UN: Eurovision victory ‘makes no difference’ for Tatars

GENEVA – The U.N. human rights office says Ukrainian singer Jamala’s Eurovision victory “makes no difference on the ground” for Crimean Tatars, who have faced growing persecution since Russia annexed the Black Sea peninsula in 2014.

But Rupert Colville of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights says some Tatars like Jamala “might take some solace that their story is not forgotten.”

At a U.N. briefing Tuesday, Colville highlighted the May 18 anniversary of the deportation of some 200,000 Tatars, including Jamala’s grandmother, from Crimea in 1944 during World War II. Tens of thousands returned since.

He said the situation of Tatars has “deteriorated” since the Russian annexation, citing issues like arbitrary searches, the shutdown of media outlets and a ban on a Tatar assembly.

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This version corrects the date of Tatar deportations to 1944.