Human Rights Education Association
07-08-07, 11:29
[headlines] Kyrgyzstan: Police crackdown on human rights picket
2007-08-06 15:06:08
Vienna, Bishkek, 6 August 2007. The International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) and the Kyrgyz Committee for Human Rights (KCHR) are alarmed about a police crackdown on a human rights picket held in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
The picket was scheduled to take place outside the US embassy in Bishkek on 30 July 2007 and was organized by the Kyrgyz NGO “Democracy”, which works to protect the rights of the Uighur minority in Kyrgyzstan. The purpose of the event was to call on the US and other Western governments to continue efforts to promote democracy and human rights in Kyrgyzstan in response to announced intentions to withdraw US -led troops deployed at Kyrgyz Manas Airport and increasing cooperation between the Kyrgyz and Chinese governments.
Local authorities had been duly notified about the picket.
In the morning of 30 July, the house of the family of “Democracy” leader Tursun Islam had been locked from outside and they had to ask for help to open the door, which suggests an intention to prevent Tursun from attending the picket.
When the picket started, police officers forcibly confiscated banners and flags from the participants and Tursun and his son Alisher were detained and taken to a facility of the regional department of the Ministry of Interior. Tursun was released after spending the whole day in detention, while Alisher was accused of disobedience to police and was still being held in custody at the time of writing.
These developments follow other recent cases in which human rights defenders have been subject to pressure and the threat of criminal prosecution in Kyrgyzstan. For example, in May 2007, several civil society activists in the Talas region were arrested and accused of organizing mass disturbances because of their involvement in staging a road blockade during the visit of Prime Minister Almazbek Atambaev to the region. The road blockade was organized to protest the ecological consequences of the extraction of natural resources in Talas. It was forcibly dispersed by police, and some participants required hospital treatment because of the injuries they sustained.
The IHF and the KHCHR call on the Kyrgyz authorities to immediately release Alisher Islam and to ensure that legitimate and peaceful protest actions can take place without hindrance and repercussions for the organizers and participants.
For more information:
Brigitte Dufour, Deputy IHF Executive Director, Brussels, +32-473-363 891
Henriette Schroeder, IHF Press Officer, Vienna, +43-676-725 4829
Ramazan Dyryldaev, Chair, Kyrgyz Committee for Human Rights, Bishkek, +996-502 58 46 67
http://www.hrea.org/lists2/display.php?language_id=1&id=5456
2007-08-06 15:06:08
Vienna, Bishkek, 6 August 2007. The International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) and the Kyrgyz Committee for Human Rights (KCHR) are alarmed about a police crackdown on a human rights picket held in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
The picket was scheduled to take place outside the US embassy in Bishkek on 30 July 2007 and was organized by the Kyrgyz NGO “Democracy”, which works to protect the rights of the Uighur minority in Kyrgyzstan. The purpose of the event was to call on the US and other Western governments to continue efforts to promote democracy and human rights in Kyrgyzstan in response to announced intentions to withdraw US -led troops deployed at Kyrgyz Manas Airport and increasing cooperation between the Kyrgyz and Chinese governments.
Local authorities had been duly notified about the picket.
In the morning of 30 July, the house of the family of “Democracy” leader Tursun Islam had been locked from outside and they had to ask for help to open the door, which suggests an intention to prevent Tursun from attending the picket.
When the picket started, police officers forcibly confiscated banners and flags from the participants and Tursun and his son Alisher were detained and taken to a facility of the regional department of the Ministry of Interior. Tursun was released after spending the whole day in detention, while Alisher was accused of disobedience to police and was still being held in custody at the time of writing.
These developments follow other recent cases in which human rights defenders have been subject to pressure and the threat of criminal prosecution in Kyrgyzstan. For example, in May 2007, several civil society activists in the Talas region were arrested and accused of organizing mass disturbances because of their involvement in staging a road blockade during the visit of Prime Minister Almazbek Atambaev to the region. The road blockade was organized to protest the ecological consequences of the extraction of natural resources in Talas. It was forcibly dispersed by police, and some participants required hospital treatment because of the injuries they sustained.
The IHF and the KHCHR call on the Kyrgyz authorities to immediately release Alisher Islam and to ensure that legitimate and peaceful protest actions can take place without hindrance and repercussions for the organizers and participants.
For more information:
Brigitte Dufour, Deputy IHF Executive Director, Brussels, +32-473-363 891
Henriette Schroeder, IHF Press Officer, Vienna, +43-676-725 4829
Ramazan Dyryldaev, Chair, Kyrgyz Committee for Human Rights, Bishkek, +996-502 58 46 67
http://www.hrea.org/lists2/display.php?language_id=1&id=5456