In the temporarily occupied territories russian criminals are deliberately pursuing a policy of linguocide - persecuting Ukrainians because of language, trying to restore the educational process in schools under russian education law, forcing the use of the occupiers' language in public and replacing Ukrainian names with russian ones. It was stated by Taras Kremin commenting on the preparation of the occupiers for a TV show for their citizens to celebrate the "victory" on May 9.

“The Secretariat of the Commissioner continues to document the facts of linguocide - the deliberate destruction of the Ukrainian language as a defining feature of the Ukrainian nation. We receive reports of harassment of the Ukrainian language from Luhansk, Zaporizhia, Kherson, and Donetsk regions. In addition, we record the facts of harassment of our citizens because of language from open Internet sources, pro-russian telegram channels etc. Linguocide, committed by the russian military in our lands, is a part of the policy of genocide against the Ukrainian people. Our language, as a determining factor of national identity and state-building, is one of russia's main goals in this war, "Taras Kremin said.

According to the Commissioner, discriminatory actions against the Ukrainian language are recorded in the spheres of education, culture, television and radio broadcasting, advertising and information for general acquaintance, book distribution etc.

At a time when Russians are continuously shelling Mariupol’ with heavy weapons, destroying more than 90% of the city's infrastructure, killing 20,000 citizens and forcibly deporting at least 40,000 Mariupol’ residents to russia and the occupied territories, russian criminals are preparing the city for the "celebration". Yesterday, a photo of so-called public utilities in Mariupol’, changing signposts in Ukrainian to russian, circulated on social networks. And when we are once again told that "language is out of time", we see that language is the first thing russian criminals are fighting for in our country after murders, tortures and looting. It would seem that the inscription "Mariupil’" in Ukrainian and "Mariupol’" in Russian - the difference is only in one letter. But for the occupiers, this one letter is an opportunity to "legitimize" their power and once again emphasize the protection of "russian-speakers." "Using “the language issue", as one of the tools of its geopolitical expansion, the russian federation has always accompanied acts of linguocide in the Ukrainian language with threats, intimidation, and physical and psychological pressure," Taras Kremin said.

The Commissioner urges citizens to report harassment on the grounds of language and any harassment of the Ukrainian language in the occupied territories.

"All crimes of the occupiers, including crimes related to linguocide, must be properly recorded so that Russia can be brought to international law in the future. All attempts to recreate the colonial policy of the Soviet Union will be stopped, and the guilty will be punished," Taras Kremin stressed.