In Crimea, the number of classes taught in the Crimean Tatar language has been drastically reduced
In the temporarily occupied Crimea, the number of classes taught in the Crimean Tatar language has dropped from 384 to 119. In addition, children are allowed to study in their native language only through the ninth grade.
The Crimean Tatar Cultural Center noted that prior to the occupation, there were 15 schools and 384 classes in Crimea where instruction was conducted in the Crimean Tatar language.
“Before the occupation, there were 15 schools and 384 classes in Crimea where instruction was conducted in the Crimean Tatar language. Although a new 16th school was opened in Akmesdzhit (Simferopol), the occupying authorities later changed the status of the schools,” the Crimean Tatar Cultural Center noted.
According to data from the occupying authorities cited by the Center, there are currently seven schools in Crimea where instruction is conducted in the Crimean Tatar language, and three more schools operate using both Russian and Crimean Tatar.
Another six educational institutions have been granted “general education” status.
At the same time, of the former 384 classes taught in the Crimean Tatar language, only 119 remain.
The Crimean Tatar Resource Center notes that instruction in the Crimean Tatar language is permitted only through the ninth grade and only upon request by parents.
At the same time, according to the Center, school administrations are creating obstacles to the submission of such requests.
Among the arguments that, according to the Center, are used by representatives of the occupying “administrations” are:
“There is only one native language in Crimea—Russian,” “a lack of classrooms,” “a lack of teaching staff,” and “a lack of textbooks.”
The KRC also reports cases where parents are forced to refuse to have their children educated in the Crimean Tatar language or where the number of hours devoted to the study of the Crimean Tatar language and literature is being reduced.
The Center emphasized that, overall, in the temporarily occupied Crimea, the Crimean Tatar language faces systematic oppression and remains under a real threat.
Although the occupying authorities have “officially recognized” Crimean Tatar as one of the so-called state languages, Crimean Tatar versions of official websites are virtually nonexistent, and official business is conducted in Russian.
The Crimean Tatar Resource Center has also documented cases where the use of the native language has been banned in the occupying “courts” and threats of dismissal made against employees for communicating in Crimean Tatar.
According to the Center, the occupiers have prohibited Crimean political prisoners from speaking their native language at least 16 times during so-called court hearings.
The Crimean Tatar Resource Center emphasized the importance of preserving the language despite pressure from the occupying authorities.
“On September 10, Crimean Tatar Language and Literature Day, we emphasize that the language will live on as long as it is in demand in society, in the media, in education, and in state institutions,” the Crimean Tatar Resource Center stated.
This is stated in a declaration by the Crimean Tatar Resource Center (CTRC) on the occasion of Crimean Tatar Language and Literature Day, which is observed on September 10.
Earlier, in occupied Crimea, a local woman was fined 30,000 rubles for a sympathetic comment regarding the death of a Ukrainian serviceman.
Previously, the Russian occupation authorities sentenced a 24-year-old resident of the Donetsk region to 14 years in a strict-regime penal colony for allegedly passing information to Ukrainian intelligence about the deployment of Russian troops in the Donetsk region.
Previously, two residents of the Kramatorsk district were found guilty of treason and sentenced to 15 years in prison with confiscation of property.
