Remembering Crimean Tatars’ deportation
KYIV – Ukraine on May 18 commemorated the victims of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin’s mass deportation of Tatars from Crimea in 1944. A minute of silence was observed across the country at noon – except in Crimea, where Russia-backed authorities have banned annual commemorations of the deportation after Moscow illegally annexed the peninsula in March 2014. “On this important day, as always, we stand together with our brotherly Crimean Tatar people, share our common pain, and bow our heads to commemorate the victims,” Ukrainian President Petro Poro-shenko wrote on Facebook. In November 2015, the Ukrainian Parliament approved the bill recognizing May 18 as the Day of Remembrance of Victims of the Crimean Tatar Genocide. Starting on May 18, 1944, some 200,000 Crimean Tatars were put on trains – most of them in the space of just two days – and sent to Central Asia. Thousands are believed to have died during the journey. (RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service and RFE/RL’s Russian Service)
U.N. on respect for Crimean Tatar rights
UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations called on Russia to respect minority rights on the May 18 anniversary of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin’s mass deportation of Tatars from Crimea in 1944. A spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Rupert Colville, said the persecution of Tatars has grown during two years of Russian annexation of the peninsula, marked by the intimidation, harassment, and jailing of Tatar officials. “Since April 2014, Crimean Tatars have been subjected to arbitrary searches, seizure of books, and arrest,” he said in a statement on May 17. “Last year, the authorities shut down a number of Crimean Tatar media outlets, and last week were reported to have also blocked Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Crimea news website.” Mr. Colville said Russia has “a duty to ensure the rights of minorities and indigenous peoples” and should immediately lift the ban on the Mejlis, the Tatars’ legislative body. (RFE/RL)
Europarliament supports Mejlis
STRASBOURG, France – The European Parliament on May 12 adopted a resolution, which states, “whereas the European Union and the international community have repeatedly voiced their concern over the situation of human rights in the occupied territories and the systematic persecution of those who do not recognize the new authorities; whereas these so-called authorities have targeted the indigenous community of Crimean Tatars, a majority of whom oppose the Russian takeover of the peninsula; …whereas the Mejlis has now been declared an extremist organization and included in the Russian Justice Ministry’s list of NGOs whose activities must be suspended; …[the European Parliament] strongly condemns the decision of the so-called Supreme Court of Crimea to ban the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, and demands its immediate reversal; considers this decision to constitute systemic and targeted persecution of the Crimean Tatars, and to be a politically motivated action; …calls for the EU to provide financial support for the activities of the Mejlis while it is in exile; calls for increased financing for human rights organizations working on behalf of Crimea; …welcomes the Ukrainian initiative to establish an international negotiation mechanism in the ‘Geneva Plus’ format for the re-establishment of Ukrainian sovereignty over Crimea, which should include direct engagement by the EU; calls on the Russian Federation to start negotiations with Ukraine and other parties on the de-occupation of Crimea.” (Ukrainian Canadian Congress)
Crimean Tatar leader visits Canada
OTTAWA – Crimean Tatar leader Mustafa Dzhemilev is visiting Canada. On May 17, Mr. Dzhemilev met with member of Parliament and Canadian officials, and participated in an event commemorating the victims of the genocide of Crimean Tatars on the grounds of Parliament Hill. He was to speak at the University of Ottawa and in Toronto. Rising in the House of Commons on May 17 to pay tribute to Mr. Dzhemilev, MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj stated, “Mr. Speaker, in 1783 Russia first occupied Crimea and so began a tragic history of 160 years of occupation and ethnic cleansings of the indigenous Crimean Tatar people. On May 18, 1944, Stalin ethnically cleansed all 240,000 Crimean Tatars to Central Asia. Over 100,000 perished. Amongst the survivors was the legendary human rights activist Mustafa Dzhemilev who spent 18 brutal years in Soviet gulags for demanding the right of return for his people. Two years ago Russia once again militarily invaded and annexed Crimea and Mustafa has once again been banned from returning to his ancestral homeland. [Vladimir] Putin’s Crimean terror includes disappearances, torture of detainees and summary executions. Twenty thousand Crimean Tatars are now refugees. May 18 commemorates the anniversary of the mass ethnic cleansing and genocide of Crimean Tatars, and on this date we welcome the legendary Mejlis Leader Mustafa Dzhemilev to Ottawa. Slava Krymskym Tataram.” (Ukrainian Canadian Congress)
