In this episode of the Bur’yan podcast, we want to focus on the events of the 2nd half of the XX century, such as the return of Crimean Tatars to Crimea, the emergence of the Crimean Tatar national movement, as well as the recent developments of the XXI century, such as the occupation of Crimea, and the repressions against Crimean Tatars in the occupied peninsula. We will also discuss the prospects for the decolonization of Crimea and possible actions by the international community that could affect the current situation of the Crimean Tatars.
Moderated by Elnara Nuriieva-Letova, a Crimean Tatar cross-media activist, author and publicist, project manager of UA:SOUTH and CEMAAT of Crimea Media Platform
Guests:
Martin-Oleksandr Kisly, a Ukrainian historian of Crimea and Crimean Tatars with a focus on Soviet and post-Soviet periods,
Alexandr Murtatzayev, an independent Crimean Tatar history researcher and author, who frequently collaborates with the International Memorial Society and independent media projects centered around indigenous resistance,
Elmaz Alimova, Chevening Scholar, MSc Human Rights and Politics student at the London School of Economics and Political Science,
An anonymous activist from the Crimean Solidarity human rights organization
Timecodes:
00:00:00 — Intro
00:01:30 — Martin-Oleksandr Kisly on the return of Crimean Tatars to Crimea, communities of memory, conditions in exile, Soviet laws, decrees, and bureaucracy that interfered with the return
00:12:00 — Alexandr Murtazayev on the archives of the International Memorial Society he works with, the formation of the Crimean Tatar national movement and its first generation (from 1944 to the beginning of 1960s)
00:20:11 — The radicalization of the movement, the second generation of Crimean Tatar activists, characteristics of the movement, attempts to return to Crimea and the violent measures the Soviet authorities took against it
00:35:56 — A conversation with an anonymous activist from Crimean Solidarity: the Hizb ut-Tahrir case, religious and political repressions in the occupied peninsula, about the human rights organization Crimean Solidarity and its work, statistics of repression under russian occupation. Also, our guest shared with us what gives them hope to continue their work and told us what the international community and our listeners can do to help Crimean political prisoners
00:48:02 — Alexandr Murtazayev on the methods and actions of the second generation of the Crimean Tatar movement: delegations to Moscow, self-census of Crimean Tatar people that helped reconceptualize the deportation as a genocide, student and youth organizations, collaboration with a Ukrainian dissident Petro Grygorenko, as well as other Soviet dissidents and the broader international community
00:55:08 — The stage of “decline” (1970s): numerous attempts to return to Crimea, repressions against Crimean Tatars who tried to return, new discriminatory decrees, the self-immolation of Musa Mamut
00:59:21 — The Perestroika: a new wave of radicalization, mass repatriation of Crimean Tatars, self-returns, the establishment of the second Kurultai
01:06:33 — Elmaz Alimova on the perspectives of the decolonization of Crimea, Ukrainian policies on the indigenous peoples, international legal instruments that can improve the situation in Crimea, decolonization of Crimean toponyms and cases of other countries in representation of indigenous people in the state policies and government agencies
01:21:00 — Outro
“BUR’YAN” is a podcast made in collaboration between decolonial researchers and activists from the collectives of feminist translocalities and BEDA. Each episode can have not only new guests but also new hosts.