Language Ombudsman recommends Cabinet of Ministers to draft amendments to Election Code to oblige candidates confirm Ukrainian language skills
State Language Protection Commissioner Taras Kremen recommends that the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine draft and submit for consideration to the Verkhovna Rada a bill on amendments to the Election Code and the law on the All-Ukrainian Referendum regarding confirmation of the Ukrainian language proficiency by candidates for electoral positions.
"Prepare and submit for consideration to the Verkhovna Rada a draft law on amendments to the Electoral Code and the law on the All-Ukrainian Referendum, which stipulates that: persons who apply for election to the post of President of Ukraine, for election as a member of the Verkhovna Rada of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, regional, district, city district, city, town, village council, for the position of village, town, city head, must submit to the relevant election commission a copy of the document confirming the appropriate level of proficiency in the state language [...] and a failure to submit a copy of such a document is grounds for refusal to register such candidates," it is said in the annual report of the Language Ombudsman on the state of compliance with the Law of Ukraine on Ensuring the Functioning of the Ukrainian Language as the State Language.
Also, the bill should provide that one of the grounds for early termination of the powers of a member of a district, territorial, constituency election commission, a member of a district, constituency commission for an all-Ukrainian referendum, a constituency commission for electronic voting for an all-Ukrainian referendum is the repeated violation of the requirements of the language law in the course of elections and referendums.
In addition, it is recommended to prepare and submit for consideration to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine draft laws on amendments to the laws on the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, on the National Police, on the State Criminal Executive Service, on the National Security and Defense Council, on the Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in Crimea, on Local State Administrations, on Culture, which stipulate that persons participating in the competition (selection) for the relevant positions or who are appointed to the relevant positions must submit a copy of the document certifying level of proficiency in the state language.
