The 9th of August – International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples

Each year on the 9th of August the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples is celebrated. It was approved by resolution of the UN General Assembly in 1994. In the world there are about 370 million indigenous people living in 90 countries. They belong to 5,000 various and unique cultures and speak the vast majority of world’s languages, the total number of which is approximately 7 000. One of the indigenous peoples of Ukraine are the Crimean Tatars, who are currently being subjected to constant persecution and pressure from the Russian authorities. The team of the Crimean Tatar Resource Center congratulates everyone on the International Day of Indigenous Peoples of the World!

In Geneva, at the 12th session of the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the forum participants supported the Crimean Tatars. In the walls of the UN building, they took pictures with the posters claiming the following mottos: "Return fathers to their kids", "Free political prisoners of Crimea", "Stop persecution of Crimean Tatars", "Recognize the right of Crimean Tatars to self-determination", "Stop the destruction and plundering of cultural heritage of the Crimean Tatars "," Stop abductions of the representatives of the Crimean Tatar people " etc.

At the 16th UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, representatives of indigenous peoples from different parts of the Globe supported the indigenous Crimean Tatar people. The team of the Crimean Tatar Resource Center would like to present you a video prepared and compiled within the framework of the forum.

We remind you that today, on the 9th of August, in the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center, the Crimean Tatar Resource Center and the Estonian Institute of Human Rights are organizing a round table discussion dedicated to the issue of realization of the rights of indigenous peoples in Ukraine and the world alongside with its problems and prospects. At the event dedicated to the International Day of Indigenous Peoples of the World, Ukrainian and foreign experts will hold their speeches and reports. The round table starts at 12:00.