Former Ukrainian Parliament Member Shot

Former Ukrainian Parliament Member Iryna Farion/PHOTO via Instagram @iryna__farion

JAKARTA - A gunman shot a former Ukrainian member of the nationalist-leaning parliament known for his intense campaign to defend the Ukrainian language.

Police launched a hunt for the man suspected of shooting Iryna Farion (60) on the road west of the city of Lviv on Friday, July 19.

"The attack on Iryna Farion was classified as an attempted murder," said Home Affairs Minister Ihor Klymenko via Telegram.

"The victim is in critical condition and the doctor is struggling to save his life," he added.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy admitted that he received regular reports regarding the attempt to arrest the gunman. He said any acts of violence should be condemned.

Farion, a linguist, became a member of the Svoboda (Freedom) nationalist party in 2005 and was elected to parliament in 2012 but failed in his next attempt to win seats.

He has also served on the Lviv regional board. Farion became famous for his frequent campaigns to promote Ukrainian and discredit public officials speaking Russian.

In 2018, as Ukraine battles Russian-funded separatists who have seized territory in the east, it calls for efforts to'step on anyone who speaks Russian in his jaw'.

In the early months of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Farion criticized Russian-language Azov regiment fighters who defended the port city of Mariupol for three months.

Although Ukrainian is Ukraine's only language in Ukraine, many of its population uses Russian as the first language, which is a legacy of Soviet rule, when Ukrainian is under government pressure.