The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania,

reminding that two years ago the Russian Federation, by using armed military force, occupied and annexed a part of the Ukrainian territory – Crimea;

noting that respect for human rights and freedoms is the cornerstone value of the European Union and the fundamental principle governing relations with other states;

recalling and realising the painful and tragic historical experience of the Crimean Tatars when they were forcibly deported to other parts of the then USSR in 1944 with no right to return until 1989;

emphasising that the application in Crimea of the laws of the Russian Federation conflicting with UN General Assembly Resolution 68/262 of 27 March 2014 entitled ‘Territorial integrity of Ukraine’ and the actions of the de facto authorities in Crimea result in various violations of human rights, especially those of the ethnic minorities residing in Crimea – the Crimean Tatars and ethnic Ukrainians;

pointing out that the Crimean Tatars who refused to assume Russian citizenship after the annexation experience discrimination and major difficulties in all areas of political, social and economic life, they are denied access to educational, medical, social and other services, and the use of the Tatar and Ukrainian languages is restricted at schools and in the media;

taking into consideration the fact that on 17 March 2016 the judicial proceedings started in a court of Simferopol (Crimea) concerning the prohibition of the activities of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, accusing it of extremism,

takes a firm stance on the policy of non-recognition of the annexation of Crimea and expresses concern regarding the militarisation of the Crimean peninsula carried out by the Russian Federation;

highlights that the ending of the occupation and restoration of Ukrainian control over Crimea is one of the prerequisites for re-establishing cooperative relations with the Russian Federation, including the suspension of related sanctions;

strongly condemns gross and systematic violations of human rights, especially those of the Crimean Tatars and ethnic Ukrainians, in Crimea: intimidation and persecution, restrictions on the freedoms of the media, expression, peaceful assembly, religion and opinion, infringements of an individual's property right, and restrictions on the use of the Ukrainian and Tatar languages and the freedom of movement;  

urges the Russian Federation authorities and the de facto authorities in Crimea to provide an opportunity for international institutions and independent experts of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the United Nations and the Council of Europe, representatives of non-governmental organisations to enter Crimea and to obtain the necessary information about the situation of human rights, calls on the institutions of the European Union and the Member States of the European Union to take actions in order to influence decisions of the Russian Federation in this regard;

deplores the actions of the Russian Federation authorities and the de facto authorities in Crimea to hinder and limit the functioning of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, the highest executive and representative body of the Crimean Tatars;

urges institutions of the European Union, particularly the European External Action Service, to take all necessary actions for representatives of the European Union to be allowed to observe the judicial proceedings concerning the prohibition of the activities of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, and to obtain full information regarding the proceedings;

welcomesthe meeting of the Executive Committee of the World Congress of Crimean Tatars, convened in Vilnius on 11-13 April 2016, to discuss the difficult situation of the Crimean Tatars  and the gross violations of their rights;

urges institutions of the European Union, international organisations and their parliamentary assemblies, governments and parliaments, the entire international community and their political leaders to pay due attention to the human rights situation in Crimea;

calls on the international community to further join efforts to continue an active policy of non-recognition of the annexation of Crimea and to ensure the territorial integrity of Ukraine.

 

 

SPEAKER OF THE SEIMAS                                                              LORETA GRAUŽINIENĖ