“A question of the artist’s conscience.” We asked the new Language Ombudsman what she plans to do about the Russian language in schools, concerts, and streaming

What is your main focus in your work now?

Banning Russian-language content is my dream. Now algorithms on social networks themselves promote Russian-language offers. And this avalanche covers children who are not yet able to analyze information well, do not see causes and consequences.

Therefore, it is difficult for them to get out from under this avalanche on their own. Through soft power, Russia is russifying our children and adolescents.

It is impossible to completely isolate children from Russian content, but it can be limited — through settings, through parental control. I am against forced bans — the more you ban, the more you want to violate. I once said in an interview that it would be worth blocking Telegram. I was terribly hated. And my son at home says: "Mom, you should think about what you are saying."

How can you, for example, limit Russian music on Spotify, Apple Music, and Youtube?

Parents should intervene first — configure their childʼs gadgets, use all the parental control tools on social networks. The stateʼs task is to explain how to do this: through social advertising, educational networks, and other possible official channels.

The state also has legal mechanisms. National culture is an element of national security, and this is clearly enshrined in the legislation. In particular, Article 15 of the Law "On Culture" establishes that citizens of the aggressor state and persons who support its policy cannot create or perform cultural products for the Ukrainian audience.

We can rely on this law to demand that streaming platforms protect our national interests. I think that both the National Security and Defense Council and the Ministry of Culture can and should get involved here to work specifically with the platforms.

Russian music is trending on Spotify and Apple Music, November 25, 2025.

Скриншот / «Бабель»

Скриншот / «Бабель»

What steps have you already taken to implement this?

The Presidentʼs Office invited us to a working group that is studying ways to restrict Russian content. So far, there have been two meetings, and we have provided our recommendations and possible mechanisms for interaction with streaming services.

The process is moving, although not as quickly as we would like, because it is a complex international communication.

A survey by the State Education Quality Service of Ukraine in 2025 showed that in Kyiv, the majority of children in schools speak Russian during lessons and breaks. What do you think is the reason for this statistic?

The latest study only echoed what we already knew. But we were struck by the numbers. This is a consequence of the fact that all of us, including institutions, schools and ministries, have not paid as much attention to language as we should.

The looseness of the Internet is also a consequence of this. If you look at children and adolescents, their language formation fell on the period of COVID and online learning. They sit at home, communicate little with their peers, and their best friend becomes a gadget. This is not only a Ukrainian, but a global problem of the influence of social networks.

Sometimes you need to hear the bitter truth to start building a strategy.

What should this strategy be?

Comprehensive: everyone must take on their part of the work. Parents cannot simply send their child to school and expect what they will be taught there. Up to the age of six, it is parents who have the greatest influence on their children.

I understand that we are all busy, we all have domestic and work problems, but a child is a priority and the future not only of us, but also of the state.

At the same time, work in schools is important. The language environment consists not only of Ukrainian lessons, but also of breaks, extracurricular activities, school traditions, and extracurricular education. Teachers must understand that they are both mentors and role models for children.

If a teacher has not realized the need to speak the state language and conduct the educational process in Ukrainian in six years after the adoption of the language law, then he is not performing his function properly. This requires a high-quality personnel policy and clear requirements.

I want to emphasize that personnel policy in education is not my direct area of responsibility, but I see the problem and speak about it openly.

We receive quite a few complaints from schools, because evidence is needed to consider them — from parents, students, or teachers. It’s a kind of vicious circle: when the situation becomes public, a conflict arises, which immediately escalates to the management level.

In response, “corporate secrecy” is triggered — schools or institutions try not to show problems until external circumstances prompt them to do so.

But we have a lot of complaints about preschools now. This is a separate and very painful topic.

Statistics of complaints to the Office of the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language from July to September 2025.

«Babel'»

«Babel'»

How do you deal with complaints using the example of preschools?

When we receive a complaint, it is important to have confirmation of the violation — video, audio recording, photographs or written testimony that can be officially used during the inspection. If we receive such evidence, then we open the state control procedure. We demand explanations.

If additional questions arise, a representative of the Commissioner goes to the place, documents the situation, communicates with the institutionʼs management, educators and parents, and draws up a report.

Based on the protocol, I adopt a resolution. If the violation can be quickly eliminated and the administration demonstrates a willingness to act, we limit ourselves to a warning.

If the problem is systemic or serious, a fine is imposed. Currently, its amount is UAH 3 400, since we work within the current version of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses, adopted back in 1986. Its obsolescence is a real obstacle to effective control.

We are waiting for the Verkhovna Rada to adopt a new version of this code. When it comes into effect, we will be able to control not only individuals, but also legal entities. The fines will be different, more significant.

After the resolution is issued, we monitor how it is being implemented. The institution must eliminate the violation and report it officially. If necessary, we conduct a re-inspection — especially if there are signals that the administration is not responding properly, or new requests are received.

If the violation is intentional or repeated, we no longer limit ourselves to a warning: we draw up a new protocol, which entails more significant sanctions.

Our goal is not to fine, but to ensure the language rights of children and create a stable, full-fledged Ukrainian-language environment in educational institutions. Therefore, we try not only to record every situation, but also to correct it.

Were there specific cases when you already fined preschools?

Yes, of course. We fined the managers.

So you first warned, and then, if the violation was repeated, imposed a fine?

