Dushanbe, February 24, 2010 — The Embassy of the United States is concerned about recent judicial actions and lawsuits against five independent Tajik newspapers: Asia Plus, Ozodagon, Farazh, Paykon, and Millat.

The media play a crucial role in fostering a stable society by reporting on government activity, exposing injustice, and providing independent analysis. The lawsuits threaten to force these newspapers to cease publication, which would be a serious blow to freedom of the press in Tajikistan.

OSCE member states have an obligation to ensure freedom of the press by protecting the media from harassment and ensuring that the judiciary defends the rights of journalists to carry out their important work. We have conveyed our concerns to the Government of Tajikistan, and urged it to ensure that the judiciary is not used as a tool to harass independent media or stifle free speech.

U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe

DUSHANBE — A Tajik court has begun hearing a lawsuit against three independent publications, in a case international rights activists say is part of a crackdown on press freedom ahead of upcoming elections, RFE/RL’s Tajik Service reports.

Three judges, including two from the Supreme Court, brought the libel action against the weeklies «Asia-Plus,» «Farazh,» and «Ozodagon» for their coverage of a press conference on corruption and bias in the judicial system.

In mid-January, the journalists reported on the press conference in which a lawyer said the judges — Fakhriddin Dodometov, Nur Nurov, and Ulughbek Mamadshoev — had sentenced a group of 33 businessmen from the northern city of Isfara to long prison terms despite weak evidence of their crimes.

The judges maintain that the printed allegations against them are false, and sued the papers for 5.5 million somonis ($1.26 million) in damages.

Some 50 journalists, NGO representatives, and other were present outside the courtroom today to show their support for the accused newspapers.

In an interview with RFE/RL’s Tajik Service ahead of today’s hearing, the editors of the three newspapers and their lawyer said the judges were merely seeking monetary gain through the claim. They also said the judges should have asked for their responses to be printed before taking legal action — a step required by Tajik media law.

Nuriddin Karshiboev, the head of the National Association of Independent Media of Tajikistan, told RFE/RL that the lawsuit was representative of a recent push by officials to shrink press freedoms and encourage journalists to censor themselves.

Earlier this month, the Paris-based media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) criticized the Tajik authorities for «harassing the media» ahead of the February 28 parliamentary elections.

In their statement, RSF also said that «there is clearly an all-out drive to intimidate news media and get them to censor their coverage of state authorities.»

Mamadshoev, one of the three judges claiming libel, told RFE/RL’s Tajik Service that he filed the lawsuit as a private citizen — not as a representative of the Supreme Court.

Today’s session was a preliminary hearing. It comes in the wake of other libel suits brought by officials against Tajik publications.

In late January, a court fined the weekly «Paykon» 300,000 somonis ($69,000) in a libel suit brought by Tajikstandart, a government agency that monitors the quality of imported goods.

The Agriculture Ministry has also brought a libel suit against the «Millat» newspaper, in which it’s demanding 1 million somonis ($229,000) in damages.

That case is set for late March.

Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty

A dark horse has emerged ahead of Tajikistan’s national elections that could add some excitement to an otherwise predictable poll.

Following considerable effort to transform its image, Central Asia’s only religiously based political party, Tajikistan’s Islamic Renaissance Party, enters the gate determined to change the status quo.

Of the eight parties fielding candidates in the February 28 vote, only the ruling People’s Democratic Party is expected to hold real power in the lower house of parliament, or Majlis.

«Tajikistan’s upcoming parliamentary election is so ‘transparent’ that we can already see its results,» Dushanbe resident Dust Muhammad quipped recently in a comment to RFE/RL’s Tajik Service website.

It’s a sentiment shared by many who view the vote as a formality to extend the ruling party’s legislative stranglehold for another five years.

All eight of the country’s registered parties will participate in the poll, with a total of 221 candidates vying for 63 seats (41 single-mandate and 22 party-based seats). Just two opposition parties are represented in the current parliament, however, with a combined six seats.

And observers don’t expect any sea changes.

But the Islamic Renaissance Party (IRP), revitalized and rejuvenated following an extensive makeover, enters the race expecting to expand its parliamentary representation from two to 10.

«Of course, it would be naive to believe the election will be fair; we don’t forget we live in a closed society,» says IRP leader Muhiddin Kabiri. «We should not expect free and fair elections in Central Asia in the foreseeable future, but we hope this election will be more fair than the 2005 vote.»

Recent opinion polls rank the IRP second in terms of power and influence within Tajik society only to President Emomali Rahmon’s People’s Democratic Party. Its 35,000 members and thousands of supporters have made the IRP among the country’s best-organized parties since the late 1990s.

