Drive for Signatures, Supporting Address of Polish Human Rights Advocates was Announced in Poland

The signature-gathering campaign in support ofthe address to the President of Ukraine and Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to prohibit the action of Russian extremist organizations whose actions could lead to the interethnic and interreligious conflict in the Autonomous republic of Crimea started in Poland.

The well-known human rights advocates Peter Hlebowich and Yadviga Hmelevska, the former members of the eastern branch of the fighting underground Solidarity adopted the address – STOP prowokacjom na Krymie! (STOP provocations in Crimea!) to the President of Ukraine, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, as well as the international community and the OSCE member states to protect the rights of the Crimean Tatar people. The address was adopted in connection with the recent provocations against Crimean Tatars, organized by pro-Russian organizations in December 2012.

The address said that recently Crimea has become the field of the alarming events, caused by the unpunished actions of Russian organizations of the Party “Russian Unity” and Cossacks from the organization of Cossack brotherhood “Unity” that at night on December 1, 2012 attacked the protest field in Molodezhnoe settlement next to Simferopol and destroyed more than 100 temporary constructions, belonging to Crimean Tatars. On the same night the attack was made on and the attempt of the setting fire of the guard’s wagon was made in the territory of the construction of Juma Jami.

The address expresses a puzzlement about the actions of Russian organization “Essence of Time”, headed by the “left patriot” Sergei Kurginyan who organized the exhibition in Simferopol, dedicated to the 133rd anniversary of birth of the greatest criminal of the mankind Joseph Stalin, as well as the attitude of the autonomy’s authorities that let it hold the action. It was noted with regret that the organizers of the exhibition declared the deportation of the Crimean Tatar people in 1944 as Joseph Stalin’s humanistic act.

In this connection the authors of the address demanded prohibiting a range of Russian extremist organizations in Crimea whose actions could lead to the interethnic and interreligious conflict in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. They called the OSCE member states applying to Ukraine to obtain the explanations why it lets exhibit and show positively in its territory those who the international community regards as being guilty in committing the crimes against humanity.

The address and gathering of signatures was organized in the website http://www.activism.com/pl_PL/petycja/stop-prowokacjom-na-krymie/41545

The address is also available in the independent website http://wpolityce.pl/artykuly/43944-petycja-do-prezydenta-janukowycza-oraz-do-wierchownej-rady-ukrainy-o-wydanie-calkowitego-zakazu-dzialalnosci-rosyjskich-bojowek-na-terytorium-krymskiej-autonomii

Around 100 signatures of the well-known human rights advocates, politicians, public figures of culture, Polish journalists, as well as the representatives from Belorussia, USA and Estonia have been collected.

Among them:

Peter Hlebowich– the human rights advocate, the former member of the eastern branch of fighting underground Solidarity, co-Chairman of the autonomous Eastern branch of fighting underground Solidarity, journalist, member of Crimean forum;

Yadviga Hmelevska– the human rights advocate, the former member of eastern branch of fighting underground Solidarity, co-Chairman of the autonomous Eastern branch of fighting underground Solidarity, journalist, member of the Board of the Association of Polish journalists;

Zenon Poznyak– Belorussian politician and public figure, human rights advocate. One of the founders of “Martyrology of Belorussia” (1988) and Belorussian national front, Chairman of Belorussian national front “Адраджэньне”, Head of the Conservative – Christian Party. In 1990-1995 the MP of the Supreme Council of Belorussia, Leader of the Parliamentary faction BNF, currently lives in USA. In the elections 1994 he was the candidate to the President of the Republic of Belorussia;

Tatyana Yankelevich– the Soviet human rights advocate, member of Crimean forum;

Mussu Taipova– Ambassador of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria to the French Republic;

Vardan Arutyunyan– the Soviet human rights advocate, member of Crimean forum;

Erzy Darsky–well-known Polish political expert, emigrant, editor of Polish emigrant cultural magazine “Paris Culture” (1980);

Selim Hazbievich– Head of the Association of Polish Tatars, Professor of the University of Olschtin, PhD;

Nadezhda Banchik– born in Lvov, living in USA. Stringer and columnist of the newspaper “West – East” and other print, journalist of the emigrant US Press;

Mussa Chahorovsky– Tatar poet, living in Poland, member of the religious Muslim association of Polish Tatars. Deputy Editor of the magazine “Tatar life of Poland”;

Brunon Ponikevsky– former political prisoner;

Leonardos Vilkas– human rights advocate, anti-Communist, fighter for Lithuania’s freedom, well-known translator;

Valery Kalabugin– Secretary of the World Congress of Ugric-Finnish people, member of Crimean forum;

Oles Shevchenko– former Ukrainian political prisoner, human rights advocate, former Head of Ukrainian Republican Party, founder of Ukrainian Helsinki Union, member of Crimean forum;

Valery Buyval– human rights advocate, Secretary of Belorussian national front “”Адраджэньне”;

Yanush Kamodsky– former soldier of Kraevoy army, political prisoner in Stalin’s time, ethnographer, organizer of a range of exhibitions about the life of Polish Tatars;

Andzhei Verter– member of Warsaw branch of the Fighting Solidarity;

Rishard Nikodem– well-known activist of Solidarity movement in Silesia, former political prisoner, US emigrant;

Dominik Napivodsky– journalist of University of Toronto;

Kshishtov Bzdil– member of underground confederation of independent Poland since 1979, political prisoner, US emigrant;

Peter Zaremsky– well-known director, documentary film maker;

Yatsek Filus– Deputy Head of radio Katovitsy