DUSHANBE, September 21, 2015, Asia-Plus – In a statement released on September 18, Amnesty International says thirteen members of the Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan (IRPT) whom the authorities accuse of links to armed violence are at risk of torture and unfair trial, following their arrests on 16-17 September. Their arrests follow years of harassment of IRPT members and the Ministry of Justice’s order to disband it in August.
The Tajikistani law enforcement officers arrested 13 high-ranking members of the Islamic Revival Party of Tajikistan (IRP) on September 16-17 and removed passports from a further 50 members, allegedly to prevent them from travelling abroad. The names of the 13 IRP members arrested are: Umarali Hisaynov (Saidumar Husaini), Rahmatullo Jobir, Abduqahhor Davlat, Sattor Karimov, Zubaydulloh Roziq, Fayzmuhammad Muhammadali, Hikmatullo Sayfullozoda, Mahmadali Hayit, Qiyomiddin Avazov, Zarafo Rahmoni, Mahmadsharif Nabiyev, Abdusamad Ghayratov and Vohidkhon Qosiddinov.
In an official statement, the Office of the Prosecutor General accused them of involvement in “criminal groups” responsible for organizing attacks on government buildings in the capital Dushanbe and the districts of Vahdat and Roudaki on September 4. The authorities alleged that the attacks were led by the then Deputy Minister of Defense Abduhalim Nazarzoda, who was later killed in a security operation. They further alleged that he had acted under the orders of Muhiddin Kabiri, the exiled IRP leader. Muhiddin Kabiri denied any links to the violent events on September 4, and accused the authorities of fabricating evidence against himself and IRP members.
Members of the IRP and other opposition groups in Tajikistan and in exile have been subjected to an increasing level of harassment by the Tajikistani authorities in recent years. Following the March 1 election, from which opposition groups were effectively excluded, the party lost its two remaining seats in the country’s parliament. On August 28, the IRP received an order from the Ministry of Justice to cease its activities by September 7 on the basis that it lacked sufficient popular support to qualify as a registered party. The criminal prosecution of the 13 members of the IRP appears to be in connection with their political activism. They are at risk of torture and other ill-treatment, which are often used by law enforcement officials in Tajikistan to secure “confessions” and other incriminating evidence, and of unfair trial.
