Blockade of Crimea not contradicts international law – experts
Crimean activists do not violate international law, while blocking trucks with food.
Commissioner of the Cabinet of Ministers for the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) Borys Babin said this in an interview with the Ukrayinski Novyny (Ukrainian News) website, commenting on the statements of Russian politicians on the “product blockade.”
He noted that “outside the Russian propaganda, from the point of view of international law, we have the occupied territories in Crimea and eastern Ukraine. According to the Fourth Geneva Convention, the occupying power shall provide the inhabitants of the occupied territories with all the things needed. And that’s that.”
Babin added that blocking of trucks with food has been organized not by representatives of the government but by the activists, mostly displaced persons from Crimea. According to the government commissioner, the population of the occupied territory virtually offers non-violent resistance to the occupying power, complying with universally recognized principles of international law, being unable to oppose the nuclear aggressor state.
As a reminder, Head of the Center for Civic Education “Almenda” Olha Skrypnyk did not support the blockade and stated that there were many Russian goods in Kyiv stores, for example, and this issue should have been solved also, “When we say that we must somehow affect the occupying power, which is present not only in Crimea, we should seek really normal and honest ways of economic influence on Russia. This issue is much broader than trade with Crimea.” Moreover, in her opinion, Ukraine had to solve the problem of transferring the citizens to the Ukrainian territory, drawing up of documents, getting Ukrainian education and other issues before launching the blockade.
As reported, September 20, the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people started the campaign to block the trucks carrying food to Crimea at the checkpoints in Kherson region. Thus, the Crimean Tatars demand that the occupying power on the peninsula release political prisoners and stop repressions against the local population.