But after that support translated into only two seats in the last parliamentary elections in 2005, the IRP took a long look in the mirror and began making significant changes.

The IRP, the only officially registered Islamic party in Central Asia, has in the past depended heavily on support in the country’s conservative east — particularly Rasht Valley, the wartime stronghold of the Islamic opposition fighters. Today, the party boasts an increasing number of followers in other regions, including Kulob and Sughd, traditionally dominated by the pro-presidential party.

Breaking The Mold

The IRP broadened its support base in a number of ways. First, it sought to shed its image, cultivated since its founding in 1990, as a rural party followed by mullahs and religious conservatives. By replenishing its aging ranks, the party has made itself more appealing to intellectuals, businessmen, and students. Most of the IRP’s candidates in the upcoming elections are in their 30s and 40s, and they include lawyers, teachers, entrepreneurs, and at least one professional sportsman.

Forty-five-year-old party leader Kabiri has played a major role in the ongoing transformation. Kabiri took over following the death in 2006 of his mentor, Said Abdullohi Nuri, the iconic founder of the IRP.

Kabiri maintains that he has continued in the path of his predecessor, but there is a sharp contrast in their methods and presentations.

Unlike the publicity-shy Nuri, who wore a dark beard and donned a long cloak at official meetings, the clean-shaven Kabiri comes across as media-savvy, outspoken, and dynamic.

An avid handball player, Kabiri and travels abroad frequently, giving speeches and interviews in Russian and English.

Kabiri has sought support outside the party’s traditional base — making it his goal to appeal to young and educated Tajiks, including women.

One of the four women on the IRP’s list of candidates, Zurafo Rahmoni, says the party aims to promote women’s role in society, including in the political arena.

She opposes quotas of the sort that are currently in place in Tajikistan, saying they «actually limit women’s real participation.»

«Women should be treated as men’s equal, so they could have an equal and healthy competition with men,» Rahmoni says. «If we create such conditions for women, hundreds of women will emerge as leaders on their own merits.»

Tough Task

Despite the IRP’s «new image,» however, the party still faces hurdles to mainstream acceptance. Tajik critics insist the party’s ultimate goal is to replace the current secular system with Islamic governance.

Kabiri maintains that he supports the country’s secular system and is not trying to create an Islamic state or Islamic republic in Tajikistan.

«Our goal is to create a society that lives with Islamic values,» Kabiri says.

The IRP, believed to be the most affluent opposition party in Tajikistan, battles the perception that it receives financial support from foreign Islamic states — presumably Iran and Saudi Arabia — in exchange for greater influence in Central Asia. The IRP denies any such arrangements, claiming that it benefits from charities and generous sponsors.

Some have accused the IRP of buying its support. One university student claimed to RFE/RL that he joined the party only because the IRP pays money to its supporters. The claim could not be verified.

Some have questioned how the IRP managed to list 39 candidates for the looming elections while the $1,500 registration fee — twice the amount required in the 2005 elections — proved a serious obstacle for other political parties.

The Communist Party, whose candidates advocate state control over the economy and even a return to the Soviet Union, is the only other party given much chance of garnering enough votes to make parliament. It has registered only about half that number of candidates.

The opposition Social Democrat and Democratic Party listed seven and three candidates, respectively.

Difficult Odds

To date, the IRP has launched 50 complaints pertaining to electoral violations and official interference. The IRP’s and other opposition parties’ complaints claim that their canvassers are harassed by local police, that the ruling party is given sole access to assembly halls where potential voters could be won over, and that the timing of the elections in the middle of winter makes it difficult to campaign in remote areas.

Kabiri claims that the IRP makes up for such disadvantages by having the most active supporters in the election campaign. «People show little interest in elections, so our campaigners go door to door to talk to voters, to promote our party, and to explain the importance of their participation,» the IRP leader says.

While heavy snowfall and icy roads in mountainous terrain have discouraged some candidates from traveling to remote villages, IRP representatives have donned signature blue scarves in eastern Rasht district and ventured out on horseback in an effort to meet voters.

However, despite all the efforts and financial investments, not everyone is convinced the Islamic party stands a chance of boosting its parliamentary presence.

Shokirjon Hakimov, a representative of the Social Democrat Party, predicts the IRP will get no more than three seats in the next Majlis.

«In regions like Karategin, where the IRP has most of its supporters, local authorities will try to show their loyalty to the government,» Hakimov says, «so they’ll use all kinds of methods to ensure the victory of ruling party candidates.»

