
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