Crimean Tatars fear a future under Russia

[unhappycamper]

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/europe/140313/crimean-tatars-crimea-ukraine-russia-kyiv



Marginalized during centuries of Russian rule, Crimea’s indigenous ethnic group is sounding alarm bells about Moscow's intentions.

Crimean Tatars fear a future under Russia
Dan Peleschuk
March 13, 2014 18:38

BAKHCHYSARAI, Ukraine — Crimean Tatars know a few things about oppression.

In the past two or so centuries, this tight-knit Muslim group has been colonized by the Russian Empire, deported en masse by the Soviet Union and denied the most basic of rights along the way.

So don’t bother asking them about the threats ethnic Russians claim they face in Crimea.

While pro-Russian separatists with Moscow’s backing have rallied against the “fascist” government in Kyiv they claim aims to crack down on Russian-speakers, the Crimean Tatars say it’s simply another excuse for the kind of aggression that’s haunted them for centuries.