Thank you Mr/Ms Chair,
I speak on behalf of the International Committee of Indigenous Peoples of Russia (ICIPR). We welcome the theme of the current session and the decision to study the impact of militarization on Indigenous Peoples. However, we are compelled to express our deep disappointment and lack of confidence in you as the EMRIP in relation to the following:
We note with great concern that the following paragraphs in the EMRIP study on militarization, that concern Russia and Ukraine are extremely counterfactual and unsuitable for publication. Paragraph 32 notes that Russia offers an “alternative civilian service as an alternative to military service” to Indigenous Peoples. This invokes the impression of a benign state of affairs. In reality, however, we see indigenous young men being forcibly mobilized, killed in war and being abused by Russia as cannon fodder.
The “partial mobilisation” into the Russian army which started on September 21, 2022 disproportionally affected the poorest regions of Russia which happen to be those inhabited by ethnic minorities and Indigenous Peoples.
The Russian regime is stepping up persecution of and harassment against any representatives of Indigenous Peoples who openly fight for their lands, their territories, their right to self-determination and, in general, openly express their position. The colonialist full-scale war unleashed by Russia against Ukraine on February 24, 2022, has opened a new chapter of repression against the Indigenous Peoples reminding us of the darkest chapters of Russian history.
We as Indigenous Peoples of Russia oppose and condemn in the strongest possible terms the Russian Federation’s unprovoked, illegal, and unjustified full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine.
We call on the EMRIP to join all other human rights mechanisms in holding the Russian Federation accountable for its war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Ukraine.
The EMRIP must remain independent.