Ruslan Aisin Urges Germany to Grant Political Asylum to Raushan Gizatullin
Tatar Council coordinator Ruslan Aisin appealed to the German authorities to grant political asylum to Raushan Gizatullin, who, he says, would face political prosecution, torture and a lengthy prison sentence if returned to Russia.
The Tatar Council published an appeal by its coordinator, Ruslan Aisin, to the responsible German authorities and officials asking them to grant political asylum to Russian citizen and ethnic Tatar Raushan Ildarovich Gizatullin.
In the appeal, Aisin notes that Gizatullin has been an active participant in the Tatar national movement since 2015 and has focused on the peaceful defense of the linguistic, cultural and political rights of the Tatar people. He also recalls that Gizatullin was forced to leave Russia in 2021 after pressure and torture by the FSB and continued his human-rights activities abroad in 2022–2024.
Aisin separately points to Gizatullin’s current role as the official Representative of the Government of Independent Tatarstan in Exile in the Free State of Bavaria and to his public opposition to Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine.
Ruslan Aisin’s appeal
I hereby petition for political asylum to be granted to Russian citizen Raushan Ildarovich Gizatullin (born May 29, 1979, ethnic Tatar).
Mr. Gizatullin has been an active participant in the Tatar national movement and a civic activist since 2015. The principal focus of his work is the peaceful defense of the linguistic, cultural and political rights of the Tatar people, including participation in memorial events and protests against the Putin dictatorship.
In 2021, Mr. Gizatullin was forced to leave Russia because of pressure and torture by the FSB. In 2022–2024, he continued his human-rights activities abroad.
At present, Mr. Gizatullin serves as the official Representative of the Government of Independent Tatarstan in Exile in the Free State of Bavaria. Under Russian anti-terrorism legislation, this exposes him to criminal prosecution and imprisonment for up to 20 years solely for peaceful political activity.
In addition, Mr. Gizatullin has publicly and repeatedly condemned the Russian Federation’s military aggression against Ukraine. Given the repression currently directed against anti-war activists in Russia, he faces arrest, torture and a lengthy prison sentence. Therefore, his return to the Russian Federation is impossible and dangerous to his life.
In view of the above, I respectfully urge you to consider granting him political asylum in Germany.
Respectfully,
Ruslan Aisin
Coordinator of the Tatar Council
The original Tatar Council publication also included a German-language version of the appeal. On this website, the Russian original is accompanied by English and Tatar translations.