IRP leaders themselves are not «overly optimistic» that the parliamentary elections will be free and fair.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has not recognized either of the country’s post-civil war parliamentary elections, in 2000 and 2005, as free and fair. IRP leaders insist Tajikistan’s authorities «still are not ready for real and transparent votes.»

Kabiri has warned officials against electoral fraud, saying that «if people, once again, lose their faith in elections, if people no longer believe they can determine their future through lawful means, it would be the authorities’ biggest gift to extremists.»

By Farangis Najibullah, Radio Free Europe / Radio

Источник: http://www.rferl.org/content/Tajik_Islamic_Party_Puts_Face_Lift_To_A_Test/1965070.html

Dozens of Kazakh journalists and human rights activists have urged senior government officials to allow unimpeded publication of the opposition weekly «Respublika,» RFE/RL’s Kazakh Service reports.

In an open letter to Prime Minister Karim Masimov, Foreign Minister Kanat Saudabaev, and Prosecutor-General Kayrat Mami, the journalists requested an official government statement that publishing houses in Kazakhstan may print «Respublika.»

Among those signing the letter were Seitqazy Mataev, chairman of the Journalists Union; Tamara Kaleeva, president of the media-monitoring NGO Adil Soz (Just Word); and Adil Dzhalilov, chairman of the Almaty-based NGO Media Alliance of Kazakhstan.

In recent months, the weekly’s editors have been constrained to print issues of the newspaper in their offices under modified titles such as «Golos respubliki» (Voice of the Republic) and «Moya respublika» (My Republic), because no publishing house in Kazakhstan would print the weekly.

The editors of «Respublika» believe printing houses have been ordered not to publish the paper.

Kazakhstan is currently the chair of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, a 56-member regional security organization that works to promote a range of issues, from democratization to free media, fair elections to minority rights.

http://www.rferl.org/content/Kazakh_Journalists_Urge_End_To_Newspapers_Harassment_/1963833.html

The Committee To Protect Journalists (CPJ) says 2009 was the deadliest year for journalists across the globe and a record year for the number of reporters arrested or detained. More than 70 journalists lost their lives in 2009 while on the job.

The international media watchdog, which unveiled its annual survey at United Nations headquarters in New York on February 16, said Iran is carrying out one of the world’s most severe crackdowns on journalists, with more than 90 reporters arrested last year. At least 47 of them remain in prison, according to CPJ.

Robert Mahoney, deputy director of CPJ, said the Iranian authorities have become adept at using social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter against the very journalists who rely on them.

«Facebook, which the Iranian government is now using to go after and find dissidents and journalists, mining their data, seeing who their friends are — they’re turning the technology that should liberate the press against the press,» he said.

Maziar Bahari is a «Newsweek» correspondent who was detained in Iran last year and held for four months following the street protests that erupted after the disputed June presidential elections. He said the Iranian authorities are employing new tactics to harass journalists. He noted that a proposal is being mulled to make it a crime for Iranian citizens to work for foreign media.

«The Iranian authorities, especially the Revolutionary Guards, even though they have not passed this law yet, have said they are going to [make it] a crime to work for Persian media outside of Iran,» Bahari said. «So, anyone who works for BBC Persian, VOA Persian, or Radio Farda which is the Iranian version of Radio Liberty, can be accused of espionage and can be tried as a spy. And as my interrogator once told me, we all know what the punishment is for a spy — execution.”

The CPJ’s Mahoney said that despite the grim data, activists and organizations like the UN should persistently urge governments to respect freedom of expression. «We do believe that constant advocacy on behalf of journalists, bringing their plight into the public sphere, making sure that no victim of a repressive government remains anonymous — can help,» he said. «And it did help in the case of Maziar [Bahari], who was freed, and with other journalists who have been freed.»

Part of the reason, Mahoney said, for CPJ to want affiliation with the United Nations is that CPJ believes the UN mandate is to protect peace and promote human rights. He expressed his hope that UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will take an active role in defending the freedom of expression.

«I would like the secretary-general to make a more assertive and firm stand in defense of freedom of expression,» Mahoney said. «Freedom of expression matters. It is a prime pillar of democracy.»

http://www.rferl.org/content/Media_Watchdog_Appeals_To_UN_To_Protect_Journalists_/1960770.html

MOSCOW — Some 20 supporters of an award-winning Uzbek photographer found guilty of defamation held a rally outside the Uzbek Embassy in Moscow today, RFE/RL’s Russian Service reports.

A Tashkent court on February 10 found Umida Ahmedova, 54, guilty of portraying her nation as «backward» in a collection of photographs and a documentary she made depicting people’s lives in rural Uzbekistan.

