Crimea belongs to Ukraine
On the occasion of the Day of Remembrance for the deportation of the Crimean Tatars in 1944 by the Soviet Union, the Paneuropa Union Ukraine has published the following statement regarding Crimea as an integral part of Ukraine:
Kyiv, 17 May 2018
The Crimean Peninsula is an integral part of Ukraine, interconnected with the rest of our country through culture, history and economy. Since 2014, the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, situated on the peninsula, have been occupied by the Russian armed forces and – following a sham referendum – annexed by the Russian Federation.
Being the first and only such act in the 21st century, this act of aggression has violated numerous international and intergovernmental agreements. It breached provisions of the Agreement establishing the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe, the Memorandum on Security Assurances in connection with Ukraine’s accession to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, the Agreement between Ukraine and the Russian Federation on the status and conditions of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine, the Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation and Partnership between Ukraine and the Russian Federation, as well as other treaties.
Since the annexation, the international community has witnessed numerous violations of human rights in the occupied and annexed territories; and these were only those cases of human rights violations that had become known to the public.
Thus, we recall widely known illegal detentions, arrests and convictions made in the case of the so-called “Crimean terrorists”, when Oleg Sentsov, Alexander Kolchenko, Gennady Afanasyev and Olexiy Czyrnyi were prosecuted, and in the case of “February 26th” when Ilmi Umerov and Akhtem Chyihoz were sentenced to imprisonment. Additionally, we draw public attention to lesser-known cases, such as the persecution of Volodymyr Balukh, Mykola Shyptur, Evhen Panov and dozens of others.
In addition to obvious, brutal violations of human rights during the illegal prosecution, international and Ukrainian human rights activists note numerous violations of the rights to freedom of religion, freedom of assembly and freedom of speech. This was exemplified by a search in the mosque of the Islamic Cultural Centre in Simferopol on 5 September 2016, a search of a boarding school for gifted children in the village of Tankove and dozens of other searches in madrasahs, mosques, churches and houses of prayer, as well as by the persecution and hate speech used against Muslims, Orthodox and Protestant Christians.
We also note numerous violations of property rights. Thus, according to the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, almost 4,000 Ukrainian companies and organisations lost their property in Crimea. In addition to that, we note the denial of property rights or the prohibition of property use for religious organisations. For instance, the premises of the Cathedral of Saints Olha and Volodymyr (Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate) were auctioned for lease under threat of confiscation. Several churches of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate were seized from their communities: in Kerch (Osovino village), Sevastopol and Yana Kapu (Krasnoperekopsk). The church in Perevalne village was taken away from the community and subsequently transferred to the Moscow Patriarchate.
Moreover, illegal control over Crimea leads to a significant deterioration in the living conditions of all inhabitants of the peninsula, since forcefully applied Russian legislation is much harsher than Ukrainian. For example, the residents of the peninsula may be forcibly drafted into the Russian Army and sent to serve outside the peninsula.
In addition, the Russian authorities are trying to forcibly change the demographic and political structure of the Crimean population, forcing the local population to receive Russian passports and creating conditions for mass migration from Russia to Crimea.
The Paneuropa Union of Ukraine strongly condemns the illegal annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol as an act that violates international law and contributes to an atmosphere of lawlessness and hatred on the Crimean Peninsula. Such actions are unacceptable in 21st-century Europe.
The Paneuropa Union of Ukraine notes that Crimea and Sevastopol were and continue to remain Ukrainian territories, though forcefully occupied and illegally annexed. We thank all Europeans who continuously stand up against such actions by the Russian authorities; and we strongly condemn the actions of certain European politicians aimed at creating the impression of any public support by Europeans for this illegal annexation.
Photo: https://static.ukrinform.com/photos/2016_03/thumb_files/630_360_1458142098-5411.jpg
