Crimea: Tatars

(asked on 12th October 2016) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the treatment of the Tatar minority in occupied Crimea.


Answered by
Alan Duncan Portrait
Alan Duncan
This question was answered on 17th October 2016
The human rights situation in Crimea has deteriorated significantly since the Russia's illegal annexation. We are deeply concerned about the treatment of Crimean Tatars who face regular harassment including arrests, detentions, disappearances, threats to seize property, and restrictions on their rights of worship, assembly and expression, including a ban on the Mejlis council. We are aware of reports that 18 Crimean Tatars are currently held in Russian-run prisons and several more are under arrest for opposing the illegal annexation of Crimea. International human rights organisations such as the UN and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe are barred from entering Crimea. We continue to call on Russia to allow them immediate and unfettered access.
Reticulating Splines