Uzbek officials called the photographs and documentary «insulting» and «damaging to the country’s image.» The court granted Ahmedova amnesty after the verdict was announced. She could have been sentenced to six months in prison or up to two years in a labor camp.

Ahmedova told RFE/RL that although she left the courtroom a free woman, she did not do anything wrong and will appeal the verdict.

http://www.rferl.org/content/Muscovites_Rally_For_Uzbek_Photographer_Convicted_Of_Libel/1955667.html

TASHKENT — Uzbek photographer Umida Ahmedova said today she would appeal the guilty verdict against her for defamation, RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service reports.

Ahmedova, 54, was found guilty by a Tashkent court of portraying her country as «backward» for a collection of photographs and a documentary depicting the daily struggles of people in rural Uzbekistan.

Uzbek officials had ruled the photographs and documentary were «insulting» and «damaging to the country’s image.»

The court granted Ahmedova amnesty after the verdict was announced. She could have been sentenced to six months in prison or up to two years in a labor camp.

Ahmedova told RFE/RL that although she left the courtroom a free woman, she did not do anything wrong and will therefore appeal the verdict.

An award-winning photographer, Ahmedova’s projects were financed by the Swiss Embassy in Tashkent.

Ahmedova was initially arrested and charged on December 16. Last month, authorities presented Ahmedova’s lawyer with the findings of an Uzbek panel of experts who studied her film and photos.

The panel accused Ahmedova of portraying Uzbek people’s lives and their traditions in a negative light, giving the impression that Uzbeks are «barbarians» living in the Middle Ages.

http://www.rferl.org/content/Uzbek_Photographer_To_Appeal_Guilty_Verdict/1955079.html

(RFE/RL) — A Kazakh court has struck down a ruling blocking the press from printing potentially damaging material about the president’s son-in-law.

The Medeu district court today also dismissed Timur Kulibaev’s lawsuit against five independent and opposition newspapers, which had reported on corruption allegations against him.

Today’s move comes a day after sharp criticism from Europe’s top security and rights body, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), whose media-freedom representative called the lawsuit a dangerous attempt at censorship.

The same court last week seized the entire print runs of the newspapers and barred media outlets from publishing any information that could damage Kulibaev’s reputation.

Kulibaev last month filed lawsuits against «Respublika,» «Golos respubliki» (Voice of the Republic), «Vzglyad» (Glance), «Kursiv,» and «Kursiv-News» after they printed a statement by an exiled Kazakh businessman and politician.

In the statement, Mukhtar Ablyazov alleged that Kulibaev illegally obtained tens of millions of dollars in a deal with the Chinese National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) several years ago.

Speaking today to journalists in the capital, Astana, Kulibaev refused to comment on the allegations, which Ablyazov also sent to the Prosecutor-General’s Office, political parties, and politicians:

«Let’s not comment on this. The reason is simple: the law enforcement agencies are taking care of it,» Kulibaev said. «Once they come up with a conclusion, we can talk about it.»

Following today’s ruling, representatives of three of the newspapers («Respublika,» «Vzglyad,» and «Svoboda slova») said they planned to seek compensation from Kulibaev for the libel lawsuits he filed against them.

OSCE Criticism

The original court ruling appears to have embarrassed authorities in Kazakhstan, which this year became the first former Soviet republic to chair the OSCE, Europe’s main democracy watchdog.

Kazakhstan rejected criticism of its human rights track record in the run-up to the OSCE chairmanship, saying it was gradually implementing liberal reforms.

On February 8, the OSCE media-freedom representative criticized what he called the «misuse» of libel laws to muzzle the press in Kazakhstan.

In a statement, Miklos Haraszti specifically mentioned the confiscation of the five newspapers. He described the lawsuits as «dangerous attempts at censorship» and said the harsh punishments sought endangered «the very existence of the few critical-minded media outlets» that remain in the country.

Later the same day, the chairman of Kazakhstan’s Supreme Court, Musabek Alimbekov, told journalists that the Medeu district court judge «could have made a mistake in imposing the ban.»

But Alimbekov added that «judges’ mistakes can be fixed, in case [their decisions] have not fully entered into force and if they are still under review. That is what the judicial system is for. The judicial actions of one organ can be fixed by the judicial actions of the next authority.»

Presidential Son-In-Law

Kulibaev is often tipped as a possible successor to President Nursultan Nazarbaev. He is deputy chairman of Samruk-Kazyna, the state body that oversees all of Kazakhstan’s energy companies — oil, natural gas, and nuclear.

Kulibaev is also chairman of the board of directors of the KazAtomProm state uranium producer and KazMunaiGaz, the state gas company, as well as Kazakhstan Temir Zholy, the state railway company.

