NO to military genocide of indigenous peoples of Russia

 

Appeal

of Chief of NGO «Yakutia — Our Opinion» Stepan Petrov

to Commissioners for the Rights of Indigenous Minorities,

Heads of the apparatus and regional branches of the Association of Indigenous Minorities of the North, Siberia and the Far East

on the issue of ending the participation of forcibly mobilized representatives of indigenous peoples in the armed

conflict between Ukraine and Russia     

 

 

«THIS MATERIAL IS PRODUCED, DISTRIBUTED AND (OR) SENT

BY FOREIGN AGENT №247 PETROV STEPAN YURIEVICH,

№296 AUTONOMOUS NON-COMMERCIAL ORGANIZATION FOR PROTECTION

 OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND PUBLIC INFORMATION «YAKUTIA — OUR OPINION» OR CONCERNING THE ACTIVITIES OF FOREIGN AGENT №247 PETROV STEPAN YURIEVICH,

№296 AUTONOMOUS NON-COMMERCIAL ORGANIZATION FOR PROTECTION

 OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND PUBLIC INFORMATION «YAKUTIA — OUR OPINION»

Sequence numbers are indicated in accordance with

the registry of foreign agents of the Ministry of Justice of Russia

Mailing list:

Commissioner for Rights of

indigenous peoples in the Krasnoyarsk Territory

Dyukarev G.I.

Commissioner for Rights of

 indigenous peoples in the Sakhalin region

Limanzo A.G.

Commissioner for Rights of

indigenous peoples in Kamchatka Krai

Dolgan R.M.

Commissioner for Rights of

 indigenous peoples of the North in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)

President of the Association of Indigenous Minorities

peoples of the North, Siberia, Far East of the Russian Federation

Ledkov G.P.

Regional branch of RAIPON and the Far East

of the Russian Federation in St. Petersburg

Chernyshova S.L.

Regional Association of

Indigenous Peoples of the North of Krasnoyarsk Krai

Gayulsky A.I.

Local public organization of Taimyr

Dolgano-Nenets municipal district «Association of

Indigenous Peoples of Taimyr, Krasnoyarsk Territory»

Tumanova A.E.

Irkutsk regional public organization

«Union for Assistance to Indigenous Minorities

of North of the Irkutsk region»

Dzhurakulova Z.A.

Magadan Regional Public Association of

indigenous peoples and ethnic groups of the North

Shcherbakova L.S.

Regional public organization

«Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North of the Amur Region»

Dry V.I.

Regional public organization

«Association of Indigenous Minorities of

North of Kamchatka Krai»

Metelitsa A.M.

Public organization

«Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North of the Republic of Buryatia»

Shemetova N.E.

Regional public organization

«Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North of Khabarovsk Krai»

Odzyal L.A.

Regional public organization

«Association of Indigenous Peoples of Chukotka»

Otke A.I.

Transbaikal regional public organization

«Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North»

Darmaeva V.A.

Union of Indigenous Peoples of Primorsky Krai

Andreytsev V.V.

Regional public movement

«Union of Indigenous Peoples of Sakhalin»

Sangi S.N.

Public organization Association of Indigenous

small peoples of the North of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)

Robbeck K.V.

War is currently ongoing.

 

I, Stepan Petrov, as a Head of Subject of international law — Non-governmental organization «Yakutia — Our Opinion» in Special Consultative Status with the UN Economic and Social Council stand for an end to the armed conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

 

Indigenous peoples of Russia suffer the greatest losses.

Not in absolute terms, but in relative terms, since their numbers are much smaller than the number of Russians.

The level of loss among indigenous peoples threatens their existence and could lead to their extinction. 

And this requires taking action.

 

Recently, one of the last representatives of the smallest dying nation of Russia — Kereki Ivan Taymagyr died near Kursk.

According to the 2010 census, 4 people registered themselves as Kereks. According to the 2021 census, 23 people registered themselves as Kereks.

As reported by the media, the death of Ivan Taimagyr became a symbol of the disappearance of a unique culture and the end of the history of a unique Paleo-Asian people.

As scientists state, this people is on the verge of extinction. In 1959, there were about a hundred representatives of this people, and in 2010, there were only four left. The increase to 23 people is due to the inclusion of people of mixed origin in this nationality, and not purebred Kereks, who are the bearers of the language and culture.

