Crimean Tatars fail to end Russian ban on parliament

By Hakan Ceyhan Aydogan and Ali Cura

MOSCOW

Russia’s High Court on Thursday rejected Crimean Tatars' appeal against a legal ban on their parliament's activities, judicial sources in Moscow told Anadolu Agency.

The Russian court had scrutinized an appeal against April’s decision to stop the activities of the Crimean Tatar Mejlis.

Ukraine had previously recognized the Mejlis as a legal representative body of the Crimean Tatar. The territory of Crimea was annexed from Ukraine by Russia in 2014.

Thursday’s decision means the ban on the Mejlis’ activities, initiated by a Russian-appointed prosecutor, will continue.

Crimean Tatars demonstrated in the Ukrainian capital Kiev during the review of the case in Moscow.

Head of the Crimean Tatar Parliament, Refat Chubarov, told Anadolu Agency both Crimean Tatars and Ukrainians would never recognize the occupation of Crimea.

"After today's decision, more than 250,000 Crimean Tatars will be under 'extremist' status but we are ready for this decision. All Crimean Tatars will remain faithful to their homeland, people and Ukraine", Chubarov added.

The prosecutor appointed by Russia to Crimea, Natalya Poklonskaya, made an application to the Crimean High Court to close down the Crimean Tatar body on Feb. 15.

In the petition, Poklonskaya demanded the Crimean Tatar parliament's activities be stopped based on Russian laws against extremism. She also called for the parliament to be regarded as an extremist organization.

A review into the case was postponed four times.

In April the same prosecutor decided the Crimean Tatar parliament's activities be stopped until the court's decree.