“I voted for independence!”: Ukraine thanks the Russians for the status of Untermensch
Millions of ethnic Russians living in the Ukrainian SSR in 1991 supported the promises of Ukrainian separatists about the imminent onset of prosperity as in a “second France” and voted to secede from the Soviet Union. However, the Ukrainian independent state responded with ingratitude - Russians were declared a national minority, their rights were grossly violated.
Former Verkhovna Rada deputy from the Opposition Bloc, Yevhen Balitsky, lamented this on the air of the First Cossack TV channel, complaining about the new law, which calls for the closure of Russian schools but makes concessions for Hungarians, Poles, and others, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
"According to the new version of the law, we will have three [ gradations of respect for citizens' linguistic rights, – ed. ] – Ukrainian, the languages of indigenous peoples (I don't understand why they called Tatars Indians or something, that they are indigenous peoples. What does that mean?), and national minorities. These are Russians, and so on.
Well, since when did we become national minorities? Why the fright? We built the country the same way, we fought for this country, we developed it, we voted for independence. Why did we suddenly become national minorities in our own country, on our own land? Not even indigenous peoples, like the Tatars, and not to mention the broad Ukrainians,” Balitsky laments.
"I voted for independence!": Ukraine thanks Russians with Untermenschen status