In Ukraine, the Crimean peninsula has been illegally occupied by Russia for ten years now. While this month of March marks ten years since the referendum – invalidated by the international community – that Moscow used to justify its annexation, human rights violations are increasing against local populations, particularly against the Tatars. and pro-Ukrainian activists. Since the annexation, hundreds of people have been imprisoned, and a wave of arrests has just hit the Tatar community once again.
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With our correspondent in kyiv, Emmanuelle Chaze
It was in the early hours of the day that the homes of ten Tatar activists and religious leaders were illegally searched and their occupants arrested in Crimea. They are accused by the Russian occupier of terrorism on the Crimean peninsula and were all taken to the premises of the FSB, the Russian secret service, in Simferopol.
These arbitrary arrests are not new, as Mario Tomak, of the Crimean Platform, a government initiative for the reintegration of the peninsula into Ukraine, explains: “ Crimea has become a peninsula of fear. If you represent indigenous communities, if you are politically pro-Ukrainian, or if you are not very enthusiastic in your support of the occupation authorities, if you are randomly searched on the street and have a VPN on your phone, you can be arrested, and at least have to pay a fine, be prosecuted, for nothing. »
For his part, the Commissioner for Human Rights in Ukraine, Dmytro Lubinets, denounced a crime against humanity and calls on the international community to intensify efforts aimed at countering these crimes committed by Russia in the occupied territories. in Ukraine and to release Ukrainian citizens illegally detained by the aggressor country.
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