In Uzbekistan, former political prisoners created human rights organization
On March 9, former political prisoners were able to get registration of the human rights organization “Hukukiy Tayanch” [“Legal support”] in the Ministry of Justice. As activist, Salidjon Abdurakhmanov, told ACCA, since 2003, this is the first structure that has gained an official status.
Last year, human rights defenders were able to register the organization only on the third attempt. The officials categorically refused to do this, as the initiative group was led by human rights activist Agzam Turgunov, a man disliked by the authorities, because of his irreconcilable position on the rehabilitation of political prisoners. Being in the colony, Turgunov continued his advocacy work, offering prisoners ways to reduce the term of their imprisonment.
In February 2019, he, with other human rights defenders, applied for registration of the human rights organization “Redress of grievances”. The application was rejected on March 29 on formal grounds. In order for the organization to go through all the bureaucratic obstacles, the activists had to change its name, and Turgunov left the founders.
Nowadays, the leaders of Hukukiy Tayanch are his colleagues, Azam Farmonov and Dilmurod Sayid. The main purpose in the organization’s registration certificate is to help ensure human rights guarantees and develop civil society.
In the period from 2006 to 2009, all three were sentenced on trumped-up charges to various terms of imprisonment: Agzam Turgunov – to 10 years, Azam Farmonov – 11.5 years, Dilmurod Sayid – 12.5 years.
They were released in 2017 and immediately began human rights activities, again falling under the supervision of special services. The international organization IPHR expressed serious concern over the ongoing surveillance of members of the human rights community in Uzbekistan. From the moment of his release, Agzam Turgunov was repeatedly detained by law enforcement agencies for civic activism.
