POLITICAL MAP OF TEMPORARILY OCCUPIED TERRITORY OF THE AUTONOMOUS REPUBLIC OF CRIMEA: FIRST REPORT OF THE OPORA

                            Civil Network OPORA will present a series of digests about the political, social, economic, and humanitarian situation on the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. It's almost two months after the conduction of unlawful and falsified referendum in Crimea, which became a formal ground for annexation of Ukrainian territory by the Russian Federation. After these events, the country has faced the continuation of Russian aggression, which caused the surge of violence and terrorism in eastern regions. However, despite all the current challenges, Ukrainian society should receive full information about the life of their fellow citizens in Crimea. It's important that Ukrainians in Crimea and other regions of Ukraine didn't feel that they are separated by an unshakable iron wall. The access to information won't let ruin durable social relations, and will eliminate stereotypes and fears. Besides that, the mutual interest of citizens in common future will allow to stop the external aggression and restore the territorial integrity of Ukraine.

  First digest of the OPORA concerns the political situation on a temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. In the future digests, socio-economic and humanitarian issues will be covered.

De facto Government on the temporarily occupied territory

So-called Constitution of the Republic of Crimea establishes the following division of power on the peninsula:

• State Council - Crimean Parliament;
• Council of Ministers - Crimean Government;
• Head of the Republic - high official, who is the head of executive authorities in Crimea.

               According to the unlawful Constitution of the Crimea, Head of the Republic shall be appointed by Members of the State Council for five years, and has a wide range of powers: forms the Council of Ministers; establishes the structure of executive bodies in Crimea; implements the right for legislative initiative in the Parliament of Republic; signs treaties between the Crimea and federal bodies of the RF etc. Thus, the "Head of the Republic of Crimea" is a combination of the head of the subject of the Federation and the head of executive branch. It is expected that the "Head of the Republic of Crimea" will be elected by so-called Parliament after its reelection in 2015. Until then, the President of the Russian Federation Volodymyr Putin has appointed Serhii Aksionov to perform duties of the "Head of the Republic of Crimea".  As it's already known, Serhii Aksionov played the leading role in the annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. Today, Serhii Aksionov simultaneously holds the position of the "Head of the Republic of Crimea" and the Head of the "Council of Ministers of the Republic of Crimea".

               Today's composition of de facto Government of Crimea ("Council of Ministers of the Republic of Crimea") was appointed yet in February 2014, when the annexation scenario was launched.  Particularly, Verkhovna Rada of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea had appointed the new composition of the Council of Ministers, headed by the MP of Crimean Parliament from the Ruska Yednist party Serhii Aksionov. As it's already known, Aksionov is known not only for his political views, but also for the participation in criminal events in Crimea in 90-ies. In 2012, Serhii Aksionov was MP candidate in election district #1 (Simferopol), and took only the fourth place with 9.1% of votes.

                Today's Members of the Government of Crimea have quite diverse previous political biography.

               The "First Deputy Head of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Crimea" is Rustam Temirhaliiev, who participated in political projects of Serhii Kunitsyn, Inna Bohoslovska, and Viktor Medvedchuk.  In 2010, Temirhaliiev was elected to the Verkhovna Rada of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea from the Party of Regions. He owns media business in Crimea.

               Mykola Yanaky, Serhii Donich, Olha Kovitidy, and Larysa Opanasiuk are deputies of Aksionov.

               The businessman Mykola Yanaky holds the position in government for the first time. He owns the first waterpark in Crimea.  In March 2004, the leader of Crimean Tatars Mustafa Dzhemilov accused the businessman Yanaky to the organization of forced provocations against Crimean Tatars.  Yanaky was elected few times as MP of the Crimean Parliament from the Party of Regions, and was Head of the Committee on Land Relations of the Verkhovna Rada of ARC.

               Serhii Donich – Minister of Health Care of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (2002-2012).  Was elected to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine from the Party of Regions. Before the so-called referendum, he was the First Vice Speaker of the Crimean Parliament.

               Olha Kovitidy was the Deputy Head to the Serhii Kunitsyn in Sevastopol City State Administration (2006-2008), the Head of the Main Department of Justice in the ARC (2008), assistant to the Minister of Justice of Ukraine (2013). The "State Council of Crimea" elected Ms. Kovitidy to the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, what implies her discharge from the position in Crimean Government.

