350 Petitions. Silence in Return

Quite recently, emigrants from the United States, Spain and Poland approached us — me, Marat Akhmerov and my brother Nafis Kashapov — asking for letters of support for their political asylum applications. The Government of Independent Tatarstan in Exile does provide such assistance to emigrants from Russia and other countries.

We consider every request individually. A letter or petition is based on circumstances of a person's civic, human-rights or political activity that are known to us — on what we genuinely know and can confirm. We do not charge for this assistance. Most often, those who come to us are people who fought for the rights and freedom of their peoples or engaged in human-rights work; their cases are the ones we know best.

350 petitions — at our own expense

Over five years, on behalf of our government and the Tatar Public Center, we have sent about 350 petitions concerning emigrants. Following our requests, approximately ten people were removed from the Interpol database. Letters and petitions were also sent on the basis of collective decisions by the Free Idel-Ural social and political movement.

The mechanics of this work are simple and modest: we make copies at a copy center and send documents by registered mail, paying the expenses out of our own pockets.

Gratitude that lasts one letter

An interesting situation has developed. While people need help, they praise and support the Tatar national movements — the Tatar Public Center and the Government of Independent Tatarstan in Exile. Once they receive the letter, most of them forget about us.

We have also been approached by wealthy emigrants who offered between one and five thousand dollars for each petition. We refuse to accept this money: we are not a commercial organization.

Who we see in emigration

Since we have touched on the subject of emigrants, I will say what I see myself. Quite a few Russian and Russian-speaking emigrants hold pro-Russian views, support Putin's policies, actively participate in Russian-speaking communities in Europe, Asia and the United States, and are hostile toward Ukraine. Among Russians I have encountered in the United Kingdom, I have also repeatedly come across support for Russia's aggressive foreign policy.

Therefore, before signing a petition, we check the facts: what the person actually did — whether they defended the rights of peoples or are merely looking for a way to solve personal problems at our expense. A government letter is testimony about activity we know, not a service provided on demand.

The arithmetic we need to discuss openly

Tens of thousands of people have left the national republics and remote regions of the Russian Federation. Yet only a few dozen activists abroad belong to national liberation movements.

We should all think about how to increase the number of advocates in our ranks — people who will voluntarily defend the freedom of their peoples through their words and civic work.

Rafis Kashapov
Prime Minister of the Government of Independent Tatarstan in Exile