Three men who persuaded a 14-year-old schoolgirl in Tashkent to have sex were given parole by the Uzbek Themis. Two of them served only six months. And the organizer of the actual child rape, a former physical education teacher, was released 12 months after his imprisonment. One of the convicts now works as a registrar at a medical center, where, among other things, they serve children.
The press service of the General Prosecutor’s Office of Uzbekistan, at the request of Nemolchi.uz, reported that Kh.A.Kh, born in 1991, who previously worked as a school teacher, was sentenced on November 11, 2021 to 4 years in prison under paragraph “a”, part .2, Article 128 of the Criminal Code of Uzbekistan, the term of punishment is to be counted from May 4, 2021. By the decision of the Zangiata District Court for Criminal Cases dated May 7, 2022, the unserved part for a period of 2 years 11 months and 27 days of imprisonment was replaced by corrective labor with a deduction of 20% of the monthly salary in favor of the state for this period, based on Article 74 of the Criminal Code.
His friend G.B.Sh., born in 1993, on November 11, 2021, was sentenced to 2 years in prison under part 1. article 128 of the Criminal Code. By the decision of the Almalyk city court on criminal cases dated May 12, 2022, in accordance with article 74 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the unserved part of the punishment was replaced by punishment in the form of correctional labor, with a deduction of 20% of wages to the state revenue for a period of 1 year 5 months 29 days.
Another accomplice M.M.M., born in 1994, on November 11, 2021, was sentenced to 2 years in prison under Part 1. article 128 of the Criminal Code. By the ruling of the Akhangaran District Court for Criminal Cases dated May 12, 2022, the unserved part of the sentence in the form of 1 year 5 months 29 days of imprisonment was replaced by corrective labor with a deduction of 15% of the monthly salary in favor of the state for this period, based on Article 74 of the Criminal Code.
On April 27, 2021, a physical education teacher at a Tashkent school lured his student to a previously rented apartment and invited two friends there. They arranged a game of spin the bottle and then persuaded the girl to have sex. Since she did not resist, the crime was qualified not as gang rape, but under article 128 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan “Entering into sexual intercourse with a person under 16 years of age”. The girl’s mother lost the appeal.
The editors of Nemolchi.uz have repeatedly noted that the legislation of Uzbekistan is loyal to people who have committed such crimes. As we can see, criminals do not have to serve even these minimum terms in a colony. The laws of Uzbekistan allow them to leave on parole and do not prohibit them from working with children in the future. Now feminists are pinning their hopes on legislators who can change such laws and protect children.
Blogger and journalist Nikita Makarenko stated on a social network that “Uzbekistan is the most liberal country towards pedophiles and rapists!” Then he recalled the fate of the network activist Otabek Sattoriy, sentenced to 6.5 years for a video on Youtube, all appeals of which were rejected. “A very dangerous person. Our country’s judges pity only pedophiles, rapists, and animal killers. They don’t criticize the authorities, why to keep them behind bars?” he said.
Using the legal right of a journalist, after reading the verdict, he named the names of the rapists: Anvar Khazratov, accomplices Mansurzhon Mukhtorov and Boymuhammad Gaziboev. In his opinion, they did not receive a well-deserved punishment, most likely due to the corruption component, and at the moment they pose a public danger, being at large. The decision of the city and district courts must be reviewed by the Supreme Court.