We fined them from the very beginning because we believe that preschools are a very serious institution. Preschool workers are specialists with pedagogical education who understand their responsibility well. And here, negligence in the language issue can have long-term consequences.

That is why we are acting more strictly — so that all participants in the process are clearly aware of the requirements of the law and the level of responsibility.

How do you distinguish between a warning and an immediate fine?

It all depends on the nature of the violation and whether the person or institution can quickly fix it. In the protocol, we always record what exactly needs to be changed: fix the sign, set Ukrainian as the base language of the site, update information materials. These are things that can be checked and monitored.

Often people don’t even know that they are violating the Language Law. In such cases, it is important how they react. If a person immediately admits their mistake, apologizes, and quickly fixes the problem, a warning may be enough. In this category, the main thing is not the punishment, but the result — the situation must be corrected.

In my short time working, I have clearly seen two types of violators. The first type is responsible — they react constructively, thank you for the comments, and correct the mistakes as soon as possible. The second is those who are not going to change anything. For them, a fine is a small loss compared to profit or a stable flow of customers.

I have a specific example. One publishing house regularly publishes Russian-language scanwords. It has already paid fines three times. The last one is UAH 11 900, which is the maximum amount under the current Code of Administrative Offenses. Despite this, they continue to do the same. We receive complaints again, we draw up a report again, but for them, fines seem less risky than refusing to sell products.

There are few such cases, but they demonstrate why updating the Code of Administrative Offenses is critically important: today, fines do not serve as a deterrent for some businesses.

What happens next after the violator pays the fine? Is there any limit to these fines?

After paying the fine, everything is legally complete — the current legislation does not provide for other instruments of influence. That is, the violator can receive fines as many times as he repeats the violation. That is why we are talking about the need to update the regulatory framework.

To bring order to this area, it is necessary to make amendments to both the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses and the law “On Ensuring the Functioning of the Ukrainian Language as the State Language”.

The working group under the Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy of the Verkhovna Rada is already working on a new version of the language law, which, I sincerely hope, will allow for the application of more effective sanctions, including against legal entities.

Our task is to insist on these changes so that the accountability mechanism truly protects language rights and does not become a formality.

What do you think about the saying "If even the soldiers at the front speak Russian, why should we speak Ukrainian?"

This is a classic manipulation. People who want to justify their own laziness are looking for some kind of support. Even morally comparing yourself with those on the front lines is wrong. A person in an extreme situation, if their first language was Russian, will naturally appeal to it. But none of those who risk their lives at the front do it so that we speak Russian here. They are killed in Russian, tortured in Russian. Russia is waging linguocide in the occupied territories — that’s true.

Recently, when I spoke in Vienna at an international conference, I gave examples of our boys who returned from captivity. They were forced to sing “Katyusha” or the Russian anthem dozens of times and were brutally beaten for every Ukrainian word. People in the hall cried. We are so used to this information that comparisons seem normal, but they are not.

We live in different conditions and we must create a Ukraine that will accept our defenders, give them support and energy so that they have time and inspiration to learn their native language, and not justify a foreign one.

I do not feel anger at those comparisons, but I want people to understand their absurdity.

At the beginning of the competition for your position, there was talk of Ostap Ukrainets as a military representative at the Office of the Ombudsman for the Protection of the State Language. What do you think about such a position, are you looking for candidates?

There is currently no staff for such a representative. We have approached Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko with a proposal to expand the staff to be able to cover all regions of Ukraine with our activities, except for the temporarily occupied ones. We are waiting for an official response.

At the same time, the Office already has five of our colleagues who serve in the Armed Forces. Through them, we receive the necessary information and understanding of the current needs of the military.

As for cooperation with Ostap Ukrainets, I am open to it. He is a talented person, and if such an opportunity and his interest arise, interaction would be useful. There is enough work in this area for everyone.

How do you work with artists if scandals arise, for example, with Serdyuchka, who refuses to translate her hits into Ukrainian? Or with Nastya Kamenskykh?

We do not work with artists directly, because our Office does not have the mandate to conduct such activities. Our role is to respond to specific cases provided for by law.

For example, recently a festival with songs in Russian was held in Dnipro, dedicated to the musical group “Poshlaya Molly”. We asked the city authorities to declare a moratorium on the use of Russian-language cultural products. Borys Filatov approved such a moratorium.

But the event still took place.

Such situations are always difficult. The audience of bands like "Poshlaya Molly" is mostly teenagers, and teenagers are by nature protestors, they like to challenge adults and search for the limits of what is permitted. But imagine if they decided to act differently. They could show that popularity and talent do not exempt from responsibility.

Supporting the Ukrainian language, an example of honesty and civic position could become a real school for their fans. The same teenagers who are now looking for scandal could respect the artist and admire him for his principles, and not just for a hit on the playlist.

Ultimately, itʼs a matter of conscience and personal choice. Each artist decides for himself what he wants to be for his audience — just a hype worker or an example for a generation.

Is it possible to fine artists if they continue to perform songs in Russian?

No, we cannot fine citizens for performing songs in any language — this is their creative product. A fine is only possible when they violate the law in terms of the conference, tickets, or posters, which must be in the state language.

What were your expectations from the position and how have they changed over these four months?

Probably, the fact that everything can be changed very quickly. I didnʼt think that everything would be so complicated. Mechanisms, legislation, bureaucracy, the need to coordinate actions with various bodies — all this makes the process long and requires patience.

These four months have become a lesson that change is a marathon, not a sprint.