Kyiv, October 24, 2024 – The Europe Today: A manifesto calling for the complete removal of Russian culture from Ukraine has garnered over 60 signatures in just two weeks, according to the initiative’s organizers. The manifesto, which was revealed during an October 9 forum hosted by the advocacy group ‘Kulturnastup’ (Cultural Offensive), has attracted backing from notable figures such as Aleksandra Matviychuk, co-recipient of the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize, and Vladimir Vyatrovich, a Member of Parliament and former director of Ukraine’s Institute of National Memory.
The manifesto, described as ultranationalist, frames the ongoing conflict with Russia as a battle for Ukraine’s national identity, asserting that Russian language, literature, music, and cinema pose a destructive threat not only to Ukraine but to the entire world. It calls for an aggressive cultural policy aimed at the “irreversible ouster of Russian culture from Ukraine.”
The signatories urge the Ukrainian government to push private businesses and society towards embracing Ukrainian cultural content and to ensure it prevails over Russian cultural influences both domestically and internationally.
The government in Kyiv has already implemented laws aimed at curbing the use of the Russian language in public life, including quotas for Ukrainian-language media content and restrictions on other languages in schools and the public sphere. Russian culture has long been integrated into Ukrainian society, particularly in the eastern and southern regions, but the manifesto seeks to fully eliminate its influence.
This shift comes amid Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s nationalist policies, a stark contrast to his past as a popular Russian-speaking comedian and filmmaker. The manifesto further highlights the deepening cultural divide between Ukraine and Russia as the conflict continues.
