DUSHANBE, June 15, 2013, Asia-Plus – A court in Dushanbe has ruled the Islamic Revival Party (IRP) leader Muhiddin Kabiri, who is also member of Tajikistan’s lower house (Majlisi Namoyandagon) of parliament, must apologize to the Dushanbe mayor’s office until June 17.
Kabiri’s defense lawyer, Buzurgmehr Yorov, says his client received a letter from the court in Dushanbe’s Sino district on June 11, which notes that Kabiri must apologize to the mayor’s office until June 17.
Yorov says he sent a letter to the Dushanbe city court on June 14, asking it to suspend the ruling handed down by the Sino district court.
The lawyer also asserts that apology demand and the district court’s ruling itself are illegal. According to him, the plenary session of the Supreme Court of Tajikistan decided in 2011 that “nobody has the right to demand an apology.” “This decision is official because it was published in the official print media,” Yorov said.
We will recall that the Dushanbe mayor’s office filed a lawsuit against Muhiddin Kabiri for criticizing the city’s environmental record. The suit, demanding an apology, was filed in early November last year. Muhiddin Kabiri criticized city officials during a parliamentary meeting on pollution that took place on October 10, 2012.
“Nobody pays attention to the felling of trees in the capital, which has become systematic,” MP Kabiri said during the session. “Reinforced concrete buildings have replaced tree-lined walkways and small parks in Dushanbe, which is causing problems for the city”s ecosystem.”
The Dushanbe mayor’s did not agree with criticism of the parliamentarian and demanded public apology.
For his part, Muhiddin Kabiri filed a lawsuit against the Dushanbe mayor’s office asking for 20 million somoni in damages.
The Sino district court considered a lawsuit filed by the Dushanbe mayor’s office against MP Muhiddin Kabiri on January 29 and ruled Muhiddin Kabiri must apologize to the mayor’s office. Besides, the court has thrown out a counterclaim by Muhiddin Kabiri against the Dushanbe mayor’s office for 20 million somoni in damages.
Kabiri’s lawyer, Buzurgmehr Yorov, denounced the ruling and appealed to the board of the Dushanbe city court.
The Dushanbe city court, however, upheld the ruling handed down by a court in Dushanbe’s Sino district against Muhiddin Kabiri on April 19.
