Illegal Crimean Tatar “Parliament” Might be Sanctioned

<>Monday, April 11, 2005

Representative of the Hizb-ut-Tahrir international Islamic political organization in the Crimea Abdusalam Selyametov was detained in Simferopol on April 05 for appeals to legalize the Hizb-ut-Tahrir Party, which is outlawed in many countries. He was charged with illegal engagement in politics. According to Ukrainian laws, a political group should be registered with the Ministry of justice otherwise it is considered illegal and is subject to sanctions. But a militant Tatar self-styled parliament “medjlis” has never undergone any registration. However it operates quite openly, mostly engaged in staging protests, squattering and illegal land grabbing. On April 12 Crimean Police Chief Khomenko threatened to crack down on all illegal political groups. When asked about the “medjlis” Mr. Khomenko hinted that it could also face sanctions. No reaction from the Tatar militants has been voiced yet. Observers think that the “medjlis” will ignore the statement of the police chief and will remain defiant as usual.