138. On 22 April, Lilia Muslimova, press-secretary of the Parliament of the Crimean Tatar
people, announced that broadcasting was no longer permitted for the Crimean Tatar people on
State TV and Radio Company “Krym” about Mustafa Jemilev and Refat Chubarov, member
of the Parliament of the Crimean Tatar people.
139. With the enforcement of legislation of the Russian Federation, Crimean media face
growing difficulties. All media outlets have to now re-register. A reported concern, that needs
to be verified, is that an unofficial requirement for re-registration will be for the editor-in-chief
to be a citizen of the Russian Federation.
140. On 10 April, Ukrainian radio stations had to suspend their work in Crimea due to the
newly-occurred legal and technical difficulties in ensuring FM broadcasting on the territory of
the peninsula. These included the six stations belonging to the group “TavrMedia” (Russian
radio, Hit FM, Kiss FM, Radio Roks, Relax, Melodia), UMH Holding (AutoRadio, Our radio,
Europe Plus) and Business Radio Group (Radio Shanson and Favourite radio Sharmanka).
Freedom of association
141. The HRMMU is concerned about NGOs based in Crimea who will now operate under
the law on foreign agents of the Russian Federation. This will potentially affect their
operations, as it places restrictions on the receipt of foreign funding. There is no such law in
Ukraine.
Freedom of religion
142. Worrisome developments have been reported to the HRMMU regarding freedom of
religion in Crimea after the 16 March unlawful “referendum”. Besides earlier reported attacks
on priests, the pressure on some religious communities seems to persist.
143. On 25 April, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Kyiv Patriarchate published an official
statement, expressing deep concern that the authorities in Crimea did not comply with the
written arrangements guaranteeing the safety of the Crimean diocese. In Sevastopol, the
Temple of Martyr Clement of Rome, located on the territory of the Training Unit of the
Ukrainian Navy, has practically been taken away from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of
Kyiv Patriarchate. The Archimandrite Macarius (ethnic Russian) and the parishioners are not
allowed into church by the Russian military men that guard the territory. The attempts of the
Crimean diocese to meet with representatives of the current city authorities of Sevastopol on
this and other issues failed. Similar situation occurred with the Temple of the Intercession of
the Theotokos (Protection of Virgin Mary) in the village of Perevalny. The priest and
parishioners report harassment by representatives of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the
Moscow Patriarchate. For example, on 13 April, during the Palm Sunday celebrations, some
unidentified persons tried to prevent members of the congregation from entering the church,
and attempted to provoke a conflict.
144. Growing pressure on the Muslim communities has also been reported. For example,
the Islamic political group Hizb ut-Tahrir is banned in Crimea pursuant to Russian law, which
has declared the group to be an extremist organisation. Hizb ut-Tahrir had been functioning in
Crimea for over a decade, mainly being active in the spheres of education and politics.
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