Jamala: Song won on artistic grounds
KYIV – Ukrainian performer Jamala rejected the notion that she took the top prize at the Eurovision Song Contest for political rather than artistic reasons, calling her win an “absolute, 100-percent victory for music.” Jamala, whose triumph in the competition watched by tens of millions made her a hero in Ukraine, spoke at a news conference in Kyiv on May 17. Russian officials have complained noisily, saying that Jamala’s winning song should have been banned from the contest under rules forbidding political content in performances. Russian singer Sergei Lazarev had been favored by many to win, but had to settle for third place. Jamala defended her song, “1944,” by suggesting it was disingenuous for Russia to argue that Eurovision can ever be a fully nonpolitical event when singers represent their countries in the competition. “Don’t try to fool me into believing that this is the first time this contest has been politicized,” she said. “It is seen as political every single year – every year – because the moment you walk on a stage with [your country’s] flag, it is already politics.” A Crimean Tatar herself, 32-year-old Jamala has previously said that her song is also a condemnation of Russia’s seizure and annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and the repressions that the Muslim minority group has since endured. Many Crimean Tatars, who make up about 15 percent of the peninsula’s population of nearly 2 million, opposed Russia’s takeover. At the news conference on May 17, Jamala said she considered her win a victory for all the Ukrainian people, adding “we deserve it” following two years of upheaval and conflict, fueled in part by Russia, in the former Soviet republic. “First there was a revolution, then the annexation, then the war,” she said. “We had so much suffering that I wanted so much to bring some joy to the Ukrainian people.” Asked by a journalist if she would accept an offer of Russian citizenship by representatives of the Russian-installed authorities in Crimea, who have suggested she must become a Russian citizen if she wants to return to her homeland, Jamala laughed. “No, I’ve got one citizenship,” she said. I don’t need [another].” Since Moscow’s takeover, local officials have pressed the peninsula’s population to adopt Russian citizenship. Thousands of residents have fled to mainland Ukraine, while many others who remain on the peninsula continue to resist the citizenship drive. (RFE/RL, with reporting by RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service)
Atlantic Council on Jamala’s victory
KYIV – Writing for the Atlantic Council, Kateryna Smagliy, director of the Kennan Institute’s Kyiv Office, wrote, “Jamala’s win and her powerful song about persecution and the abuse of Crimean Tatars has filled our hearts with pride and solidarity. It also reminds us that culture is a powerful instrument for building trust, understanding, and peace. …Artists can often repair what politicians fail to achieve. With just one sincere and deeply moving song, Jamala succeeded in what European and Ukrainian leaders have been struggling to do at various international conferences and diplomatic negotiation tables. She united Europe in its support of Ukraine and Crimean Tatars and reminded global audiences that Crimea is Ukraine.” She noted: “With Jamala’s incredible victory, Ukraine’s political class should again be reminded that culture plays a tremendous role in promoting the country’s position among global players and boosting economic growth. Ukraine should not lose the drive. Civil society and individual artists cannot substitute for the government’s policy and cultural diplomacy institutes. That task can be implemented by Ukraine’s statesmen alone.” (Ukrainian Canadian Congress)
Russian contestant’s view on Crimea
