A Russian court sentenced four Crimean Tatars to 12-18 years in prison on charges of terrorism on Aug. 16, according to non-profit Crimean Solidarity.
Lawyers and activists see the charges as fabricated and yet another step in oppressing the anti-Russian part of the Crimean Tatar community in the occupied peninsula.
The Southern District Military Court in Russian Rostov-on-Don sentenced Eldar Kantymirov to 12 years in a maximum-security prison, Ruslan Nagayiev to 13 years, and Lenur Khalilov and Ruslan Mesutov to 18 years each.
Kantymirov and Nagayiev were also given a year of liberty restriction after the end of their prison term. Khalilov and Mesutov will have liberty restrictions for 18 months after prison. The restrictions imply a ban to travel outside their municipality, change their place of residence and work without special authorizations.
“Russian prosecutors achieved the illegal imprisonment of Crimean Tatars for a crime they did not commit. By prosecuting Crimean Tatars and other illegally detained citizens of Ukraine, the occupying country violates international law,” said Ludmila Denisova, the Ukrainian parliament’s commissioner for human rights.
All four Crimean Tatars were arrested on June 10, 2019, after their houses were raided by the occupants.
According to the Russian authorities, four men were members of the Islamic political party Hizb ut-Tahrir, which is banned in Russia, and were preparing a coup d’état in Crimea by “total Islamization of the population.” Hizb ut-Tahrir operates legally in Ukraine and most European countries.
Since Russia invaded Crimea in 2014 it has had pressed charges or convicted dozens of Crimean Tatars, a Muslim community, for alleged associations with Hizb ut-Tahrir. Activists and human rights watchers see it as an effort to intimidate the community and discourage it from opposing the occupational authorities.
Prosecution in such cases often lacks evidence and uses secret witnesses.
In the case heard on Aug. 16, the prosecutor’s evidence included banned Islamic literature found during house raids, FSB’s operational data, as well as classified testimonies of two secret witnesses, who were allegedly members of Hizb ut-Tahrir.
Authorities didn’t find weapons, specific coup plans or other evidence of planned terrorist attacks during house raids.
The defense tried to involve credible experts and declare the evidence inadmissible because of the procedural violations. In particular, an FSB operative Alexander Kompaneitsev participated in the case as an expert in the field of religions and a historian of the Middle East. The court, represented by the presiding judge Roman Viktorovich Saprunov, rejected all petitions filed by the defense and sided with the prosecution.
The use of secret witnesses is common practice in Hizb ut-Tahrir cases in Russia-occupied Crimea. Experts say Russian authorities target those who lack legal authorization to stay in Russia and pressure them to provide false testimonies, appearing as Hizb ut-Tahrir members.
“We believe that the verdict is illegal. People were sentenced to huge prison terms that even murderers don’t receive. Our clients do not despair and are ready to continue fighting against injustice in an exclusively peaceful way,” said one of the lawyers Aider Azamatov after the decision was announced, Crimean Solidarity reported.
Over 150 Crimean Tatars came to Rostov-on-Don from Crimea to show solidarity with the four men. After the verdict was announced, many people put on shirts with phrases “Studying religion is not terrorism,” “Stop repression,” “Crimean Tatars are not terrorists,” and others.
In Sept. of 2020, a Russian human rights non-profit Memorial declared Kantymirov, Nagayiev, Khalilov, and Mesutov political prisoners and demanded their immediate release.
In July of 2019, the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling for Russia to release all Ukrainian political prisoners, including those involved in this criminal case.
Read more: In occupied Crimea, indigenous Tatars face religious profiling, persecution
Crimean Tatars are an ethnic minority native to the Ukrainian peninsula. Since Russia invaded and illegally annexed Crimea in 2014, the occupational authorities have continuously targeted and prosecuted Crimean Tatars on the peninsula for their defiance of the Kremlin regime and support of Ukraine.
Over 120 Crimean Tatars have been thrown into prisons or otherwise persecuted since 2014, according to the Crimean Tatar Resource Center.
