Musa Mamut (1931–1978) was a Crimean Tatar activist and a symbol of resistance against injustice under the Soviet Union. In 1978, he self-immolated in protest against the persecution of his people.
Following the 1944 Crimean Tatar Deportation, Soviet authorities banned Crimean Tatars from returning to their ancestral homeland in Crimea. Despite these prohibitions, Mamut and his wife, Zekiye, repeatedly attempted to return and build a home. They were denied residence permits and subsequently arrested and jailed multiple times by Soviet authorities for "illegal settlement" and "violation of passport regulations."
On 20 July 1978, facing imminent forced eviction and further punishment for attempting to live on his own land, Musa Mamut poured gasoline on himself and self-immolated. He died five days later. His desperate act was a powerful protest against the systemic discrimination and served as a call for human dignity and the national rights of the Crimean Tatar Movement.
