DUSHANBE, June 16, 2016, Asia-Plus – Thirteen convicted leading members and activists of the Islamic Revival Party of Tajikistan (IRPT) have been transferred from the detention center run by the State Committee for National Security (SCNS) to the Justice Ministry-run detention center.
Savrinisso Jourayeva, the wife of deputy party leader Mahmadali Hayit, says they were transferred to the Justice Ministry-run detention center on June 10.
According to her, lawyer Jamshed Yorov on June 14 got permit from the Supreme Court for meeting with her husband but representatives of the Justice Ministry-run detention facility did not permit him to meet with Mahmadali Hayit, saying that there is no need for the meeting.
The lawyer noted that Mahmadali Hayit familiarized himself with the Supreme Court verdict on June 10 and appealed the court decision.
We will recall that the Supreme Court on June 2 sentenced the deputy IRPT heads Saidumar Husaini and Mahmadali Hayit to life imprisonment. Eleven other IRPT activists were sentenced to jail terms ranging from 14 to 28 years. Zarafo Rahmoni, the party”s lawyer and the only woman in the high-profile trial, was sentenced to two years in prison.
They were arrested on September 16 and 17 last year after completion of the operation against the armed group of Abduhalim Nazarzoda.
In a statement released on September 17, the Prosecutor-General”s Office noted that they are suspected of abetting party leader Kabiri”s plot, saying that they had been arrested “to prevent more terrorist attacks in the country.”
Tajikistan’s Supreme Court banned the Islamic Revival Party as terrorist group on September 29 on the basis of a suit filed by the Prosecutor-General’s Office. The Supreme Court ruled that the IRP should be included on a blacklist of extremist and terrorist organizations. The verdict forces the closure of the IRP”s official newspaper
Najot
and bans the distribution of any video, audio, or printed materials related to the party”s activities.
Party leader Muhiddin Kabiri, who now lives in exile, has rejected the accusations.
