Report delivered by the manager of Crimean Tatar Resource Center Liudmyla Korotkykh at the OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting 2019. Workshop 8: Tolerance and Non-Discrimination I, including: Equal opportunities for men and women; Implementation of the OSCE Action Plan for the Promotion of Gender Equality; Violence against women. Topic: Violence and harassment against women in the occupied Crimea.
Harassment and violence against women in the occupied Crimea
OSCE participating States condemned violence and discrimination against women by adopting the OSCE Action Plan for the Promotion of Gender Equality.
However, since the occupation of Crimea, a completely different trend is observed.
The most vulnerable group are the wives of the Crimean Tatar political prisoners. These are, as a rule, religious, poor, and large families.
After the detention of the sole breadwinner, the weight of responsibility for providing for the family rests with women. In this regard, they cannot devote enough attention to raising children and are also deprived of the possibility of full self-realization in society.
About 60 Crimean Tatar women were left without husbands and more than 160 children without fathers.
Here is the case in point. The husband of Fatma Ismailova, the father of their three young children was detained on October 12, 2016, being accused of participating in the Hizb ut-Tahrir organization. On June 10, 2019, Fatma Ismailova’s father was also detained when they were headed together for a hearing of her husband’s case. On the same day, a search was carried out in her brother’s house, after which he also was detained. Thus, in one family three women were left without husbands.
A common practice of psychological violence against these women is the denial to visit their husbands. They often do not see each other for several months.
In addition to refusing to grant visits, political prisoners in Crimea are illegally transferred to the Russian Federation.
Another negative tendency is the persecution of Crimean Tatar women activists. In November 2015, a search was conducted in the household of journalist Lilay Budzhurova.
In November 2017, the search was conducted in the household of a teacher of the Crimean Tatar language Lenara Mustafaeva.
In June-July 2018, the searches were conducted in the households of a blogger Elina Mamedova, Nazifa Seytumerova, the second search was held in the household of an activist Nadzhiya Kaydanova, and in the household of a blogger and daughter of a political prisoner Gulsum Alieva.
In June 2018, there was an attempt to institute criminal proceedings against the Crimean Tatar poetess Aliya Kenzhalieva for her art activity.
On May 30, 2019, an activist of the Crimean Solidarity organization Lutfie Zudieva and the wife of one of the political prisoners, coordinator of the Crimean Childhood project Mumine Saliieva were detained. They were found guilty of violating Article 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation (demonstration of symbols of a prohibited organization) and fined 2,000 and 1,000 rubles, respectively.
On August 1, 2019, the journalist of the first Crimean Tatar television channel ATR Gulsum Khalilova was arrested in absentia and put on the international wanted list.
We see that women in Crimea are subject to violation of their rights and psychological violence by the occupying authorities.
We demand that Russia fulfills its international obligations, stop discrimination against Crimean Tatar women, and illegal prosecution of all residents of Crimea.
Thank you for your attention!