The language of the Kereks has been lost, and their folklore and traditions have remained only in the records of scientists who studied this people at the end of the last century.

It is obvious that in the near future the people Kereki faces complete physical extinction.

The same fate may await others Indigenous peoples of Russia.

 

In the pre-war period (until February 2022), Russia saw a steady decline in the number of indigenous peoples and a significant deterioration in their quality of life.

After the start of the special military operation, the situation regarding the mortality of indigenous peoples of Russia worsened sharply due to their mass mobilization.

The Russian state policy in the area of ​​mobilization and dispatch to special military operations focuses on attracting mobilization resources from regions and national republics where indigenous peoples live.

In the fall of 2022, there was a mass mobilization of indigenous peoples of Russia from the national republics, especially from rural areas.

They were later sent to fight in Ukraine.

 

The mass deaths of indigenous peoples of Russia in the war in Ukraine are becoming a key factor in their depopulation.

Depopulation of indigenous peoples will lead to extinction — disappearance (physical death) of a number of indigenous peoples of Russia.

 

In connection with the current situation, I have put forward an initiative to end the participation of forcibly mobilized representatives of indigenous peoples in the armed conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

The initiative is available in electronic form here http://ouropinion.pro/?page_id=602

However, its implementation requires the support of stakeholders.

The situation requires immediate action.

Shooting of prisoners on both sides is being introduced as a routine practice. In such a situation, the chances of survival of the wounded and captive indigenous peoples will be practically zero.

 

Russian military correspondents and bloggers, who are not interested in presenting false information, are talking about the difficult situation at the front.

They report the widespread use of “meat assault” tactics, whereby military personnel are sent into a frontal assault on well-fortified defensive structures without the support of armored vehicles, artillery preparation, or reconnaissance in conditions of intense artillery and mortar shelling, intensive drone drops of ammunition, and mass attacks by kamikaze drones.

There are a lot of video materials on the Internet confirming the use of «meat assaults». This is reported by the servicemen themselves and their relatives in video messages posted on the Internet.

 

In this war, the indigenous peoples of Russia became mere bargaining chips.

Indigenous peoples are one of the most vulnerable groups in this war, and are effectively disenfranchised.

For Ukrainians, they are orcs. For Russian commanders, they are «meat».

There is no one to stand up for them.

They are of no concern to UN member countries.

International organizations are powerless.

International actors take the side of Ukraine or Russia.

And they don’t care about the indigenous peoples.

It’s just «meat for meat assaults» — just consumables that you don’t mind wasting.

 

I believe that capable representatives of the indigenous peoples of Russia must declare the right of indigenous peoples to life, the right not to participate in this war under duress in conditions where war has not been officially declared and martial law has not been introduced.

There is simply no one else. And a number of indigenous peoples of Russia will simply be destroyed as a result of this military genocide. 

 

In the near future, I plan to work in this direction at the international level.

I, Stepan Petrov am ready to become the Commissioner on Elimination of Participation of Indigenous Representatives in Armed Conflict between Ukraine and Russia and to begin work on the return of indigenous peoples of Russia from the war in Ukraine.

To advance the initiative, support from all stakeholders is needed.

 

Based on the above

I, Stepan Petrov, ask you to take the following measures.

 

1.) To justify the need to take measures to stop the participation of representatives of indigenous peoples in the armed conflict between Ukraine and Russia

provide me with the following information about the participants of the SVO — representatives of indigenous peoples in the context of their regions that fall within the scope of your activities:

-number of deaths;

-number of wounded;

-number of prisoners;

-number of missing persons.

 

2.) Consider the possibility of publishing information about the number of dead, wounded, captured, and missing from your region on your Internet resources, since the population has the right to know about the impact of the SVO on the number of residents of their region.

