Azimzhan Askarov is refused to see his relatives

In Kyrgyzstan, life-sentenced human rights activist Azimzhan Askarov was put in lock-up for three days for a request to meet with relatives. Askarov himself announced this in an open letter to international human rights organizations and journalists.

In his letter, Azimzhan Askarov said that Truspekov, the head of the colony No.19, where a human rights activist is being held, refuses him and other prisoners to meet with relatives and friends under the pretext of violating the internal regime.

The head of the colony arbitrarily in violation of all international rights deprived the majority of convicts of the right to meet with relatives in special rooms. Convicts can see them only through a glass partition.

“My grandchildren screamed and cried, they wanted to hug me. I could not stand it and intended to break the glass to hug them. The guards detained me by force. As a result, I was allowed to communicate with my relatives only through the iron bars,” said the human rights activist.

For his legitimate desire to talk with his grandchildren, Azimzhan Askarov was placed for three days in a punishment cell by the order of the colony’s head.

“If I violated the internal regime, why, after my illegal action, Truspekov urgently organized a special room for short visits?” Askarov asks.

He recalled that the Republic has obligations under international law. The state is a party to a number of key UN human rights treaties, in particular the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

“But for many years the country is far from fulfilling its obligations. If there was a restriction on the allocation of grants, then Kyrgyzstan would think about their implementation towards international organizations, in particular on respecting the rights of national minorities,” the human rights activist noted.

Recall that Azimzhan Askarov was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2011 by the court in Jalal-Abad region. The verdict was opposed by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, Ombudsman Tursunbek Akun and a number of human rights defenders. To date, Azimzhan Askarov has been sentenced to life imprisonment by all judicial instances of Kyrgyzstan.