SIMFEROPOL, March 02, 20:46 /ITAR-TASS/. Speaker of Crimea’s Supreme Council, or parliament, Vladimir KOnstantinov has called on residents of the Crimean autonomous republic to cast their votes in favour of Crimea’s state independence at a forthcoming referendum.

“To enjoy the complete authority in the territory of the autonomous republic of Crimea, we ask you, dear Crimean residents, to vest us with relevant authority,” he said in an addressed aired by the Russia 24 news channel on Sunday. “That is why we suggest a referendum be held to give you a possibility to express your attitude to our request.”

He said that in the current situation, Cream needed state independence not to satisfy its political ambitions but to entrust the Crimean authorities with competences to “actively protect the interests of Crimean residents.”

Konstantinov stressed that the Crimean parliament had undertaken the entire political responsibility for the situation in the peninsula “in conditions of the most sever crisis Ukraine is now facing,” “in conditions of lawlessness and arbitrariness” engulfing Kiev and a number of other regions.

According to the speaker, Crime’s parliament was the only legitimate power body in these conditions. The Crimean authorities, he stressed, did not “recognize orders and legal acts issued from those political forces that have seized power in Kiev if they run counter to the existing laws and if they are passed in violation of the procedure prescribed by law.” “We are for strict obedience by the law. Only the lives, security and the right for a decent life of Crimean residents of all nationalities can be above law for us,” he added.

He paid special attention to the problems of the community of Crimean Tatars. “We understand your worries and want to reassure you that we are taking due account of your interests, problems and aspirations,” the Crimean speaker said, adding that the Crimean authorities were ready to share with Crimean Tatars the responsibility for preserving stability and peace “in our common home.”

“If the Crimean authorities are vested with additional competences, they will be able to better implement programmes of resettlement of home-comers. I think that we, people living together in Crime, would be able to do it better than Kiev’s officials who have been putting brakes on such programmes for years. I am confident that we will be able to find a common language with you for the sake of Crimea’s future,” Konstantinov promised Crimean Tatars.

“I am calling on Crimea’s residents of all nationalities, religions and political stands to keep calm and self-control, to be vigilant and not to yield to provocations,” he stressed.