PRAGUE – A video showing Russia’s Eurovision contender Sergey Lazarev discussing Russia’s takeover of Crimea has surfaced online, creating a stir among both fans and foes. In the two-year-old interview to Ukrainian television, Mr. Lazarev said he still considered Crimea to be part of Ukraine. “Maybe my own Russian fans will throw tomatoes at me, but this is the way it is for me,” he said. “When I travel to Yalta, for me it’s Ukraine.” He added that he “won’t take part” in concerts where Russian performers chant from the stage that Crimea and Russia are one nation. “I don’t share this general euphoria,” he said. Mr. Lazarev, whose grandmother is Ukrainian, also revealed that he had turned down invitations to tour Crimea. “At this stage I’m not ready to go there,” he said. Mr. Lazarev’s offstage comments sparked calls for a boycott from some Russian viewers. “I’ll skip Eurovision this year,” tweeted Dmitry Smirnov, a correspondent at the pro-Kremlin Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid. Mr. Lazarev has substantially toned down his criticism since the 2014 interview. In subsequent comments on Ukrainian television, he claimed that his words had been taken out of context. And in April, he refused to share his views on Crimea, telling the reporter that he no longer answered questions about politics. Mr. Lazarev was nonetheless reportedly spotted at a Eurovision event in Stockholm, wearing clothes by a Ukrainian designer, in what was interpreted by some as a discreet gesture of support for his grandmother’s homeland. (Claire Bigg of RFE/RL)
President, PM meet with G-7 envoys
KYIV – Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman met with the Ambassadors of the Group of Seven – Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States – and the head of the EU delegation to Ukraine, ahead of the G-7 Summit in Japan that will take place on May 26-27. Mr. Poroshenko “put a special emphasis on the necessity of prolongation of sanctions against Russia for the non-fulfillment of the Minsk agreements by the country-aggressor.” He particularly highlighted the importance of deploying the OSCE armed police mission in Donbas, which is vital for the political settlement of the situation, and he urged the G-7 countries to endorse this initiative. Mr. Poroshenko also addressed the G-7 ambassadors with a request to increase pressure on Russia regarding the immediate release of Nadiya Savchenko and other prisoners illegally detained in that country, as well as the imposition of personal sanctions against everyone involved in trumped-up cases against Ukrainians illegally imprisoned in Russia, the president’s press service reported. (Ukrainian Canadian Congress)
Biden speaks with Ukrainian leaders
WASHINGTON – Vice-President Joe Biden on Mary 13 spoke with Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman. According to a readout of the vice-president’s call with President Poroshenko, “The vice-president welcomed the appointment of a new prosecutor general as an important first step to bringing much-needed reform to the Office of the Prosecutor General. The vice-president also commended legislative changes that will set up an independent Office of the Inspector General in the Office of the Prosecutor General and allow prosecutions to begin against Yanukovych-era officials.’ Mr. Biden also informed Mr. Poroshenko that “the United States was prepared to move forward with the signing of the third $1 billion loan guarantee agreement, which will support continued progress on Ukrainian reforms.” In addition, the readout noted: “The leaders also condemned the continued aggression by combined Russian/separatist forces against Ukraine, and agreed on the critical importance of accelerating progress on Minsk implementation by all sides.” In his call with Ukraine’s prime minister, Mr. Biden commended him on beginning his term “by taking bold steps on reform.” Mr. Groysman, according to the readout, “pledged to maintain reform momentum, with a focus on anti-corruption measures and fulfillment of Ukraine’s reform commitments to the IMF.” (White House, Office of the Vice-President)
Ombudsman wants closure of website
KYIV – Ukraine’s ombudswoman Valeria Lutkovska urged the country’s authorities on May 12 to shut down a Kyiv-based website for “violating Ukrainian laws on information and personal data.” The website Myrotvorets revealed the personal information of more than 4,000 journalists who it said were illegally accredited by Russia-backed separatists in Ukraine’s eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk. Ms. Lutkovska’s call came a day after the representative on freedom of the media of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Dunja Mijatovic, expressed concerns about the safety of journalists in Ukraine following the leaks, after which some of the journalists on the list received threats. On May 11, Kyiv’s city prosecutor’s office said it had launched investigations into the leaks, calling the matter an “obstruction of the professional activities of journalists.” (RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service)
Russian contestant’s view on Crimea