Ablyazov, the source of the allegations about Kulibaev’s financial involvement with CNPC, is a former banker and politician who is himself accused of embezzlement. He now lives in London.

RFE/RL’s Kazakh Service contributed to this report.

http://www.rferl.org/content/Kazakh_Court_Overturns_Media_Criticism_Ban/1952739.html

(RFE/RL) — A prominent Uzbek photographer and film director has gone on trial in Tashkent for her work, deemed by the Uzbek authorities to be «insulting» and «damaging to the country’s image.»

Umida Ahmedova, 54, has been charged with defamation for her collection of photos, «Woman and Man: From Dawn till Night,» documenting the lives and hardships of Uzbek villagers, as well as her documentary film, «The Burden of Virginity,» which focuses on Uzbek wedding and marriage customs.

If found guilty, Ahmedova faces up to two years in a labor camp or six months in prison.

She rejects the charges as «groundless,» saying her works merely reflect Uzbekistan’s customs and traditions.

In Paris, the International Association of Art Critics (AICA) has launched a campaign in her support, calling on the Uzbek authorities to acquit her. The organization’s appeal was signed by nearly 1,000 artists, art critics, journalists, and rights activists from around the world.

‘Expert Panel’

Ahmedova told RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service today that she did not mean to offend anyone. «It has never occurred to me that my photos would be deemed slander to my country and my nation,» she said. «It’s a very difficult time for me now, in many ways.»
Ahmedova was initially arrested and charged on December 16. Last month, authorities presented Ahmedova’s lawyer with the findings of a panel of experts who studied her film and photos.

The panel accused Ahmedova of portraying Uzbek people’s lives and their traditions in a negative light, giving an impression that Uzbeks are «barbarians» living in the Middle Ages.

(See a slideshow of her photos here.)

Both Ahmedova’s photo collection and her film were financed by the Swiss Embassy in Tashkent.

Controversial Film

The documentary «The Burden of Virginity» was presented by Ahmedova and her film director husband, Oleg Karpov, shortly before International Women’s Day in March 2009.

The two-part film features Uzbeks’ tradition of giving enormous significance to a bride’s virginity on her wedding night.

The documentary shows how many young couples break up straight after the wedding night because the bride has lost her virginity before marriage.

The film features a woman who says she was sent back to her parents’ home after the first night by the groom’s family because she wasn’t a virgin.

Because of the disgrace the lack of virginity brought to her and her family, the woman, now in her 30s, hasn’t been able to find a partner and rebuild her life since.

Uzbek reaction to «The Burden of Virginity» has been mixed, and some critics have found it controversial. Officials at the Swiss Embassy have since distanced themselves from the film.

Ahmedova’s photographs have been exhibited in Tbilisi and Copenhagen among other places. She has won several awards for her work, including the 2004 Grand Prix in Russia’s Inter-Press-Photo contest.

A graduate of the Soviet Union’s prestigious Institute of Cinematography in Moscow, Ahmedova was Uzbekistan’s first female filmmaker.

RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service contributed to this report. With regional media reports

http://www.rferl.org/content/Photographer_Tried_For_Slander_For_Portraying_Unglamorous_Side_Of_Uzbek

Jehovah’s Witnesses in Tajikistan are expecting a verdict from the Supreme Court on their appeal of the decision that terminated the religious group’s activities in the country, RFE/RL’s Tajik Service reports.

Yury Toporov, a spokesman in Moscow for the Jehovah’s Witnesses, told RFE/RL that the organization filed an appeal with the Supreme Court in December and, according to the law, a review of the appeal must be made within two months of the filing.

Toporov said the congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses was legally registered in Tajikistan in 1994.

But the Culture Ministry banned the religious group’s activities in Tajikistan in October 2007 because the group’s literature attacks other religions, its members actively proselytize, and they have prayer meetings in their homes rather than designated buildings.

On September 29, 2008, a trial judge in Dushanbe dismissed an application by the Jehovah’s Witnesses asking that the Culture Ministry’s decision be overturned. An appeal was also dismissed by the Supreme Court’s Military Collegium in February 2009.

Toporov told RFE/RL: «In fact, Tajik authorities say their country is a modern country respecting all the religious groups and confessions and therefore we believe that Jehovah’s Witnesses will be allowed to gather and to preach their faith in Tajikistan as they used to do before. That would correspond to international standards and Tajikistan’s international obligations.»

http://www.rferl.org/content/Banned_Jehovahs_Witnesses_Appeal_To_Tajik_Supreme_Court/1950502.html