The Indigenous Bill: Why Russia Has Reacted Negatively to It. Experts explain

Присяжнюк Владислава
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18:20, 11 June
The Indigenous Bill: Why Russia Has Reacted Negatively to It. Experts explain
Image source: УНІАН

Yulia Tyshchenko, an expert at the National Institute for Strategic Studies, and a professor, an expert of the Association “Reintelligence” Boris Babin.

Deputies of the State Duma of the Russian Federation at the plenary session yesterday, June 8, adopted a statement on the initiative of the Ukrainian authorities to exclude Russian and other peoples from among the indigenous peoples of Ukraine.

It will be recalled that President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi in his address to the Day of Remembrance of the Crimean Tatar Genocide Victims on May 18, 2021, noted that the strategy of deoccupation of Crimea approved by him in March 2021 identifies the restoration and protection of Crimean Tatars as an indigenous people. The draft law on indigenous peoples of Ukraine was submitted to the Verkhovna Rada as urgent:

"I am confident that in a short time the deputies will consider and consolidate the status of the indigenous peoples of Ukraine, including the Crimean Tatars, and finally do what they postponed for 30 years 8 convocations of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine",- Volodymyr Zelensky said.

About Russia's belated reaction to the Ukrainian bill on indigenous peoples

Yulia Tyshchenko considers such reaction of the Russian Federation to conscious trolling (ed. - mockery), or manipulation:

"Of course, any legislative initiatives of Ukraine to ensure the rights of indigenous peoples will not be welcomed by Russia, because it is not able to ensure at least some rights of indigenous peoples. It is strange to hear such fake hysteria of theirs because in Russia there are a number of laws dedicated to indigenous peoples. Why aren't there those peoples that Russian deputies care so much about Ukraine? This is from a completely different area. Indigenous peoples are those peoples who do not have a historical homeland. The Russians themselves have repeatedly criticized Russia for limiting the capabilities of indigenous peoples, even with regard to their recognition. In particular, they have a law on small indigenous peoples, which states that there should be no more than 50,000 representatives of these peoples. And this significantly narrows the possibilities of respecting the rights of different peoples living in Russia", - Tishchenko said.

Restoration and protection of the rights of Crimean Tatars as indigenous people is the biggest irritant for Russia in the Ukrainian bill

"The bill introduced by President Zelensky is absolutely correlated and is based on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The Russian Federation itself did not support this document in 2007, and Ukraine joined it in 2014". Yulia Tyshchenko said - “The Ukrainian Constitution clearly stipulates that the rights of indigenous peoples in Ukraine are determined by law. And those ethnic groups, national minorities, about which the Russian Federation has so suddenly begun to worry, are completely protected in Ukraine by this legislation".

Boris Babin believes that Russian deputies have painfully perceived this bill, because it once again demonstrates who really should decide the rights of these peoples:

"And this is not the Russian Federation. It is worth noting that since 2014, Russia has only been talking about its protection of indigenous peoples, but has not recognized the relevant rights for either the Crimean Tatars or the Crimean Tatars. Accordingly, the aggressor state itself did not take any positive action. In fact, their terrible aggression is due to the fact that Russia itself is a prison of nations. On its territory, many ethnic groups are fighting for their self-determination and corresponding rights. I will not say that the law we are approving is a breakthrough, but the rights it claims are deprived of the indigenous peoples of Russia itself. And this, of course, is very painful for them. And their current rhetoric that both Russians, Ukrainians, and Moldovans are indigenous peoples is a substitute for theses. After all, by international standards, indigenous peoples do not have their own state and statehood. If the state today denies ethnic Russians the existence of their own state, it is a problem of the State Duma of the Russian Federation. But they, of course, have no right to deny ethnic statehood to Moldovans, Ukrainians, Armenians, Greeks or other national minorities. And national minorities have their own state, ethnically related, outside the state in which they live. This is an axiom for lawyers, but here the Russian deputies decided to stick a fool together, as if they know nothing and do not understand".

About the Crimean trial over Refat Chubarov in absentia for participation in the 2014 riots

"They really have a category of political affairs. This is a case on February 26, where the main goal is to prove that certain mass riots took place outside the Council of Crimea, ”Borys Babin commented. - "And Mr. Chubarov became the person they chose for this political implementation. There are also other proceedings, which include the names of Chubarov, Dzhemilev, mine and others. There we are accused of international terrorism in the so-called blockade of Crimea. It is clear that this is also a purely propaganda event in the style of political repression. Fortunately, they are still in absentia and the aggressor state cannot implement them, but, obviously, it really wants to".

Forecasts on the speed of adoption of this bill

"Since this bill has been identified by President Zelensky as urgent, I hope that it will be voted on, signed and it will become law. If some deputies or their assistants try to make amendments there, nothing good will come of it”, - Borys Babin explained