Clampdown on Islamists Ahead of Independence Day
Clampdown on Islamists Ahead of Independence Day
As Uzbekistan marked both the holy month of Ramadan and the 18th anniversary of its transformation from Soviet republic to independent state, residents described a police crackdown targeting devout Muslims and the relatives of people convicted of Islamic radicalism.
On August 20, as the Muslim fasting month was about to begin, the Initiative Group of Human Rights Defenders of Uzbekistan reported a new clampdown on Muslims.
The group’s head, lawyer Surat Ikramov, also said that relatives of people convicted of offences relating to Islamic extremism were being refused prison visits, while ongoing trials had been suspended.
He said that ahead of public celebrations like Independence Day, it had become standard practice for the authorities to impose tighter restraints on relatives and associates of people convicted of Islamic extremist activity as well as political dissidents.
Ikramov’s group reported one case where police from the interior ministry department for counter-terrorism arrived at the home of Musharraf Khudoiberdieva, whose husband died while serving a prison term for alleged Islamic activities.
“They forbad me and my children from leaving the house during the celebrations, and threatened to jail my 27-year-old son,” she said. “We’re in a constant state of fear.”
Mahfuza, whose husband is also in jail for alleged Islamic radicalism, described how she was summoned for questioning at a police station in Tashkent.
“They called me in and asked me to sign a statement saying I had no links with extremism,” she said. “After that they asked me not to leave my home over the holiday.”
Mahfuza said such bans were especially difficult to comply with during Ramadan, when observant Muslims fast from dawn to dusk.
“The mahalla [neighbourhood] committee is calling believers in and warning them not to get together in groups for the iftar [evening meal],” she said.
The security forces deny pressuring the Muslim community as a whole, saying they are engaged in a counter-terrorism operation that was announced at the end of August.
“The Counter-Terrorism Sweep has nothing to do with them [devout Muslims],” said interior ministry spokesman Zahid Karimov. “It is designed simply to secure law and order by identifying illegal residents and unregistered weapons.”
The Uznews-net site, based abroad, reported on August 28 that the authorities had introduced an unofficial ban on women wearing hijab, which in Uzbekistan generally means a headscarf and modest clothing. Women were being advised to remove their headscarves until the independence celebrations were over on September 3.
(NBCentralAsia is an IWPR-funded project to create a multilingual news analysis and comment service for Central Asia, drawing on the expertise of a broad range of political observers across the region. The project ran from August 2006 to September 2007, covering all five regional states. With new funding, the service has resumed, covering Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.)
On August 20, as the Muslim fasting month was about to begin, the Initiative Group of Human Rights Defenders of Uzbekistan reported a new clampdown on Muslims.
The group’s head, lawyer Surat Ikramov, also said that relatives of people convicted of offences relating to Islamic extremism were being refused prison visits, while ongoing trials had been suspended.
He said that ahead of public celebrations like Independence Day, it had become standard practice for the authorities to impose tighter restraints on relatives and associates of people convicted of Islamic extremist activity as well as political dissidents.
Ikramov’s group reported one case where police from the interior ministry department for counter-terrorism arrived at the home of Musharraf Khudoiberdieva, whose husband died while serving a prison term for alleged Islamic activities.
“They forbad me and my children from leaving the house during the celebrations, and threatened to jail my 27-year-old son,” she said. “We’re in a constant state of fear.”
Mahfuza, whose husband is also in jail for alleged Islamic radicalism, described how she was summoned for questioning at a police station in Tashkent.
“They called me in and asked me to sign a statement saying I had no links with extremism,” she said. “After that they asked me not to leave my home over the holiday.”
Mahfuza said such bans were especially difficult to comply with during Ramadan, when observant Muslims fast from dawn to dusk.
“The mahalla [neighbourhood] committee is calling believers in and warning them not to get together in groups for the iftar [evening meal],” she said.
The security forces deny pressuring the Muslim community as a whole, saying they are engaged in a counter-terrorism operation that was announced at the end of August.
“The Counter-Terrorism Sweep has nothing to do with them [devout Muslims],” said interior ministry spokesman Zahid Karimov. “It is designed simply to secure law and order by identifying illegal residents and unregistered weapons.”
The Uznews-net site, based abroad, reported on August 28 that the authorities had introduced an unofficial ban on women wearing hijab, which in Uzbekistan generally means a headscarf and modest clothing. Women were being advised to remove their headscarves until the independence celebrations were over on September 3.
(NBCentralAsia is an IWPR-funded project to create a multilingual news analysis and comment service for Central Asia, drawing on the expertise of a broad range of political observers across the region. The project ran from August 2006 to September 2007, covering all five regional states. With new funding, the service has resumed, covering Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.)
