VIDEO
Russia's War Against Ukraine
The annual rally is a day of mourning for the Tatar minority, who make up 12% of the peninsula’s population of two million. Josef Stalin began deporting their community on May 18, 1944 after accusing them of sympathizing with Nazi Germany. An estimated 200,000 deportees died on the journey to Central Asia or Eastern Russia. The community, which slowly returned during the Soviet Union’s demise in the late 1980’s, now fears they could be repressed again.
The majority of Tatars boycotted the illegitimate referendum in March on whether or not to secede from Ukraine. The Ukrainian flag still flies outside the community’s headquarters despite visits from armed insurgents who threaten to close down their organisation. Tatar spiritual leader Mustafa Dzhemilev is banned from entering Crimean soil for five years while it’s also reported his family are being tormented by Russian riot police.
Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin pledged to rehabilitate the Tatars but on May 16, he issued a veiled warning saying that they must accept their future lay with Russia, not Ukraine. Some smaller groups of Tatars have backed Russia’s occupation. Most now fear though they must make the choice whether to cooperate or rebel against the Kremlin-backed authorities
Kremlin-backed leaders in Ukraine’s occupied Crimean peninsula have banned rallies ahead of the 70th anniversary of the Crimean Tatars deportation from the peninsula during the Soviet era.
