Mejlis to file appeal against its ban with ECHR

The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation judgment on prohibition of the Mejlis of Crimean Tatar people will be challenged in the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

This was reported by Chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people, MP from the Bloc of Petro Poroshenko faction Refat Chubarov, Interfax-Ukraine reports.

“Since we have responded to the calls of our European partners and filed an appeal to the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, although the result was clear for us; as far as we passed this stage, now the next step is to file an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights”, he said at the press conference in Kyiv on Friday.

According to Chubarov, the timing of filing an appeal to the ECHR depends on the preparation of necessary documents.

“Any formal moment has left for us in the Russian legal system, so they will be there as soon as possible,” the MP said.

He said that the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people would continue its activity despite the ban. “Even with the help of the ban no one can prohibit the activity of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatars fighting for their rights,” Chubarov said.

As reported, on Thursday the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation ruled to ban the activities of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people in Russia and on the territory of occupied Crimea.

Freedom House international organization stated that the process of Crimean Tatars criminalization exacerbated human rights crisis in Crimea.

“The court’s decision to ban the Mejlis is a confirmation that there are massive repressions of ethnic minorities in Crimea,” Acting President at Freedom House Daniel Calingaert said.

“Theoretically, Russian authorities can now punish all representatives of the Crimean Tatar people for their cultural, social and political activity. This is a parody of justice, which is also the ultimate example of human rights violations in Crimea,” he said.