DUSHANBE, March 27, 2013, Asia-Plus — A statement released by Amnesty International (AI) on March 26 notes that Salim Shamsiddinov, a lawyer and leader of the Uzbek community in southern Tajikistan”s Khatlon province, went missing on March 15 in what may have been a political abduction.
“His family last saw Salim Shamsiddinov, aged 58, at 6.30 am on March 15 as he went out to do some exercise, dressed in an old tracksuit. When he did not return, they registered him with the police as missing the next day.
According to AI, Salim Shamsiddinov”s disappearance could have been a politically motivated abduction. He was reportedly severely beaten on May 5, 2012 by a group of three or four men on the street, opposite the building of the State Committee for National Security (SCNS)’s office for Khatlon in Qurghon Teppa.
“Local sources have linked this attack to media interviews that Salim Shamsiddinov had given, claiming that Tajikistan”s government was pursuing nationalistic policies. The leader of the opposition Social-Democratic Party, Rahmatillo Zoirov, has told the media that the disappearance of Salim Shamsiddinov appears to be politically motivated, and is connected with Salim Shamsiddinov”s active participation in a lobbying group to change the laws on the presidential election and his call for ethnic Uzbeks in Tajikistan to vote for Rahmatillo Zoirov in November”s presidential elections.
“At the time he went missing, Salim Shamsiddinov was preparing to talk to the press again on issues about discrimination against ethnic Uzbeks in the Khatlon region.”
Founded in London in 1961, Amnesty International (commonly known as Amnesty and AI) is a non-governmental organization focused on human rights with over 3 million members and supporters around the world. The objective of the organization is “to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated.” Amnesty draws attention to human rights abuses and campaigns for compliance with international laws and standards. It works to mobilize public opinion to put pressure on governments that let abuse take place. The organization was awarded the 1977 Nobel Peace Prize for its campaign against torture, and the United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights in 1978. In the field of international human rights organizations, Amnesty has the longest history and broadest name recognition, and “is believed by many to set standards for the movement as a whole.”
