Mejlis Leader Mustafa Jemilev Met With General Consul of Romania in Odessa Emil Rapcha

20 December 2012

On December 20, 2012 the Leader of Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people, MP of Ukraine Mustafa Jemilev received the General Consul of Romania in Odessa Emil Rapcha in the office of Mejlis.

The meeting was also attended by the First Vice Chairman of Mejlis Refat Chubarov, the Head of the Department of foreign relations of Mejlis Ali Hamzin and Head of Mejlis Secretariat Zair Smedlyaev.

It was the first official visit of the General Consul of Romania in Odessa to Crimea where he held the working meetings. “The acquaintance with the leaders of Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people and its activity is also one of the goals of my visit to the peninsular,”- Mr Rapcha said.

The General Consul of Romania in Odessa drew attention of his companions that he knows the representatives of Crimean Tatar diaspora in Romania and appreciates their active and patriotic activity, aimed at preserving the national identity of Crimean Tatars.

In addition the Romanian diplomat said that he supports the decision, adopted by the representatives of Crimean Tatars in Dobruja about the conversion of Crimean Tatar alphabet to the Latin letters, adopted by Qurultay of the Crimean Tatar people.

Speaking with the General Consul of Romania in Odessa Emil Rapcha the Leader of Mejlis underscored that due to the high level of tolerance and development of the democratic principles in Romanian society towards the numerous Crimean Tatar diaspora there isn’t any chauvinistic rhetoric, national or religious intolerance in Romania. “We are quite satisfied with the position of our nationals and thank the Romanian state for the support provided, we also appreciate the national activity of our nationals from Romania,”- M.Jemilev said and added that Crimean Tatar diaspora is a kind of a bridge between Crimea and Romania.

On request of Romanian diplomat the First Vice Chairman of Mejlis Refat Chubarov made a brief digression into the history of Crimea and its indigenous people. Making the guest familiar with the geographical map of the peninsular, R.Chubarov told the General Consul of Romania in Odessa about the bright period of the Crimean Khanate, the productive activity of Noman Chelebidzhikhan and his tragic death, the mass deportation of the Crimean Tatar people and great changes that followed after the genocide of 1944.

“The complete elimination of any reminder about the indigenous people of Crimea – Crimean Tatars – was one of the main goals of the Soviet regime,”- Refat Chubarov underscored. According to the First Vice Chairman of Mejlis after many years spent in exile the Crimean Tatar people returns to its Homeland and tries to find the way out for Ukraine to solve the problems, first of all, to restore the collective rights of Crimean Tatars at the state level. In this respect, the initiative of Mejlis to hold the International Forum, supported by the OSCE and the international community is the possibility for Ukraine “a roadmap” to solve Crimean Tatar problem.

“We ask Romania, as one of the leading European countries to support the idea of holding the International Forum on the restoration of the rights of the Crimean Tatar people in its Homeland, ensuring its safety and guaranties for the development in Ukraine,”- the leaders of Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people said, addressing the General Consul of Romania in Odessa Emil Rapcha.

The General Consul of Romania in Odessa assured his companions in the readiness to continue an active dialogue and intention to include the issue on holding the International Forum in his working report, concluding his visit to Crimea.