‘To know in order to fight, To fight in order to win”: the results of ’Freedom Camp’

This year’s Freedom Camp organized by the Crimean Tatar Resource Centre with the support of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom in Ukraine, was another important event in our struggle for the deoccupation of Crimea.

We continue our mission – not only to improve ourselves, but also to share our experience with young people who are eager to join the great movement for freedom.

Out of 503 applications, we selected 17 best participants from different regions of Ukraine, who spent a week in the Carpathians, deepening their knowledge about Crimea, indigenous peoples of Ukraine, international human rights mechanisms and advocacy campaigns aimed at the deoccupation of the peninsula. They not only listened to lectures, but also actively participated in the creation of content that will soon be presented as part of the CTRC’s awareness campaigns.

‘To know in order to fight, to fight in order to win! Freedom Camp is a unique opportunity to become a part of a big movement for the deoccupation of Crimea’, – noted Eskender Bariiev, the Chairman of the Board of the CTRC, a member of Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people and the organizer of the Freedom Camp.

‘Freedom Camp is a great opportunity for Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar youth to learn more about Crimea, its indigenous peoples, and to directly participate in the development of information and advocacy campaigns aimed at the deoccupation and reintegration of Crimea!’ – Zarema Bariieva, manager of the CTRC and organizer of the Freedom Camp, stressed.

‘Freedom Camp’ unites active citizens who are interested in the situation in Crimea and want to join the projects of the CTRC. The peculiarity of this event is that here you can not only learn more about the events in the occupied Crimea, but also take part in the creation of information campaigns. In this way, ‘Freedom Camp’ becomes a platform for uniting efforts in the struggle for the liberation of Crimea. Promoting the unification of citizens and their active participation in the development of their state and the fight for freedom is the main mission of the Foundation, and that is why ‘Freedom Camp’ is one of our key projects in Ukraine’, – added Iryna Starovitska, Manager of the  Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom in Ukraine.

‘The annual ‘Freedom Camp’ is an important initiative, as it provides an opportunity to work with motivated active citizens of Ukraine. In this context, it is very important to talk about the legal mechanisms and aspects, as it is necessary to clarify what has already been done at the national and international levels on the legal plane. After all, the fight for Crimea is not only a military, but also a legal front where the struggle has been going on since 2014,’ said Liudmila Korotkikh, a lawyer of the CTRC and a trainer of the Freedom Camp.

We are sincerely convinced that it is through the involvement of young people that we can bring about real change. Our 17 new Crimean Ambassadors returned home with new knowledge, inspiration and desire to fight for the freedom of their country.

Now we have even more strength and confidence that together we will win!