The independent agency Asia-Plus, which is considered one of the most widely read Russian-language media in Tajikistan, reported pressure and forced refusal to publish news about events taking place in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region.
“The situation in the administrative center of GBAO escalated again on May 16. Representatives of the local population tried to gather for a rally in the center of Khorog; the law enforcement forces prevented this. As a result, one person died and three were injured. Unfortunately, we cannot fully cover these events under the threat of closure,” Asia-Plus notes in a short message to readers.
The agency said that it had previously received an official warning from the Prosecutor General’s Office and an unofficial warning from other government agencies that the media was ‘unilaterally’ covering events in GBAO and ‘destabilizing the situation in the country’.
“Asia-Plus was ordered ‘to eliminate these shortcomings’, otherwise our publication office is threatened with closure. Having regard to this fact, our editorial board has decided to refrain from covering the events in Gorno-Badakhshan for the time being,” the report says.
