Real Democracy? HUGE FIGHT in Ukraine Parliament over Language Law. Would you want this in UK/U.S? Fights between members of Ukraine's opposition and the police broke out in Kiev, as several hundred people protested against a bill on minority languages. Tear gas was used, although it's not clear by which side, and several people were injured. ­Only 72 hours ago, Kiev was the venue for a truly remarkable battle -- the Euro 2012 football championships' final match between Spain and Italy. On Wednesday, a spot in the Ukrainian capital -- literally meters from where the fans had partied for three weeks in a special fanzone -- turned into a battlefield of a different kind -- scuffles with the police, sitting hunger strikes, tear gas and speeding ambulances. People who now call themselves "protectors of the state language" surrounded the so-called Ukrainian House -- formerly a museum of Lenin, now an exhibition center displaying feats of Ukraine's culture. Their decision to picket this particular spot was not only driven by symbolism -- but it was due to become the venue for President Yanukovich's annual press conference, which was later cancelled. That's why when a decision to remove the crowd from the entrance was made, a large-scale brawl broke out between activists and riot police. It is still unclear who sprayed tear gas in the crowd -- the police or the right-wing radicals, but several people received facial and lung injuries and had to receive medical help. Among them was one of Ukraine's sports icons -- heavyweight boxing champion Vitaliy Klitschko, who is now pursuing a political career and stands a good chance of winning some seats in the future parliament. Several deputies of Yulia Tymoshenko's bloc and the Our Ukraine party said they would go on a hunger strike until the bill is curtailed. Vitali Klitschko (C), heavyweight boxing champion and leader of Ukrainian political party UDAR, hides his face while walking away after police fired teargas during a rally held to protest against a Russian language bill passed by parliament in Kiev July 4, 2012. (Reuters/Stringer) Vitali Klitschko (C), heavyweight boxing champion and leader of Ukrainian political party UDAR, hides his face while walking away after police fired teargas during a rally held to protest against a Russian language bill passed by parliament in Kiev July 4, 2012. (Reuters/Stringer) ­Kiev is no stranger to protests -- political life in the country has been like a rollercoaster ride ever since early 2000s. In fact, even the Euro 2012 fanzone was neighboring the ever-present tent camp of the opposition, which for almost a year now has been protesting against former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko's imprisonment. But this time the opposition deputies -- and those activists sharing their beliefs -- made it clear that to them it was a matter of national, cultural and ethnic integrity. The core of the problem has been the controversial "languages bill", which by its design is meant to grant broad regional rights to several languages, spoken by ethnic minorities across Ukraine. The list includes Russian, Hungarian, Romanian, Tatar and several other languages. If this bill is ever to become law, this would mean that ethnic minorities in Ukraine would be able to study their mother tongue languages in schools, watch movies dubbed into their language, and use the languages for documentation in regional bodies of authority. It was eventually proposed by the ruling party's deputies Kolesnichenko and Kivalov, but in fact it has been more than a decade in the making. An opposition supporter climbs over the heads of riot police during a rally to protest against a Russian language bill passed by parliament, in Kiev July 4, 2012. (Reuters/Anatolii Stepanov) An opposition supporter climbs over the heads of riot police during a rally to protest against a Russian language bill passed by parliament, in Kiev July 4, 2012. (Reuters/Anatolii Stepanov) Only in 2012 did the bill become a reality, but it has caused outrage among some parts of Ukrainian society. Despite that it never said the country may have several state languages -- with Ukrainian remaining the only official state language -- and despite it being based on the European charter of minority languages -- one of the conditions under which a country could become an EU member (something so strongly desired by both the ruling party and the opposition) -- deputies from several political forces within parliament turned it into a matter of life and death for the Ukrainian language and culture as a whole. tags: news 2012 report fight parliament language law feelings scandal attack debate speech vote voting politics thug restrain event threat family punch rage agreement moscow russia chaos democracy soviet brawl weak conclusion guide ukraine injure riots tv live channel calm trend trends trendy liberty freedom rights europe country unseen forces 829speedy

• published: 17 Jan 2014
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