 

3.) Considering that you, as heads of the apparatus and regional branches of the Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East, Commissioners for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, take an active part in the activities of the UN and various international events, and also have direct access to the relevant UN bodies

contact the address:

-UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples;

-UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues;

-UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

with a proposal to support the Initiative to stop the participation of forcibly mobilized representatives of indigenous peoples in the armed conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

 

4.) Contact the relevant federal executive body — the Federal Agency for Nationalities Affairs — with a proposal to objectively consider the issue of ending the participation of forcibly mobilized representatives of indigenous peoples in the armed conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

 

5.) Following the creation of the new International Institute — Commissioner on Elimination of Participation of Indigenous Representatives in Armed Conflict between Ukraine and Russia:

— take part in the development of agreements with the Government of Russia and the Ministry of Defense of Russia and support their implementation within the limits of уour authority;

— bring to the attention of mobilized representatives of indigenous peoples from your region information about the possibility of return, which involves ceasing participation in the armed conflict and receiving a lifelong exemption from military service, and information about the possibility of participating in an exchange of those held captive on the territory of Ukraine.

 

The subject of your activity is to ensure favorable living conditions for indigenous peoples.

If they are destroyed as a result of military genocide, the object of your activity will disappear.  

I invite you to realize the vital importance of the proposed initiative.

In general, I ask you to ensure that there is proper justification for the termination of the participation of indigenous peoples in the war.

To ensure consistency of positions, you can use the following theses as justification.

 

Justification for the return of representatives

of indigenous peoples from the war in Ukraine

 

Why should indigenous peoples be brought back from war ?

Because a real threat of physical extinction has arisen for a number of indigenous peoples of Russia.

The international community notes the vulnerability of indigenous peoples and the need for their protection in all areas. There are specific norms of international law and legal mechanisms for the protection of the rights of indigenous peoples.

It is necessary to apply the norms of international law, since we are talking about the physical extinction of the indigenous peoples of Russia.

Each nation is the bearer of its own history, distinctive culture, unique language, inimitable traditions and customs.

Each nation is a whole world, the socio-cultural space of which enriches the diversity of the entire world.

Therefore, the international community is obliged to preserve the indigenous peoples of Russia.

Even peoples with a population of less than 100 people, such as the Kereki, Alutors, and Vods.

Otherwise, humanity will irrevocably lose another world of an entire people, another language and culture.

It will lose the infinitely reproducible socio-cultural, humanitarian matrix of knowledge, experience and heritage of the people, the bearer and driving force of which are only living representatives of the people.

And no artificial intelligence can replace or reproduce this.

This will mean another step towards the degradation of humanity and the self-destruction of human civilization on planet Earth.

 

However, this is no longer possible in relation to the smallest dying people of Russia — Kereki, since one of the last representatives of this people, Ivan Taimagyr, recently died near Kursk.

According to the 2010 census, there were only 4 purebred Kereks left, who are native speakers of the language and culture. Some increase in the number of people according to the 2021 census was due to people of mixed origin.

The death of Ivan Taimagyr became a symbol of the disappearance of a unique, distinctive culture and the end of the history of a unique Paleo-Asian people.

The language of the Kereks has been lost, and their folklore and traditions have remained only in the records of scientists who studied this people in the last century.

It is obvious that in the near future the people Kereki faces complete physical extinction.

The next peoples in line for extinction may be Alutors and Vods, whose number is less than 100 people.

Further, the Enets, Izhoras, Setu (Seto), Taz, and Oroks (Ulta) are in line for extinction from the face of the earth; their numbers are between 201 and 268 people.

 

Humanity has lost the world of the Kereks. 

In the name of life on earth, we must preserve the foundation of human civilization – indigenous peoples, regardless of their numbers and place of residence.  

 

* * * * *

 

Decisions of UN bodies on vital issues of indigenous peoples of Russia are advisory in nature and are often not implemented by Russian government bodies.

The fundamental rights of indigenous peoples of Russia to access biological resources, ensure favorable environmental conditions for living and preserve their traditional way of life are often violated by the Russian government bodies themselves and their affiliated business entities – resource-extracting enterprises.

I believe that in this regard, there is a pressing need to ensure the representation of indigenous peoples of Russia in the UN General Assembly with the aim of the full participation of indigenous peoples of Russia in the adoption of state management decisions and effective control over the observance of their international rights based on the application of international legal mechanisms.

 

Therefore, I propose to you, the Commissioners for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the heads of the apparatus and regional branches of the Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East

raise the issue of ensuring the representation of indigenous peoples of Russia in the UN General Assembly with the aim of:

— full participation of indigenous peoples of Russia in the management of state affairs at the supranational level;

— ensuring effective participation in the international human rights process, including in the process of protecting the right of indigenous peoples of Russia to life and the right not to participate in wars under duress.

 

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