PRAGUE – A video showing Russia’s Eurovision contender Sergei Lazarev discussing Russia’s takeover of Crimea has surfaced online, creating a stir among both fans and foes. In the two-year-old interview to Ukrainian television, Lazarev said he still considered Crimea to be part of Ukraine. “Maybe my own Russian fans will throw tomatoes at me, but this is the way it is for me,” he said. “When I travel to Yalta, for me it’s Ukraine.” He added that he “won’t take part” in concerts where Russian performers chant from the stage that Crimea and Russia are one nation. “I don’t share this general euphoria,” he said. Mr. Lazarev, whose grandmother is Ukrainian, also revealed that he had turned down invitations to tour Crimea. “At this stage I’m not ready to go there,” he said. Mr. Lazarev’s offstage comments sparked calls for a boycott from some Russian viewers. “I’ll skip Eurovision this year,” tweeted Dmitry Smirnov, a correspondent at the pro-Kremlin Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid. Mr. Lazarev has substantially toned down his criticism since the 2014 interview. In subsequent comments on Ukrainian television, he claimed that his words had been taken out of context. And in April, he refused to share his views on Crimea, telling the reporter that he no longer answered questions about politics. Mr. Lazarev was nonetheless reportedly spotted at a Eurovision event in Stockholm, wearing clothes by a Ukrainian designer, in what was interpreted by some as a discreet gesture of support for his grandmother’s homeland. (Claire Bigg of RFE/RL)
President, PM meet with G-7 envoys
KYIV – Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman met with the Ambassadors of the Group of Seven – Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States – and the dead of the EU delegation to Ukraine, ahead of the G-7 Summit in Japan that will take place on May 26-27. Mr. Poroshenko “put a special emphasis on the necessity of prolongation of sanctions against Russia for the non-fulfillment of the Minsk agreements by the country-aggressor.” He particularly highlighted the importance of deploying the OSCE armed police mission in Donbas, which is vital for the political settlement of the situation, and he urged the G-7 countries to endorse this initiative. Mr. Poroshenko also addressed the G-7 ambassadors with a request to increase pressure on Russia regarding the immediate release of Nadiya Savchenko and other prisoners illegally detained in that country, as well as the imposition of personal sanctions against everyone involved in trumped-up cases against Ukrainians illegally imprisoned in Russia, the president’s press service reported. (Ukrainian Canadian Congress)
Biden speaks with Ukrainian leaders
WASHINGTON – Vice-President Joe Biden on Mary 13 spoke with Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman. According to a readout of the vice-president’s call with President Poroshenko, “The vice-president welcomed the appointment of a new prosecutor general as an important first step to bringing much-needed reform to the Office of the Prosecutor General. The vice-president also commended legislative changes that will set up an independent Office of the Inspector General in the Office of the Prosecutor General and allow prosecutions to begin against Yanukovych-era officials.’ Mr. Biden also informed Mr. Poroshenko that “the United States was prepared to move forward with the signing of the third $1 billion loan guarantee agreement, which will support continued progress on Ukrainian reforms.” In addition, the readout noted: “The leaders also condemned the continued aggression by combined Russian/separatist forces against Ukraine, and agreed on the critical importance of accelerating progress on Minsk implementation by all sides.” In his call with Ukraine’s prime minister, Mr. Biden commended him on beginning his term “by taking bold steps on reform.” Mr. Groysman, according to the readout, “pledged to maintain reform momentum, with a focus on anti-corruption measures and fulfillment of Ukraine’s reform commitments to the IMF.” (White House, Office of the Vice-President)
Ombudsman wants closure of website
KYIV – Ukraine’s ombudswoman Valeria Lutkovska urged the country’s authorities on May 12 to shut down a Kyiv-based website for “violating Ukrainian laws on information and personal data.” The website Myrotvorets revealed the personal information of more than 4,000 journalists who it said were illegally accredited by Russia-backed separatists in Ukraine’s eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk. Ms. Lutkovska’s call came a day after the representative on freedom of the media of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Dunja Mijatovic, expressed concerns about the safety of journalists in Ukraine following the leaks, after which some of the journalists on the list received threats. On May 11, Kyiv’s city prosecutor’s office said it had launched investigations into the leaks, calling the matter an “obstruction of the professional activities of journalists.” (RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service)
RFE/RL’s Crimea website is unblocked
