Crimean Tatars Call On Kyiv To Restore Their Rights

Crimean Tatars Call On Kyiv To Restore Their Rights 12 December 2005 -- Members of the Crimean Tatar Congress gathered in the main Crimean city Simferopol said yesterday that Ukraine's integration with the West should not go forward until Kyiv restores Tatar rights.

Congressional delegates, issuing a statement at the end of the three-day session, accused Ukrainian authorities of disregarding the rights of Crimean Tatars, who were deported en masse by Soviet leader Josef Stalin in 1944.

RFE/RL's Tatar-Bashkir Service reported that congress member Timur Dagci was among the voices calling for Kyiv to recognize the deportation as genocide:

"Our problem -- the problem of Stalin's genocide of the Crimean Tatar people -- is an undeniable fact, so I believe all countries, the United Nations, and the European Union will recognize it and will decide that it was indeed genocide," Dagci said.

Many Tatars have since returned to Crimea, but have been unable to reclaim valuable land and property that was theirs before the deportations.

The Tatar Congress delegates called on the Council of Europe and the European Union to make Ukraine's possible membership in the EU and World Trade Organization contingent on their recognition of Crimean Tatar rights.

Interesting article.

We, Belarusans, have to understand that our national situation is worsening. But this process is not a natural one. This fact is resulted from the aggressive activity of external forces. Belarus is annihilated step by step, consistently, purposefully and constantly, year by year, day by day. This is the main tactic of the Russian KGBism: to destroy the Belarusan society, social relations and culture in order to occupy our country, our territory and resources.

During the last two years (after the Putin’s doctrine of the incorporation of Belarus into Russia had been announced publicly in 2002) Moscow is formulating its main task and will: to introduce the Russian currency on Belarusan territory. Moscow would use also the political (illegal) mechanism in order to attain its scope,— to adopt the so-called “constitutional act” of the illegal “united state of Belarus and Russia” through the referendum in Belarus. (“The constitutional act” would permit to introduce the Russian currency into Belarus. This would cause the liquidation the Belarusan sovereignty.) They planned to launch the referendum the last year, but have changed their mind because this action was not enough prepared. Now they have finished the preparation. Russia and the pro-Russian Lukashenka regime have performed some deception actions (like the “gas war” in January this year), false Moscow-Minsk “conflicts” and false announcements on the “funeral” of the idea of the introduction of Russian ruble into Belarus etc. in order to deceive the Belarusan people. The Russian state Duma and Lukashenka’s pseudo-parliament (“chambers”) have corrected the national laws in order to launch the referendums. Now Putin and Lukashenka have right to fix the day of the referendum for tomorrow after the declaration of the referendum.

The elections to the Lukashenka’s “chambers” in autumn this year represent a decisive moment in the Russian tactic. The Russian diplomacy has just prepared the western politicians to recognize these elections. (It is possible to launch the elections simultaneously with the referendum).

At the same time some of these western allies have inspired again the activity of the “directed opposition” and the agents which began to agitate for the “just” elections. (The Lukashenka regime is interested to attract the people to the polling rooms, it is important that the electors would came to vote. The real results of the poll are not important. The regime has its traditional methods of the electoral frauds).

But the idea of the boycott of the pseudo-elections is a strong blow to this deceptive preparation of the “elections” and the “referendum”. This idea is a well-grounded in actual situation. Only the boycott gives to the people the chance to win, the possibility to cause the failure of the electoral comedy and the adventurous “referendum”. Every form of the agitation for the participation in the vote will help Russia and our enemies as well as represent the criminal act against ourselves. The results of the “elections” are defined by the regime in advance. Especially as the “agitators” know about the absolutely uncontrolled activity of the regime and tell about it. But at the same time they are calling to vote (because their eastern and western sponsors and their temporary friends tell them to do so).

But our declaration and argumentation on the boycott has troubled the regime and the pseudo-opposition. The pseudo-opposition (formed by the German diplomat Hans-Georg Wieck) used the contra actions and some political imitations. They are cultivating the next deception operation – “the project Marinich”. The Belarusan society remembers the analogical “project Chigir” launched in 1999 in order to liquidate the Belarusan Popular Front. They are calling to struggle now “in defense of the constitution”, now for “better life”, now for “democratic Belarus”, now for “new Belarus”. The “new” political groups are formed but we see that their members and leaders are the same former Soviet nomenclature functionaries. They are causing the artificial noise in order to vulgarize the idea of the boycott, to stifle the real Belarusan voice and the liberation policy of the Belarusan Rebirth. They are trying to disorient the Belarusan intellectuals. In June this year certain mass media propagated the strange hunger strike by three pseudo-MPs of the Lukashenka’s chambers. It was a strange hunger strike because its participants came to night home, walked on the streets, visited the cemeteries etc. They used the posters “No To The Third Presidential Term!”, “For The Just Elections!” and “Freedom For Mr. Marinich!”. The strange hunger strike didn’t have a concrete protest orientation to the concrete structures and decisions. It became an action against the boycott of the elections (although the word “boycott” was not used). This action represented the agitation for the participation in the elections to the Lukashenka’s “chambers” in autumn this year. The used word “for just elections” is an empty sound which hided the real idea of the organizers. The participants of the action (pseudo-MPs of the Lukashenka’s “chambers”) told about this several times in their interviews emphasizing that they are agitating to participate in the “elections”. It is possible to read the text of the “internet conference with the hunger strikers” made by the Radio Liberty on June 10 this year. The pseudo-MP Mr. S. Skrebets told: “We would like to attract the attention of the people which will participate this year in the elections to the Chamber of representatives. We would like to convince the people to vote namely for the candidates which will not be afraid to defend their interests in the Chamber of representatives”. Other participants of the actions expressed the same opinion.

After the action was over the hunger agitators departed to Moscow in order to make report in the respective Russian structures. (We remember that there are no more any “democrats” in the Russian Duma. Who have met the “democrats” from Minsk?).

As a result of this pretended action the pseudo-MPs (participants of the hunger strike) had founded a next “popular movement” entitled “For The Just Elections”. Then the main hunger striker general V. Frolov has declared that he is ready to head this movement.

This is not the last decorative gesture made by the generals and pro-Moscow “democracy”. They have a particular role in the Russian aggression against Belarus. But it is meaningless to discuss with the activists of this kind. Our activity is the best response. It means – not to participate in the pseudo-elections and in the “referendum”, not to vote. In actual situation the boycott is the unique weapon of the Belarusan electorate. This weapon gives the opportunity to win the foreign policy on condition that we will act together and in solidarity thinking about our future and remembering Belarus. After the success of the boycott the Belarusan society will have the possibility to launch the new real presidential elections without Lukashenka (who had exhausted all his legal and illegal political possibilities). These elections must be real, free and Belarusan without the interference by the Russian or other foreign policy.

Dr. Zianon PAZNIAK
Chairman of the Belarusan Popular Front “Adradzennie” and the Conservative Christian Party – BPF
July 5, 2004

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