DUSHANBE, June 22, 2015, Asia-Plus – Belarusian news agency BelTA reports the Belarusian law enforcement authorities are considering the issue of extraditing Shabnam Khudoidodova to Tajikistan.
According to BelTA, the Belarusian border service press center reports that Belarusian border guards have detained the internationally wanted Tajik national Shabnam Khudoidodova.
The Belarusian border service press center noted that Khudoidodova was wanted by the Tajik authorities for an extremist activity in Tajik territory.
Ms. Khudoidodova has reportedly been handed over to the Brest transportation police department for further investigation. The Belarusian law enforcement authorities are considering the issue of extraditing Shabnam Khudoidodova to Tajikistan.
We will recall that Ms. Shabnam Khudoidodova, an activist of the Tajik opposition organization Group 24 who is wanted by the Tajik authorities via Interpol, was detained on June 15 while crossing the Russian-Belarusian border.
Nadezhda Atayeva, the head of the Association of Human Rights in Central Asia (AHRCA), reports that Shabnam Khudoidodova was born in the Tajik city of Kulob on December 20, 1968. She has underage daughter.
Khudoidodova has reportedly supported critical opinions of Tajik political opposition in social networks, underlining the necessity of democratic reforms in Tajikistan. She has also participated in humanitarian acts to support Tajik labor migrants.
Atayeva says Shabnam Khudoidodova headed for Belarus on June 12 in order to get a status of refugee at the UNHCR CO in Belarus.
The Association of Human Rights in Central Asia expresses concern that if extradited, Shabnam Khudoidodova will be at risk of torture and other ill-treatment. If convicted, she could face up to 20 years in prison, AHRCA says.
AHRCA also calls on the UNHCR CO in Belarus to fulfil its international commitments to human rights visit Shabnam Khudoidodova and consider her application in accordance with the UN Refugee Convention and the Belarusian authorities to fulfill requirements of Article 3 of the UN Convention against Torture and their international commitments to human rights.
The Association for Human Rights in Central Asia has also sent information about the detention of Shabnam Khudoidodova to the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and international organization.
The founding leader of Group 24, Umarali Quvvatov, 47, once had close ties with President Emomali Rahmon’s relatives but became an opponent. He was wanted by Dushanbe on fraud charges that he said were politically motivated.
Quvvatov left Tajikistan in 2012 and stayed in Russia and the United Arab Emirates before moving to Turkey. After leaving Tajikistan, he accused Emomali Rahmon of corruption and nepotism.
On December 19, 2014, Umarali Quvvatov was arrested in Istanbul for visa violations, but he was released on February 3, 2015.
Umarali Quvvatov was shot dead by unidentified assailant in Istanbul, Turkey on March 5.
Tajikistan”s Supreme Court banned Group 24 on October 9, 2014 following growing government pressure on the opposition group after it used the Internet to call for street protests in the capital, Dushanbe, on October 10.
Supreme Court judge Salomat Hakimova ruled that Group 24 is an extremist organization, and therefore is banned in Tajikistan. Its website and printed materials were also banned.
