Ivan Mezyukho: ‘The Crimean Tatar Mejlis has no political future in Crimea’

5 years of populism

On 26 April of 2016, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Crimea has labeled the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People 'an extremist organization' and banned its activities. In fact, the public association, which is a political institution and calling itself 'the representative body of the Crimean Tatars', did everything in order to get the ban on its activities on the 25th year of its existence and to acquire the status of an extremist organization.

During and immediately after the Crimean referendum of 16 March 2014, the leadership of the Crimean Republic has repeatedly offered the still not banned but existing outside the legal field Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People to establish a constructive cooperation for the benefit of the Crimean Tatars and all Crimeans.

In fairness it should be noted that such negotiations were not easy for the Crimean authorities because the known facts of the support by the Crimean Mejlis of the coup in Kiev, its publicly neutral but in reality positive attitude toward radical religious organizations, as well as the funding from foreign governments and the whole negative political tail for two decades created for this organization completely hostile image in the eyes of the Crimean majority.

'In fact, the public association, which is a political institution and calling itself 'the representative body of the Crimean Tatars', did everything in order to gain the ban on its activities on the 25th year of its existence and to acquire the status of an extremist organization.' Photo: islam.in.ua

For a long time, being the most structured Crimean Tatar organization, the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, having the financial and informational resources, having the representation in the government, had all the opportunities to improve the socio-economic situation of the Crimean Tatars, the solution of the humanitarian problems. In particular, the organization never achieved the recognition for the Crimean Tatars the status of a repressed people that became possible only after the reunification of the Crimea with the Russian Federation.

In fact, for 25 years the Crimean Tatar Mejlis has been engaged in empty talks and the selling of votes of the Crimean Tatars in various Ukrainian elections. The so-called Qurultay of the Crimean Tatar People, which allegedly claims the Plenipotentiary representative of the Crimean Tatars and forms the Mejlis, mainly gathered during the electoral race, in order to decide which party to support in the upcoming elections. So-called 'delegates' of Qurultay were elected absolutely non-democratically, as it was repeatedly stated by the public figures among the Crimean Tatars. Thus, the system itself 'Mejlis/Qurultay' looks like a political farce for the fooling the entire nation. However, it should be recognized that in Mejlis system, which had its regional offices throughout the peninsula, there were people really concerned about the situation of the Crimean Tatars. However, these activists were constantly tripped up by the radical wing of the Mejlis by their sometimes provocative and illegal actions.

Voluntary disengagement

The Mejlis, taking an irreconcilable position against the Russian state, having organized the so-called food and energy 'blockade' of the peninsula and having delegated their leaders Mustafa Dzhemilev and Refat Chubarov to the deputies of Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine voluntarily withdrew from political life in Crimea. After the reunification of Crimea with Russia, not taking advantage of the proposal of the Crimean authorities to cooperate for the sake of the creation of the whole Crimean community, the Mejlis began to lose already shaky popularity among the Crimean Tatars. It can be said that today it has no popularity at all.

Organized by the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People 'blockade' of the peninsula have only intensified the negative sentiment of the Crimean Tatars in relation to the organization. In this context, it should be noted that, according to the Federal Agency for Ethnic Affairs in October of 2015, two times more Crimean Tatars were ready to vote for the reunification of the Crimea with Russia than at the referendum in 2014.

'The Mejlis, taking an irreconcilable position against the Russian state, having organized the so-called food and energy 'blockade' of the peninsula and having delegated their leaders Mustafa Dzhemilev and Refat Chubarov to the deputies of Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, voluntarily withdrew from political life in Crimea.' Photo: unian.net

Inglorious end

In light of this situation, the Crimean Tatar Mejlis has no political future in Crimea. All activities of this organization have already focused in Ukraine. Being engaged in the anti-Crimean and anti-Russian activities, the Mejlis is beneficial for the foreign hostile anti-Russian forces, firmly entrenched in Kiev after the coup in 2014. Particularly these forces are ready to sponsor the activities of the organization.

However, all the hopes of the patrons of the Mejlis for the aggravation of the situation in Crimea and the ethnic conflict are futile: the integration of the Crimean Tatars, as well as other peoples of the peninsula, in the Russian political, economic and cultural space has reached such huge proportions so that no information anti-Russian stove-piping by the Mejlis will not be able to stop it.