“I had no purpose to call for forcible seizure of power. I did not commit this crime and I did not know that my appeal may be considered a crime,” Tajik MMA fighter Chorshanbe Chorshanbiev has stated repeatedly both in writing and orally.
The NGO Coalition against Torture in Tajikistan notes this. The NGO has provided Chorshanbe with three defense lawyers.
The Chorshanbe’s father Avazkhon Pahlavonov has applied to the NGO Coalition against Torture in Tajikistan requesting legal assistance.
During a meeting with defense lawyers on January 4, Chorshanbe reportedly denied torture and ill-treatment against him.
According to a source, criminal proceedings have been instituted against Chorshanbe Chorshanbiev under the provisions of Article 307 (2) of Tajikistan’s Penal Code — public calls for the forcible overthrow of or change to the constitutional order in Tajikistan. If convicted, Chorshanbe could face up to fifteen years in prison.
The defense lawyers note that “Chorshanbe is open to investigation, sincere in his testimony and says everything as it is.”
To-date, Chorshanbe’s father has not yet get permission to meet with his son, the NGO said on January 11.
Chorshanbiev, 26, a Tajik national, was deported late last year from Russia after he was caught speeding by Moscow police. Upon arrival in Tajikistan on December 30, however, he was taken into custody. This sequence of events has sparked suspicions that the deportation was effected at the request of the Tajik authorities.
Eurasianet says his deportation is likely to have been triggered by public statements he made during a recent standoff between GBAO residents and the central government in Dushanbe. Protests in November were sparked by the deadly police shooting of a local resident but rapidly evolved into demands for more autonomy for the province.
In a video message filmed around the time of that unrest, Chorshanbiev called on fellow Pamiris not to submit to state violence.
“I urge you to stand up against injustice and against the unjust death of innocent people,” he said.
Anora Sarkorova, a journalist based in Europe, said in a commentary on Facebook that she was certain that Chorshanbiev was not deported, but rather extradited.
“He allowed himself the impermissible luxury of saying out loud what others think but remain silent, discuss at home but hesitate to say in public,” Sarkorova said.
As it had been reported earlier, citing the press center of the Moscow city court, RIA Novosti reported that the Moscow city court on December 29 upheld the decision on deportation of Chorshanbiev.
The detention of Chorshanbiev became known on December 3. Traffic police officers found videos on the Internet where the driver of a Toyota Camry, driving in the Lefortovo tunnel, repeatedly violated traffic rules. The identity and whereabouts of the offender were established, and he was detained at the 92nd km of the outer side of the Moscow Ring Road. He was brought to administrative responsibility for the lack of an OSAGO policy, as well as for driving without a license, since he presented a national driver’s license, which has no legal force in the Russian Federation.
