Prosecutor General’s office and the Tajik energy holding Barki Tojik ignored the request of newspaper Nigoh regarding a complaint of the Nurek hydropower plant’s personnel.

On 6 July the Nigoh weekly (#23, 27.08.09) addressed a request on information to the joint stock company Barki Tojik regarding a complaint from employees of the Nurek hydropower plant.

Nigoh has been conducting an investigation on the complaint, which states that chairman of Barki Tojik Sharif Isoev had beaten his subordinates. Journalists face many impediments in their investigation, and the article was published with delay.

In course of investigation journalists established that Sharif Isoev had beaten employees of the hydropower plant accusing them of selling water to the neighboring Uzbekistan; he also illegally fired director of the Nurek hydropower plant Rustam Zogakov. Applicants have been waiting for fair justice and actions by the law enforcement structures against Isoev.

In June the newspaper sent its second written request to the Prosecutor General’s office, but has not received any feedback. It is interpreted as a violation of the Tajik law “On applications of citizens” and the President’s decree “On response of officials to critical and analytical publications in the mass media” (#622).

Management of Barki Tojik sent the following response to Nigoh: “Inpursuance of your request, Barki Tojik is ready to meet with your journalists and provide them with relevant experts for your investigation. Regrettably, we cannot provide you with any written information in view of the lack of technical capacities”.

NANSMIT Monitoring Service