On November 18 St. Petersburg hosted a series of pickets in support of the Crimean Tatars “Strategy-18”.
This rally is a brainchild of a group of civil society activists from various democratic parties and movements.
According to the organizers, these pickets marked the start of the indefinite rally to be held in St. Petersburg on the 18th day of every month. Moreover, the format of the rally can vary.
Participants of the rally demanded to release the defendants of the “February 26” case, to stop the criminal prosecution of Ilmi Umerov and bridled up at the ban of the Mejlis and that some Crimean Tatar activists were prohibited to entry Crimea.
On April 26, 2016, the Supreme Court of Crimea declared the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people to be an extremist organization and banned its activities in Russia. On September 29, Russia’s Supreme Court supported the decision of the Supreme Court of Crimea to ban the Mejlis.
As Avdet reported, in the end of October during the annual March Against Hatred in St. Petersburg two protesters were detained. One of the detainees was carrying the flag of Ukraine, the other one – the flag of the Crimean Tatars. On one of the posters among “Crimes of hatred against Ukraine” the repressions against Crimean Tatars and pro-Ukrainian activists were mentioned.