SYMFEROPOL, Ukraine – RFE/RL’s Crimean news desk, Krym.Realii, has welcomed Moscow’s decision to unblock its news website in Russia and Moscow-annexed Crimea. A spokesman for Russia’s media regulator, Roskomnadzor, Vadim Ampelonsky, said on May 13 that Krym.Realii (Crimea.Realities) was unblocked after RFE/RL’s Crimean news desk followed a request by Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office to remove from the site “materials that contain illegal information.” However, RFE/RL’s Crimean desk says it removed no content from the site in response to the May 12 blocking of its website by Russian Internet providers. RFE/RL’s Crimean desk chief Volodymyr Prytula said that “we received no demands from Roskomnadzor calling for the removal of any kind of content. So we removed no content.” He added, “Crimea.Realities will continue providing unbiased information to the people of Crimea, considering the blockage of information and the tremendous pressure on information.” (RFE/RL, with reporting by Interfax)
Russian vacations to Crimea down 25%
MOSCOW – Fewer Russians are booking vacations to Ukraine’s Russia-annexed Crimean Peninsula this year as compared to 2015. Kommersant quoted Russia’s leading travel agencies on May 16 as saying the number of tickets booked to the Crimean capital, Symferopol, at some travel agencies had declined by 25 percent this year. Meanwhile, some travel agencies have raised the average cost of vacation packages in Crimea by as much as 30 percent over 2015 prices. Agencies reported that only 20 percent of the Russian tourists who traveled to Turkey and Egypt – the most popular holiday destinations for Russians in 2014 but to which the Kremlin has since banned direct flights – decided to instead vacation in Russia or on the Russia-occupied Crimean peninsula. Among those now opting for a vacation within Russia or Russian-occupied territory, the most popular destinations are resorts in Sochi, Anapa and Gelendzhik. Holidaymakers say there is better infrastructure and quality of service in those locations than in Crimea. Crimean resorts had been more popular than those Russian cities last summer. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by Kommersant)
Hacker admits guilt in trading scheme
NEWARK, N.J. – A Ukrainian computer hacker has become the first to plead guilty to what U.S. authorities called the biggest hacking scheme ever to game global markets, reaping $100 million in illegal profits. Vadym Iermolovych, 28, of Kyiv, on May 16 joined three financial traders in admitting they hacked into thousands of corporate news releases before they were published and used the stolen information to make money through illegal insider trades on top company stocks. Three hackers and seven traders, many with ties to Russia, have been charged by U.S. prosecutors for stealing unpublished news releases from Business Wire, Marketwired, and PR Newswire between February 2010 to August 2015. Authorities say the traders gave the hackers “shopping lists” of releases they wanted to see in advance, including ones with market-sensitive financial results, and then traded the stocks, including Caterpillar, Home Depot, Las Vegas Sands and Panera Bread. The hackers were routinely paid a cut of the profits. Mr. Iermolovych, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit computer hacking and aggravated identity theft, faces up to 20 years in prison. Other accused hackers include Ukrainians Oleksandr Ieremenko and Ivan Turchynov. Their whereabouts are not known. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by AP and Reuters)
Held for ‘membership’ in banned group
SYMFEROPOL, Ukraine – Russia-backed Crimean authorities have detained four Crimean Tatars on suspicion of being members of an Islamic group that is banned in Russia. Crimea’s de facto prosecutor-general, Natalia Poklonskaya, said the four men detained on May 12 were suspected members of Hizb ut-Tahrir, which Russia designates a terrorist organization. She said three were being investigated for participating in the activities of a terrorist organization, and one was being investigated for organizing terrorist activities. A leader of the Crimean Tatars, Zair Smedlya, and human rights lawyer Emil Kuberdinov condemned the detention of the four men, calling it the “continuation of repression against the Crimean Tatars” by pro-Russia authorities in the Ukrainian peninsula. The arrests occurred during a visit by Russia’s recently appointed presidential human rights ombudsman, Tatyana Moskalkova, to the peninsula. Several Crimean Tatars were arrested earlier this year for allegedly being Hizb ut-Tahrir members, a move Tatar activists called “politically motivated.” Hizb ut-Tahrir, a London-based Sunni political organization, seeks to unite all Muslim countries into an Islamic caliphate. It says it does not advocate violence. (RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service)