Chubarov: “Understand what is ours and what is foreign”

2013/11/1 1:39:49

“A joint task of the Spiritual Board of Muslims of Crimea and the Mejlis is to understand and explain what is ours and what is foreign,” Chubarov said.

 


LVIV, Nov 1, 2013 (UBO) - Crimean Tatar Islam is different; however, radical Islam is more active, and so people get the idea that the activity of a small marginal group reflects the activity of Crimean Islam. This opinion was expressed by analyst Elmira Muratova during the discussion “The Role of the Crimean Tatars in Building a New Ukraine” held October 29 in Lviv, during the Week of Crimean Tatar Culture. During the event, which was attended by Crimean Tatars and Ukrainian experts, the participants discussed history, the future, and religion.

 

“Islam is an important factor of identity for the Crimean Tatars; it helped save them, to not to dissolve, but it has moved into a phase of folk Islam, which has no canons and theology,” Elmira Muratova said. She said that lately there have been some changes, but they are not very visible to outsiders.

 

The newly elected president of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatars, Refat Chubarov [photo], stressed that one of the principles of traditional Crimean Islam is tolerance. But he also did not rule out that there are internal and external threats of radicalization.

 

“A joint task of the Spiritual Board of Muslims of Crimea and the Mejlis is to understand and explain what is ours and what is foreign,” he said.

 

The discussion often turned to the issue of the deportation of Crimean Tatars (1944), their return in the late 1980s, difficulties associated with the memory of the people, their sense of trauma and self-perception. Historian Gulnara Bekirova mentioned an interesting detail: in Lviv Crimean Tatars do not feel discrimination. For example, after the premiere of a feature film directed by the Crimean Tatar director Akhtem Seyitablayev, the Lviv audience gave a standing ovation. However, it is felt in the Crimea.

 

“The Crimean Tatars have returned to their land, which is now a part of independent Ukraine, they find themselves part of Ukraine, but they have a list of grievances for the Ukrainian authorities, from whom they had expected a lot,” said Refat Chubarov. For example, the issues of property restitution and the restoration of place names are still not resolved.

 

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