Civil society today demands that the authorities do not allow the weakening of the institution of the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language. An open letter to the government has been signed by such prominent Ukrainians and public figures as Lina Kostenko, Myroslav Marynovych, Oleksandra Matviychuk, Serhiy Zhadan, Yuriy Andrukhovych, Oksana Zabuzhko, Yosef Zisels, and many others."Society understands that any scandals regarding the language and the institutions responsible for implementing state language policy in the current conditions play into the hands of the aggressor. Unfortunately, this understanding is lacking in the corridors of power."As a member of the Ukrainian Parliament, I have registered a draft law, reg. No. 13371, on the protection of the state language during martial law. I propose to stipulate in the legislation that the powers of the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language cannot be terminated during martial law, just as the powers of the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, the President, the parliament, etc., cannot be terminated.In the context of a genocidal war against Ukraine, the issue of language is one of the key ones. We must not divide Ukrainian society today or change course against our derussification and decolonization. I insist on the immediate consideration of this draft law by the relevant committee and its submission to the chamber, and I ask my colleagues in parliament to support my initiative.SourceAbout the author: Mykola Kniazhytskyi, journalist, member of the Ukrainian Parliament.The editorial board does not always share the views expressed by the authors of blogs or columns.