Ukraine recognises Circassian genocide in win for MENA activists

Circassians in the MENA region are celebrating Ukraine’s recognition of the Russian Empire’s military campaign against their people in the 19th century as an act of genocide, following years of campaigning by the diaspora who remain scattered across the world.

Ukraine’s parliament, known as the Verkhovna Rada, voted this week to recognise the forced displacement and mass killing of Circassians in the Northern Caucasus region by the Russian forces between 1763 and 1864 as an act of genocide, a move that might encourage other countries to do the same.

“[Ukraine’s parliament] strongly condemns the genocidal actions of the Russian Empire, which led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Circassians, caused significant damage to the foundations of Circassian society and great losses to humanity,” a statement read.

“[It] called on all countries and international organisations that have not yet recognised the mass destruction of Circassians as genocide to do so… [and] on the Russian Federation to officially recognise this crime and apologise for it.”

The century-long Russian pacification campaign resulted in the Circassian population of their Northern Caucasus to decline by up to 97 percent, following pogroms and the mass expulsion of civilians to the Black Sea region, where survivors of the ordeal made the arduous journey to Turkey, Syria, and Jordan.

Circassians today – many gaining prominent military and political positions in Arab states – have worked tirelessly to highlight the miseries endured by their ancestors, maintaining a distinct cultural identity whilst remaining loyal to their new home countries.

In June, Circassians appealed to the Ukrainian parliament to recognise the genocide, and a resolution was proposed “to support the peoples enslaved by Russia in their desire to honor their language, traditions, and history, to defend their identity, and the right to free development”, according to local media.

On Friday, they celebrated the Ukrainian parliament’s ruling this week, including in Syria where the Circassian population are also celebrating the end of five decades of Assad rule, with many seeing parallels in both struggles.

Celine Kasem, a Syrian activist and researcher, is the descendent of Circassians who fled to Syria and were internally displaced following the 1967 Israeli invasion of the Golan Heights.

Her family, along with many other Syrian Circassians, was again forced into exile following the 2011 revolution in Syria when Assad regime forces brutally suppressed pro-democracy protests.

“My ancestors ended up in Syria, became Syrians, and lived in the Golan Heights but were displaced again, so displacement runs in my blood,” Kasem told The New Arab.

“As Circassians, we are very, very proud that we were able to fight these people (the Russian army) who were taking over our land but we were kicked out. We went through all these years of war, displacement, trying to find new lives, and starting from zero.”

Circassian activists saw Kyiv as potentially sympathetic to their cause due to their own experiences of Russian aggression after Moscow seized parts of Donetsk and Luhansk in 2014.

Ukraine has faced a full-scale invasion by Moscow since 2022, where war crimes by Russian forces against the civilian population have been widely noted, including the Bucha massacre, which was reminiscent of the harrowing stories passed down by Circassian elders in Turkey, Syria, and elsewhere. 

“I think the Ukrainian parliament recognised the genocide now because they are living a similar experience, of the same war crimes, that Circassians experienced all those years ago,” she said.

“Honestly I am very, very grateful and thankful to Ukraine for this step toward accountability and justice, and we do hope for other nations to take this moral stance.”

Although few countries recognise the Circassian pogroms as an act of genocide, Circassian activists were bolstered by the opening of Russian Empire-era documents held in Georgia archives which shed light on Moscow’s century-long pacification campaign in the mountains of Circassia, in addition to contemporary accounts, including Leo Tolstoy who chronicled the Russian atrocities in his novel The Cossack.

Following this, Georgia recognised the Circassian genocide in 2011 in a landmark ruling that was celebrated by Circassian activists worldwide.

“Just a small part of the population stayed in Russia and as a result, a number of ethnic groups disappeared from the world arena,” said Nugzar Tsiklauri, the head of a Georgian parliamentary committee at the time. “Thus, actions undertaken by the Russian Empire could be classified as genocide and ethnic cleansing.”

Circassian activists, like many displaced populations, have been challenged by different time zones and borders, but online cooperation has helped overcome some of these logistical hurdles, spearheaded by the Council of United Circassia (CUC) group which has connected activists across the world.

“This political activism was always present, but unfortunately it was limited by language barriers. For example, we have many political activists who only speak Russian or Turkish,” Qusai Lambaz, a Jordanian-Circassian activist, told The New Arab.

“In my opinion, political activism was almost non-existent in the wider Circassian community, as we lacked proper political entities to advocate for our cause, which is why CUC was the first of its kind to focus solely on political activism.”

Activists marked the 160th anniversary of Circassia Genocide Day last May, commemorating the killing of around 1 million people and the forced expulsion of almost the whole population of Circassia.

The Russian Empire annexed much of the Caucasus region during this campaign until the breakup of the USSR led to establishment of independent republics – such as Georgia and Armenia – while armed uprisings broke out in Muslim-majority regions in the north. Historic Circassia remains part of the Russian Federation.