On September 17, representatives of a number of public organizations of Crimean Ukrainians resumed the activities of the Regional Council of Crimean Ukrainians, coordinator of the Tavrian Humanitarian Platform, head of the Organizing Committee for the improvement of the burial place of the head of the Regional Council of Crimean Ukrainians Andriy Ivanets said.
“Today, for the Ukrainian community of Crimea, which is the second largest in Crimea and, unfortunately, today is subjected to discrimination, in a sense, it is a historic day, because we are renewing the institution that operated in 1918-1920,” Ivanets said at the press conference in Kyiv on Sept. 28.
According to him, the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine demonstrated that Ukrainians not only do not have adequate protection on the territory of the temporarily occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, but also succumb to open discrimination.
“Today, Ukrainians cannot freely organize themselves in Crimea, and, accordingly, those Ukrainians who left the territory of the temporarily occupied Crimea are obliged to take those steps that will help protect the interests of our Ukrainian community in Crimea, and that will help liberate the southern territory of Ukraine in general, to renew the territorial integrity of Ukraine,” said Ivanets. In order to form the next composition of the Regional Council of Ukrainians in Crimea, the third congress was convened, the seventh congress of Ukrainians of Crimea, according to the declaration on the resumption of the activities of the Council.
Ivanets, in particular, pointed out the most important goals facing the Regional Council.
“The first is the legal protection of Ukrainians, that is, the protection of the interests of both individual Ukrainians and the Ukrainian community. The second is the advocacy of interests and proposals of Ukrainians in the authorities and in international organizations. The third is the information and cultural work. The fourth is our assistance to the process of de-occupation of Crimea,” he said.
