In Russian-occupied Crimea, the policy aimed at limiting the use of the Crimean Tatar language in education and media continues to intensify. According to Crimean human rights defenders, activists have recently noted an increase in pressure to reduce the role of the Crimean Tatar language in the public life of the peninsula.
This is reported by Finway
Decline of the Crimean Tatar Language in Schools and Media
As noted by one human rights defender who wished to remain anonymous, the Russian language is increasingly heard in Crimean Tatar schools each year, while teaching in the native language is becoming purely formal. It is known that the authorities are facilitating the further displacement of the Crimean Tatar language: next year, the school with Crimean Tatar language instruction in the “Fontany” neighborhood of Simferopol will be headed by a director who does not speak this language. A similar situation is observed in the media space — the position of director was eliminated at the “Milliyet” television channel, and the number of programs in Russian has significantly increased. Most materials in the printed publications of the muftiate are also published in Russian.
“We note that teaching in schools with Crimean Tatar language instruction is becoming increasingly formal — Russian is now more frequently heard here. The authorities encourage this; for example, next year, the school with Crimean Tatar language instruction in the ‘Fontany’ neighborhood in Simferopol will be led by a director who does not know the Crimean Tatar language. The situation in Crimean Tatar media is no better; for instance, at the ‘Milliyet’ television channel, the position of director was abolished, and more and more programs are aired in Russian. Even in the printed publication of the local muftiate, more material is published in Russian than in Crimean Tatar,” said the human rights defender.
Reduction of Publications and Increased Demand for National Content
The human rights defender also reported a sharp decrease in the number of books published in the Crimean Tatar language. For example, while the Gasprinsky Media Center previously published up to 20 books annually, this year funding has been cut by four times, and all publications must now be bilingual. Against this backdrop, there is a growing demand among the Crimean Tatar community for content created by national bloggers in the Crimean Tatar language.
At the same time, the Russian authorities have not officially commented on the situation. The formally Russia-controlled administration of Crimea claims the existence of three state languages on the peninsula — Russian, Ukrainian, and Crimean Tatar — and asserts that the educational process is provided in all these languages. However, most representatives of national minorities do not have a real opportunity to be educated in their native language, and a direct ban on its use exists only on paper.