DUSHANBE
, February 20, Asia-Plus – The trial of Ghaffor Mirzoyev, former commander of
Tajikistan
’s Presidential Guards and former head of the country’s Drug Control Agency (DCA), that began behind closed door in
Dushanbe
on January 11 is still ongoing. Mirzoyev’s defense lawyer Abduqayum Yusufov has told Asia-Plus that currently five Tajik lawyers are presenting Mirzoyev in the court. Mirzoyev, who faces charges ranging from embezzlement to attempting to mount a coup, maintains his innocence.
Meantime, First Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Court, Mahmadali Vatanov, has told Asia-Plus that the appeals court of the Supreme Court rejected appeal by the former Interior Minister Yoqub Salimov, who was sentenced to 15 years in jail for treason. “The Supreme Court’s verdict against Yoqub Salimov was upheld,” Mr. Vatanov said, denying recent rumors that the court allegedly knocked several years off Salimov’s sentences as “unfounded.”
As it had been reported earlier, the appeals court of Tajikistan’s Supreme Court in January upheld the Supreme Court’s verdict against Mahmadruzi Iskandarov, head of
Tajikistan
’s Democratic Party (DPT). Iskandarov was convicted on terrorism, corruption, illegal possession of arms and abuse of power and sentenced to a 23-year prison term in October 2005. In the meantime, according to information from the DPT leadership, Iskandarov’s defense lawyer in the Russian Federation, Anna Stavitskaya, has denounced the ruling and appealed to the European Court on human Rights.
