18th session of Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues is taking place in New York UN headquarters (April 22th – May 3rd, 2019). 

Selection system for participants of the event is designed so that all delegates are approved by governments of states, which they represent on Forum. Delegates from Russian Federation are “proper activists”, carefully selected in Kremlin to praise Russian authorities at UN international event. 

In words that echo Eugene Lyons’ 1953 classic, Our Secret Allies: The Peoples of Russia, Hanna Hopko, chair of the Verkhovna Rada’s foreign affairs committee, says that the non-Russian nations within the borders of the Russian Federation are more important allies of the Free World than are the members of the Russian opposition.

On April 13, 2019 Free Idel-Ural civic movement picketed diplomatic missions of Russian Federation in USA and Ukraine. Activists demanded from Russian authorities to stop pursuit of Airat Dilmukhametov, Bashkir politician, arrested on March 15, for a videoaddress to opposition Forum of free Russia, where Dilmukhametov called to “reconstitute Russian Federation again”.

When Stalin deported the Crimean Tatars in 1944, he loaded all of them on trains in the course of a few days and sent them to Central Asia, an action that is almost universally recognized and denounced as an act of genocide. But today, Vladimir Putin is doing much the same thing but in slow motion and getting away with it.

Early today, March 14, Airat Dilmuhametov’s apartment was searched, Bashkir activist and dissident himself was detained.

Seven persons in masks appeared to be FSB operatives in Bashkortostan, as NewsBash reports.

A group of five activists held a demonstration yesterday at the Russian consulate general in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv to demand the return of Crimea to Ukraine, freedom for Ukrainian political prisoners held in Russia, and the right of self-determination for the captive nations within the current borders of the Russian Federation.

All-Tatar community center made a statement in protecting of Azat Miftakhov, graduate student of Moscow state university, Nizhnekamsk native, as reported by Azatliq Radiosi.

“The aim of initiative is defence of human rights, defence of peoples in modern-day Russian empire, which is aggressor state and demonstrates complete absence of values, common for all civilized countries”, said Mykola Knyazhytskyi, chairman of Ukrainian parliamentary committee on culture and spirituality, on March 6 during briefing in press-centre of Glavkom Information and Analysis Agency.

Yesterday activists in Tatarstan celebrated release of Danis Safarghali, well-known leader of Altyn Urda (Tatar patriotic front), who spent 864 days in Russian prison. However already today in Kazan young activist Batyrkhan Agzamov, member of Azatliq Union of Tatar Youth was prosecuted for incitement to hatred on ethnic basis (article 20.3.1 of Code of Administrative Offences of Russian Federation). Agzamov was sent to jail for 5 days. 

On March 1, Free Idel-Ural civic movement organized picketing of diplomatic establishments of Russian Federation in Great Britain, Ukraine, Poland, Finland and USA. Activists gathered with demands to stop oppressions of freedom of speech in internet, to abolish censorship in mass-media and to release political prisoners which are being held in Russian prisons for political reasons.

Free Idel-Ural civic movement appealed to Mr. Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Minister for foreign affairs of Turkey. In their open letter activists point out numerous examples of violation of civic, national and cultural rights of Idel-Ural native peoples and call Turkey to come forward as a mediator in dialog with Moscow.

Everyone who lived through the end of the Gorbachev era will remember that the Soviet president sought to raise the status of the autonomous republics of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic to weaken it and thus make it more difficult for the Russian Federation and indeed the other non-Russian union republics to defend their interests and pursue their goals.

Year 2019 just started, and there is already a bunch of texts in media space, dedicated to social and political situation in Idel-Ural in general and activity of our movement in particular. We tried to analyse these publications for better understanding what topics are of key importance in today’s media.

Moscow strengthens its control above personal life of Russian citizens and aims to monitor any activity in internet. On January 24, 2019 State Duma of Russian Federation supported on first reading bill № 606593-7, which includes fines and even arrest for offense of state symbols of Russian Federation and bodies of power. Similar strict punishments are provided for “distribution of unreliable information”.

Free Idel-Ural civic movement is asking OSCE High Commissioner on national minorities to help Erzyans to establish a monument of their national hero.