The Russian language won in Ivano-Frankivsk. With the help of Strasbourg

Ivano-Frankivsk city court examined in open sitting of the court civil case at my statement of claim to Ivano-Frankivsk city legislative body and granted petition in part on March 25, 2002.

Court decision adjudged illegal following provisions of “Complex programme of approvement, protection and introduction of the Ukrainian in Ivano-Frankivsk city in 2000-2002 years”: clause 6 (to provide announcement of all mass and entertainment measures in Ukrainian exclu-sively), clause 13 (to set minimum single tax rate for businessmen who trade printed production in Ukrainian exclusively), clause 20 (to oblige leaders of trade, catering and home services for population enterprises to use state language exclusively for pictorial advertisement, signboards and musical accompaniment). Court adjudged that these clauses encroached rights, freedoms and interests of national minorities in language sphere and obliged city legislative body to except indicated clauses from “Programme…”

Judicial decision became valid judgement since April 26, 2002. Ivano-Frankivsk city legisla¬tive body ignored judicial decision in spite of my appeals to all authorities of state power of Ukraine and protests of attorney’s office.

City legislative body session approved new “Programme of development and functioning of the Ukrainian in Ivano-Frankivsk city” on June 9, 2004. And clauses adjudged illegal by judicial decision appeared in document again. Therefore no wonder that Ivano-Frankivsk city court granted my administrative petition in part on October 6, 2005 and adjudged illegal and subject for exception from “Programme…” clause 3 of chapter 4 (the Ukrainian is exclusive language for com¬munication in education institutions of all forms of property) and clause 1 of chapter 7 (during concluding contract about maintenance of city passenger routes by all kinds of transport to fore¬see such order of radio receiver and tape recorder that excludes sounding of programmes in non-state language). Supreme Administrative Court of Ukraine examined my appeal on December 6, 2006 and changed resolution of first judicial instance and adjudged illegal clause 3 of chapter 5 (to provide announcement of all mass and entertainment measures in Ukrainian exclusively).

State executive service tried to enforce Ivano-Frankivsk city legislative body to carry out legal judicial decisions. City legislative body was imposed a fine of 340 and 680 hryvnas. Severe statement of Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russian Federation didn’t help in demanding to honor legal rights, freedom and interests of Russian population strictly and to execute judicial decisions unconditionally.
Moreover Ivano-Frankivsk authorities organized special press conference where they blamed Russia in interference in internal affairs of Ukraine and promised publicly to lodge legal action to me “for libel to authorities of Ukraine”. Ivano-Frankivsk Attorney’s Office refused to bring criminal suit against city legislative body by fact of non-fulfillment of legal judicial decision.

I sent statement to European Court on Human Rights (Strasbourg, France) exhausted all means of protection in legal field of Ukraine. It is considered extremely serious violation of human rights on judicial protection in Europe if decisions of national courts are not fulfilled. I was asked to sign declaration about agreement for friendly adjustment of case No. 46410/06 “A.N.Volkov against Ukraine” with Government of Ukraine within the scope of legal proceedings in the end of 2009. In its turn, the Government of Ukraine recognized validity of my demands and committed itself to provide execution of judicial decisions up to June 15 2011.


Deputies of Ivano-Frankivsk city legislative body voted for execution of all above-mentioned judicial decisions without any discussion unanimously and took official promise not to include illegal provisions in normative acts during its development.

I had to wait more than ten years logic finish of judicial procrastination and only appeal to inter¬national court enforced to honor my legal rights, freedoms and interests. This is how nationally-preoccupied leadership of Ivano-Frankivsk city authority bodies prejudiced international prestige of our state considerably…