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07 October 2025
SUSK has joined the Advocacy Mentorship Initiative for Crimean political prisoners

SUSK has joined the Advocacy Mentorship Initiative for Crimean political prisoners

On October 2, the Ukrainian Canadian Students’ Union (SUSK) announced its participation in the Advocacy Mentorship Initiative for Crimean Political Prisoners, launched by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine with the support of the Representative of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the Office of the Crimea Platform. Under this program, SUSK has assumed mentorship of three young political prisoners unlawfully held by Russia, including:

Andriy Kuliyevych, 25 years old

In 2020, he and others distributed leaflets opposing the Russian occupation regime. He was unlawfully sentenced to 7.5 years in a penal colony on charges of “terrorism” and “illegal possession of explosives.”

Appaz Kurtamet, 23 years old

A Crimean Tatar who was detained by the occupiers in July 2022 and sentenced to 7 years in prison after Russian authorities associated him with a friend who served in a Ukrainian volunteer battalion.

Abdulmedzhit Seitumerov, 26 years old

A Crimean Tatar civic activist and father of multiple children. He was illegally accused by the occupiers of “participating in a terrorist organization.” Two of Abdulmedzhit’s brothers are also political prisoners, unlawfully sentenced by Russia to 14 and 17 years in prison in 2020.

Currently, 222 political prisoners from the temporarily occupied peninsula are being held, 133 of whom are members of Ukraine’s indigenous people — the Crimean Tatars (while the Crimean Tatar population constitutes only about 12% of Crimea). Furthermore, Russian occupiers continue to persecute civilians for any form of resistance, with a significant share of victims being young people. Their only “offense” is supporting Ukraine, practicing their faith, or defending democratic values.

Through this mentorship, SUSK will share the stories of political prisoners, raise awareness about the situation in Crimea among Canadians, and promote calls for the release of Kremlin detainees.