Dzhemilev is 71

It was not his fault that for the first time since the USSR’s breakup, leader of the Crimean Tatars Mustafa Dzhemilev celebrated his 71st birthday, which fell on November 13, outside his homeland. Following the March 2014 annexation of Crimea, Russia banned him from the peninsula for five years. The former dissident, serving Ukrainian MP, Representative of the President of Ukraine for the Crimean Tatar Affairs spent 15 years in Soviet labor camps and prisons for defending the rights of the Crimean Tatars back in that age. Dzhemilev has had to return to the fight for his people’s rights lately. His strength, will, and determination have not failed him as he advances his cause.

The Day congratulated Dzhemilev on the occasion of a personal holiday and discussed with him topical issues of the war in the east of Ukraine, the future of Crimea, and the hardships faced by the Crimean Tatars in the occupied territories.

You now have to celebrate your birthday outside your homeland, for the first time since the USSR’s breakup. How do you feel about it?

“Of course, I would like to be there now, in Crimea, among my relatives and countrypeople. However, when there is a war, and dozens of people are killed every day, to talk about some discomfort associated with the fact that I am not allowed to go home would be just improper. We are at war, and, apparently, each of us must bear some part of this burden. My part happens to be this.

“Still, the president of Ukraine was among the first to call and congratulate me on that day. My fellow citizens and the nation’s leadership are trying to compensate for the fact that I cannot be in Crimea among my countrypeople.”

There is an opinion that Russia may try to continue its aggression against Ukraine in order to “hack open” a corridor from the east of Ukraine to Crimea. Should we consider it likely?

“Yes, I have heard it too. For example, I had a video sent from Kherson region which featured an interview with a resident of Henichesk district who said: ‘Listen to a resident of Henichesk, which is a part of Ukraine for the time being.’ I spoke with the president about this. We see brazen pro-Russian activities in Kherson region, and therefore some action needs to be taken. For example, there is a proposal to form a battalion from the Crimean Tatars who live in Kherson region and are alarmed at the Russians’ possible advance through Kherson in the direction of Crimea. Since about 10,000 Crimean Tatars live there, they want to take part in the defense of our land.”

In your opinion, how adequate is the Ukrainian leadership’s assessment of the situation? Are they preparing the country for offering a strong resistance?

“Such work is being carried out to the best of our abilities, but compared to the Russian power, our forces are still inferior. Generally, the whole situation is disturbing, there are omens of more bloodshed and further loss of life. However, the deeper Russia will move into Ukraine, the closer will be the end of Russia itself.”

Do you think that the events in the east of Ukraine have overshadowed the Crimean issue, both inside country and at the international level?

“Our compatriots are very concerned about it. They watch TV broadcasts, listen to the statements our statespeople make and get the impression that Crimea has gone into the background. Actually, it is understandable, because there is no bloodshed in Crimea, although abductions, arrests and searches continue. Therefore, the attention of public figures and the press is mostly focused on that part of Ukraine which is hit by fighting.

“Still, I do not think that any Ukrainian leader will ever say that we are abandoning claims to Crimea, as no politician will last long in power after making such a statement.”

What is the prevailing mood among the Crimean Tatars living in the occupied Crimea?

“The vast majority of our people want to get some predictions at least on the timing of their liberation. There are pessimists, but overall, I have not met anybody pondering the prospects of the Crimean Tatars as residents of Russia. All hope that liberation will come for us at some point.

“Initially, the Russian authorities tried to negotiate with the Mejlis, because it is the representative body of the Crimean Tatars, and people take into account the Mejlis’s decisions. However, when the Russians realized that it was impossible to reach an agreement with that body, they went back to their traditional methods, putting pressure on our people and attempting to create parallel structures. Russia has been spending a lot of energy to cause a split in the ranks of the Crimean Tatars and form a new Kurultai by putting pressure on the members of the National Congress and trying to elect their stooges to the Mejlis. It is futile, though, because the overwhelming majority of the Crimean Tatars will not go for it.”