               Larysa Opanasiuk was the Head of Republican Committee on Protection of Cultural Heritage before the annexation of Crimea. Her career stages included various positions in the structure of the ARC Government. Besides that, she was member of the Party of Regions.

               Aksionov's government on the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine consists of persons who gained carrier growth, business positions, or scientific titles when Crimea belonged to independent Ukraine.  Instead, after the annexation of Crimea, leadership of the Russian Federation has legislatively secured political bribes for persons, who implemented the scenario of illegitimate separation of Ukraine's territory. According to the Decree of the President Putin, the following limitations for state servants shall not be applied to Crimean officials till 1 January 2015: 1) prohibition to participate in activities of commercial organizations; 2) mandatory transference of shares in enterprises to management of proxies; 3) mandatory provision of the income declaration, expenses and financial obligations[1]. Thus, persons who committed a crime against the territorial integrity and constitutional system of Ukraine received seven calendar months for unlimited and uncontrolled enrichment on the occupied territory.  Besides that, activities of the current Crimean Government are extremely non-public. As long as the "Council of Ministers of the Republic of Crimea" is not presented in internet, it’s difficult to determine the full complement of this structure.

               The State Council, former Verkhovna Rada of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, is de facto Parliament of Crimea. According to the results of 2010 local elections, Crimean parliament was elected in amount of 100 persons (factions: the Crimean Regions, the Communists, the Kurultai-Rukh, the Union, the Ruska Yednist, the Communist Party of Ukraine, the Strong Ukraine). After the "referendum" held on 16 March, an inter-faction deputy majority "For new Russian Crimea" was formed in the Verkhovna Rada of the ARC, consisting of 83 MPs. Volodymyr Kostiantynov is Speaker of "State Council of the Republic of Crimea". He is a Crimean businessman, a former leader of the Party of Regions, and today's Head of regional office of the United Russia party. Ex-member of the Party of Regions Hryhorii Ioffe and unaffiliated Kostiantyn Bakhariev are Deputy Speakers in the Crimean Parliament.  According to the agreement between the RF and Crimea, the current Parliament will function till 2015. Simultaneously, the law on elections to the "State Council of the Republic of Crimea" had been already adopted. The number of members in the parliament was decreased from 100 to 75 MPs. It is planned that 50% of the parliament will be elected by the party lists, and 50% – in single-member districts.  Head of the "State Council of the Republic of Crimea" Kostiantynov says that elections to the Parliament may be held already in 2014.

Party map of the temporarily occupied territory

               After the annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the party map of the peninsula has radically changed. Local cells of political parties and NGOs of Ukraine had stopped functioning. Yet before the "referendum" on 16 March, the Verkhovna Rada of the ARC had passed the official decision on prohibition of the certain Ukrainian political and non-governmental organizations on Crimean territory (AUU Svoboda, the Right Sector, Patriots of Ukraine, Bratstvo and other).  Not waiting to the results of "referendum", local cells of the Communist Party of Ukraine, the Union Party, and the Ruska Yednist have signed the agreement on cooperation on the way to reunification with Russia.

               Official government of the Russian Federation and self-proclaimed government of the ARC are actively establishing Russian party institutions on the territory of peninsula. Representatives of former cells of Ukrainian parties quite actively participate in this process. Local cells of the Party of Regions and the Ruska Yednist, became a personnel foundation for regional offices of the United Russia party. The former Chairmen of Crimean Parliament and today's Speaker of de facto State Council of Crimea Volodymyr Konstiantynov became the leader of the United Russia (Russian party) in Crimea. As of the beginning of May, 25 local cells of the United Russia are functioning in Crimea.

               The other Russian parties - the Just Russia, the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), and the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF) - quite actively spread their activities on the temporarily occupied territory.

               Today, organizing committee is functioning in Crimea, which prepares the constituent congress for Crimean office of the KPRF. Newly-created cells of Russian Communist Party conduct conferences in cities and raions of the Republic. Creation of the KPRF in Crimea is prepared by the secretary of the central committee of this Russian party Mykola Kolomeitsev, who is also the Head of regional office of the party in Rostov.  Ex-leader of the CPU in Crimea Oleh Solomakhin became his deputy. Before the annexation of Crimea, Solomakhin worked as assistant to the MP of Ukraine.

