DUSHANBE, July 21, 2011, Asia-Plus — Police officers standing trial over the death of a detainee have received notice of partial professional impropriety and deputy chief of the police station, Sino-1, in Dushanbe’s Sino district has been reprimanded.
According to Minister of Interiors Abdurahim Qahhorov, such administrative actions are the most maximum today.
“The trial is going on and after the sentence is passed by the court it will become clear what other measures will be introduced against them,” Qahhorov told reporters on July 20.
The minister also commented on promotion of police officers, whose activities have caused harsh criticism from the public in connection with the death of detainees. It concerns to Anvar Taghoymurodov, former head of the Interior Ministry organized crime control department (UBOP), who was appointed Deputy Minister of Interiors and Rahmonqul Davlatov, former chief of the police station Sino-1, who was appointed to head the Interior Ministry’ internal security department.
“As far as Rahmonqul Davlatov is concerned, I cannot say that his appointment as the ministry”s head of internal security is promotion, because these positions [chief of police station and the ministry’s head of internal security] are equal,” Qahhorov said, answering the question put by
Asia-Plus
. “As far as Anvar Taghoymurodov is concerned, I presented him to the post of deputy minister. Some incidents are taking place sometimes. I do not relieve me of responsibility for faults of my subordinates, but if I am dismissed for one incident, it will be wrong. What is Taghoymurodov’s fault? Because he is at law with you?”
We will recall that an incident involving Rahmonqul Davlatov took place in March. Davlatov admitted in an interview with the Asia Plus newspaper that he personally ordered the detention of Safarali Sangov on March 1. Sangov was hospitalized the next day and died several days later from injuries sustained in what his relatives say was a severe beating at the Sino district police station. Police say Sangov tried to commit suicide by hurling himself down two flights of stairs and then, when he was returned to the interrogation room, by repeatedly banging his head against a wall. A prosecutor in the trial of two police officers from the Sino police station said on June 6 that they had been charged with negligence in connection with Sangov”s suicide. The prosecutor said the policemen did not handcuff Sangov with his hands behind his back, as required by regulations, but with his hands in front of him. That, he said, gave Sangov the opportunity to commit suicide as he was able to push away his police escort.
As far as the former UBOP chief Anvar Taghoymurodov is concerned, he in late January filed the defamation lawsuit in the court in Dushanbe’s Firdavsi district against the
Asia-Plus
newspaper, asking for 1 million somoni as compensation for moral damage caused by article published by the newspaper. The Interior Ministry high-ranking official who filed the lawsuit as private citizen claims that the article entitled “Investigation or Inquisition?” printed in the newspaper in December defames his honor and reputation. The article published in the December 21, 2010 edition of the newspaper told of the use of torture on some suspects by UBOP agents in Sughd province.
Abdurahim Qahhorov drew attention to the fact that the article concerns events that took place in 2009, while Taghoymurodov did not head UBOP that time. “Therefore, he bears no responsibility, even the moral one, for those actions whether those facts will be proved or not,” said Qahhorov, “Taghoymurodov filed the lawsuit because he was UBOP chief at the time when the article was published.”
