26/10/2017 President
Following the release of Crimean Tatar leaders Akhtem Chiygoz and Ilmi Umerov, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Stella Kyriakides, today made the following statement:
"I welcome the release of Crimean Tatar leaders Akhtem Chiygoz and Ilmi Umerov. As representatives of the Mejlis, an important and traditional structure of the Crimean Tatar Community, their liberation is a step in the right direction.
I very much hope that the release of these two leaders will be soon followed by others, and I also urge the Russian authorities to remove all restrictions which limit the free functioning of the Crimean Tatar Mejlis.