Putin’s war against minorities in Ukraine

The Russian aggression against Ukraine with the intention to destroy Ukrainian statehood and identity also means that Russia intends to destroy the existence and identity of national minorities and indigenous people too.

Ukraine is home to more than 100 national minorities (communities) and three indigenous people (Crimean Tatars, Crimean Karaites and Krymchaks). Members of the national communities and of indigenous people are fully aware that Russia attacks them too when it attacks Ukraine. The Crimean Tatars and other groups in Crimea made this experience with the occupation of the Crimean Peninsula by Russia as well as North Azovian Greeks and other groups, when Russia occupied parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.

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Crimean Tatars, North Azovian Greeks, Roma, Hungarians, Koreans or Moldavans and persons from many other communities are fighting at the frontline as Jews and Muslims are defending the country together with their Christian and Atheist neighbours.

Members of national communities and of indigenous people are literally dying for Ukraine and they are dying for defending us and our life in Western Europe too. When Ukraine falls, our liberal democracy is in danger too.

Ukrainian politics and society as well as the international community should appreciate the strong support of the communities to the freedom and fight of Ukraine, since it demonstrates that Putin and his allies are lying when saying that Ukraine is a fascist state. Putin does not fight fascism in Ukraine, he wants to bring fascism to Ukraine.

However, there is a strong ignorance among politicians and experts towards these communities. They ignore that members of these communities are victims of the full-scale aggression of Russia. They ignore the danger for these communities which comes along with the Russian aggression. They ignore their fight for Ukraine. They ignore that they have to be included in shaping the future of Ukraine already now. Sometimes, even ignore their mere existence.

The North Azovian Greeks can serve as one example. They live primarily in the Donetsk Oblast and their ancestors were forcibly relocated from their homes in Crimea by the Russian Empire end of 18th century. The North Azovian Greeks are one people, but consist of two linguistic groups, the Urums and the Roumeans. While the former are Turkic speakers, the latter are Hellenophones, but both are of Greek Orthodox belief. More than 70 settlements in the Donetsk oblast, including the city of Mariupol were founded by Urums and Roumeans.

Prior to the Russian aggression there were vibrant and large North AzovianGreek communities. Today, 57 settlements founded by North Azovian Greeks are occupied by the Russian aggressor while the remaining 19 settlements are on the front-line. The ones who live under Russian occupation face repression. Their cultural heritage has been destroyed. Their life, their communities have been destroyed and their members are dispersed over Ukraine and Western Europe.

And where could they go, if their settlements are not liberated? Can they create North Azovian Greek communities somewhere else or is the existence of these communities and culture and languages gone after hundreds of years? It is difficult preserving your language, culture and identity when you live dispersed in small communities. Will the rights and needs of the North Azovian Greeks be considered in a post-war Ukraine?

Though the situation of Roma in Ukraine differs very much from the North Azovian Greeks, their future in Ukraine is uncertain too. However, for different reasons.

The approximately 400.000 Roma in Ukraine are an even more diverse community than the North Azovian Greeks. They live dispersed all over Ukraine with the largest community in the Transcarpathia Oblast. They speak different languages, in Transcarpathia, e.g., around 60% of the Roma speak Hungarian as first and often only language. Other Roma in Ukraine speak next to Romanes, Ukrainian, Russian, Romanian, Slovakian.

In general, we consider as Roma only these people who meet the prejudices and stereotypes, but not all Roma are poor or make their living as musicians. We can find Roma across all strata of society and in many different professions though the majority is poor with little or no education.

Thousands of Roma joined the Ukrainian Armed Forces and many Roma were killed by the Russian aggressor while defending Ukraine and defending us and our liberal democracy. And they are fighting for Ukraine and for us though Roma experienced in Ukraine, just as in any other country in Europe, a strong and violent antigypsyism.

Roma communities had to endure violent attacks and pogroms by right-wing extremists, in particular in the years 2017/2018 with some Roma being killed. Discrimination in daily life is common. In particular in Transcarpathia we have segregated schools only for Roma which hardly allow for decent learning. Since the full-scale invasion started, Roma also experienced discrimination, e.g., during distribution of humanitarian aid or when women and children wanted to flee the war.

Thousands of Roma have been expelled by the Russian aggressor already in 2014 from Eastern Ukraine and Roma were subjected to violence by Russian occupants since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. Up to 100.000 Roma, primarily women and children, fled the country since the start of the full-scale invasion.

The fact that so many Roma are fighting in the Ukraine Armed Forces changed in some locations the relationship between Roma and ethnic Ukrainians to a better. The Government of Ukraine within the Programme “Unity in Diversity” or the President of the Verkhovna Rada, Mr. Ruslan Stefanchuk appreciated the participation of Roma in defending Ukraine. And the relevant government office for national communities is doing its best.

But beyond words, where are the actual activities facilitating their inclusion as integral part of the Ukrainian society? Where are the measures that ensure that Roma could actually benefit from the recovery process of Ukraine too? Yet, the international community and Ukrainian authorities have – understandably – other priorities.

However, setting other priorities must not mean that international community is neglecting them. Take the situation in education system as an example: already during COVID 19, many children couldn’t attend schools or participate in online learning. The Russian aggression exacerbated this problem, but there are hardly any efforts from the international community addressing this problem.

Nobody knows how the war will end. A “dictated peace” in which Ukraine will lose large parts of its territory will have severe consequences on the Ukrainian society and on the relationship between the majority and communities like Roma. Will the ugly face of racism, of antigypsyism show up again and turn against Roma with violence and expulsion?

One thing is sure, in the fight for the scarce resources in a post-war period, Roma will have the worst starting position. Yet, international community and Ukrainian authorities do not adequately ensure that the rights and needs of Roma and other communities are adequately considered in the recovery process.

There are lessons learnt from the post-war periods in Kosovo or Bosnia and Herzegovina. Roma and other communities were exposed to violence and expulsion. The security of Roma and of other communities, their rights and needs as well including them in the national narrative were neglected. They still do not belong. There is no need to repeat these mistakes, but an urgent need for the international community and for the authorities in Ukraine to learn their lessons.

The strong support of the communities to the freedom of Ukraine demonstrated that Putin and his allies are lying when saying that Ukraine is a fascist state. The national minorities and indigenous people are defending Ukraine against the fascism Putin intends to establish. The protection and promotion of all national minorities and indigenous people in Ukraine will be a strong message to Putin and his allies that he cannot bring fascism to Ukraine.