               Head of the Congress of Russian communities in Crimea Serhii Shuvainykov became the Head of regional office of the LDPR. In 2010, Shuvainykov was elected as MP of the Verkhovna Rada of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea through party list of the Ruska Yednist political party. However, the Just Russia party didn't entrust local public figures with responsibility for building the party in Crimea, and appointed the Member of the State Duma of the RF Oleksandr Terentiev was the Head of regional office of the party. The Just Russia party proposed members of the Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine (PSPU) and the Socialist Party of Ukraine (SPU) to join the membership of its regional office.

               Similarly to the government structures, members of Ukrainian political parties became a basis for Russian parties in Crimea. Thus, Ukrainian public should pay attention to the responsibility of those parties, local cells of which joined the parties of external aggressor.

Relations between Crimea and the RF

               Taking into consideration the scale of tasks related to disintegration of the ARC and other Ukrainian territories, on which leadership of Russia have focused, the Ministry for Crimean Affairs was formed in the Government of the RF.  Oleh Saveliev, who was the Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, became the Minister for Crimean Affairs.  Saveliev became the third Minister for issues of the certain regions in the Government of the RF. There are also Ministers for the Far East and the North Caucasus.

               In the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the RF, the self-proclaimed government of Crimea will be represented by 4 senators. Two of them are already appointed: Deputy Head of de-facto Crimean Government Olha Kovitidi, and ex-Vice Speaker of the ARC Parliament Serhii Tsekov.

               In Simferopol, public receptions of the State Duma and the Prosecutor General of the RF were opened, and the CEC of RF coordinates the creation of election commissions in Crimea.

Law-enforcement bodies on the temporarily occupied territory

               On the beginning of May, the President of the RF had appointed Serhii Abisov as the "Minister of Internal Affairs of Crimea", who is wanted by the Security Service of Ukraine.  Abisov played an important role in realization of annexation plans when he was the Acting Chairman of the Department of the MIA of Ukraine in Crimea.

               Nataliia Poklonska, who is also wanted by law-enforcement bodies of Ukraine, was appointed as the "Prosecutor of the Republic of Crimea".

               The Russian Federation has already started strengthening the law-enforcement structures of illegitimate Crimean government with personnel of its regions. According to representatives of Russian authorities, tremendous financial expenses are needed to join Crimean and Russian law-enforcement bodies. According to Oleksandr Khynshtein, the Deputy Head of the State Duma Committee for Security and Combating Corruption, the MIA of the RF lacks funds for the creation of police in Crimea, billions of Rubles are needed. The MP is convinced that the quantity of police officers in federal districts of Russia will be shortened to provide funds for Crimean police[2].

               According to Russian and Crimean media, the General Ivan Hlukhov, ex-Head of the Chief Investigation Department MIA of the RF in Moscow, was appointed as a responsible for transformation of Crimean law-enforcement bodies into Russian-type structures.

               Political role of Crimean Tatars on the temporarily occupied territory

               Despite the promises of self-proclaimed government of Crimea and Russia, Crimean Tatar people didn't receive efficient mechanisms for protection of their rights, secured by so-called Constitution of the Republic of Crimea. On the eve of adoption of the "Constitution of the Republic of Crimea", the Majlis called de-facto Government of Crimea to postpone its adoption due to the fact that the document didn't contain any guarantees for participation of Crimean Tatars in social and political life of the peninsula[3]. However, Crimean authorities had ignored these demands, and so-called Constitution was adopted on 11 April 2014. The further events show that relations between the Crimean Tatar people and de-facto Government of Crimea have worsened.

               On 22 April, the Presidium of the Majlis has announced the Statement on escalation of lawlessness in Crimea. This statement described the fact that the Leader of Crimean Tatar people, MP of Ukraine Mustafa Dzhemiliev, was banned from entering the Crimean territory; and that the Majlis in Simferopol was assaulted[4].

               On 3 May, the Majlis conducted peaceful demonstration in order to meet Mustafa Dzhemiliev on the control point "Armiansk", what caused aggressive response of the self-proclaimed government of Crimea.  The Prosecutor's Office of the "Republic of Crimea" had issued a warning from the Head of Majlis Refat Chubarov "On inadmissibility of extremist activities".

               Before 18 May, the 70-th anniversary of Crimean Tatars' deportation, the Acting "Head of the Republic of Crimea" Serhii Aksionov banned the conduction of mass events in the center of Simferopol in connection of events in eastern oblasts of Ukraine. On its special meeting, the Majlis of Crimean Tatar people had to correct the pan of mournful events.