Kyiv, July 8, 2014 – Leaders of Crimean Tatars are being deprived of their homeland. On July 5 Head of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People Refat Chubarov was not allowed to enter Crimea. Several months before, on April 22, refusal of entry was given to Mustafa Dzhemilyov, a dissident and the first Head of the Mejlis. Government Commissioner for Ethnonational Policy Hennadiy Druzenko recognizes signs of unacceptable descent-based discrimination in such actions of self-proclaimed Crimean authorities, as both Refat Chubarov and Mustafa Dzhemilyov were refused entry to Crimea in view of their public stance, speeches and other activity as acknowledged leaders of Crimean Tatar people. «It is a vivid violation. We can speak of certain tendency. Due to personal leadership of Crimean Tatar community their leaders represent the major share of Crimean Tatars. Ban on their entry to the historic homeland is direct descent-based discrimination. Moreover, there were no official explanations whatsoever on the part of either occupational Crimean or central Russian authorities», – stated Hennadiy Druzenko during his media briefing in Ukraine Crisis Media Center.
Entry ban to Crimea for Refat Chubarov violates a number of international acts, namely: Art. 2 of General Declaration of Human Rights, Art. 26 of International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Art. 14 of European Convention on Human Rights, Art. 4, 7, 16, 17 of Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. «In fact Refat Chubarov has been deprived of his right for homeland, as Mr. Chubarov’s permanent place of residence (registration) is Crimea and he remains a member of the Supreme Council of Autonomous Republic of Crimea, which in April 2014 was illegally renamed as so called “State Council of Republic of Crimea” by occupation authorities. It is enough to visit the official website of Crimean parliament to make sure of it», – added Hennadiy Druzenko.
Government Commissioner also stated that Refat Chubarov’s entry ban to Crimea can be qualified as forced deportation, which is directly prohibited on occupied territories in compliance with the Article 49 of Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.
