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Refat Chubarov: "Imagine you are a Crimean Tatar"

Refat Chubarov: "Imagine you are a Crimean Tatar"

New York - On April 29, 2015, Liberal Studies department in New York University (NYU) hosted the international forum on Ukraine, reports UaPost

The organizers of that event were two Ukrainians: Maryna Prykhodko and Anastasiya Oleksiyenko, both are the students of NYU. A topic of the discussion was “Ukraine finding its way”. They invited very interesting speakers who shared their knowledge and expertise trying to find the solution for the current war in Ukraine. The panel of speakers included Dr. Hiroaki Kuromiya, Professor at Indiana University and author of "Freedom and Terror in the Donbas: A Ukrainian-Russian Borderland, 1870s-1990s", Dr. Yuri Shevchuk, Lecturer of Ukrainian Language and Culture at Columbia University, Ukrainian Language Specialist and Educator, Ayla Bakkalli, Executive Member of the World Congress of Crimean Tatars and USA Representative of the Crimean Tatar Mejlis and a surprise guest - Chairman Refat Chubarov of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People.

The audience was quite diverse with different opinions and ideas. There was one woman who was trying to distribute the printouts with the message: “The Same Nazis Are Running the Government in Ukraine”. Fortunately, she was outnumbered by sensible and clear minded people.

What I liked the most from that forum were the presentations by Ayla Bakkalli, Executive Member of the World Congress of Crimean Tatars and Refat Chubarov, a leader of the Crimean Tatar Mejlis. They spoke on behalf of all Crimean Tatars whose future now is full of uncertainty after Russian annexation of Crimea.

Being an active advocate of Crimean Tatars, Ayla Bakkalli voiced their concerns and fears. Crimean Tatars are now in real danger, they are squeezed out and discriminated in their homeland. They are been watched and their houses been marked in red crosses in order to pinpoint where they live.  Crimean Tatars is the only voice left on the peninsular that speaks against occupation.

Remembering their history, we are getting goosebumps. In 1944 Crimean Tatars were brutally kicked out of their houses, loaded on cattle wagons by Soviet Stalin and sent to Central Asia and Siberia. As Ayla Bakkalli described it, it was a “crematorium on wheels” where hundreds of Tatars perished. Crimean Tatars returned to their homeland – Crimea – when the Soviet Union collapsed. They did not have much time or support to rebuild their lives, but they did. And now, when their dreams and hopes were high, a nightmare became their terrible reality.

On February 27, 2015 Russia began its war against Ukraine by annexing Crimea. As the result of Russian policies, Refat Chubarov was banned from returning home for a period of five years. Crimean Prosecutor Natalia Poklonskaya said, “[Refat] Chubarov has been banned from entering the Russian Federation for five years."

When Refat Chubarov took the podium, he asked everybody in the audience to imagine they were Crimean Tatars. He said, “Imagine you are forced to leave your house and move to a faraway land, where you cannot have your schools, books, media, historians, journalist or scientists in your native language. Anything that was related to your national identity was prohibited.” Nearly 50% of Crimean Tatars died during the first years of deportation. He said that the situation on the Crimean peninsula was worrisome because now Russia was using similar tactics.

Ayla Bakkalli explained that after the deportation in 1944, there was 0% of Crimea Tatars that left on the Crimean peninsula, when before, they made up 95% of the entire population. After the deportation, Stalin ordered to send Russian citizens to Crimea. When they came, they destroyed all what Tatars worked so hard for and for so many years. As the result of that policy, now ethnic Russians make up the majority of the population in Crimea when Ukrainians and Crimea Tatars are minorities.

When Refat Chubarov was asked if Ukraine was finding its way, he said: “Yes, Ukraine is in search! It is on the right path toward European family and Crimean Tatars want the same. Ukraine needs to become economically strong country, and to do that, first of all, it must get rid of corruption.”

I liked how he explained that the best way to deal with corruption is when everyone starts with himself or herself before demanding any actions from the other person.

Dr. Hiroaki Kuromiya, who was educated in Japan and the USA, suggested Ukraine to be extremely cautious when partnering with the big powers to make a deal with Russia. Often, the interests of the smaller nations are betrayed in the process of negotiations.

Dr. Yuri Shevchuk made an excellent point that the world finally needs to realize that Ukraine is not a pawn on the chessboard anymore.

International community must take the legal measures and defend Crimean Tatars and Ukraine if it does not want to have a similar war in the future.