Statement the NCRPH on the arrest of political prisoners

Zubaidullozoda Hisom, son of political prisoner Zubaidullo Rozik, chairman of the IRPT Academy, said his brother Asroruddin Rozikov (born 1982, lives in Shokhmansur district of Dushanbe) was detained by officers of the State Committee for National Security at 10 a.m. on June 25. In Accordance with Zubaidullozoda Hisom, his family did not find out the whereabouts of Asroruddin overnight, and only after a thorough search they became aware that the Committee for National Security detaining him. He was arrested and is still under detention.

According to Hisom, the reason for his brother’s arrest is likely to be ordered to speak out against the IRPT and its chairman Muhiddin Kabiri in front of the camera.

76-year-old Zubaidullo Rozik, chairman of the IRPT Academy, was arrested in September 2015 and sentenced in June 2016 to 25 years in prison.

However, in recent days, fake users associated with the government of Tajikistan (known as the «Factory of Answers») have posted videos on social networks in which relatives and friends of the opposition and political prisoners opposed the IRPT and its leaders. From these tapes it becomes clear that they make this statement under compulsion of threats. So far, a video has been released of Nusratullo Saidov, the nephew of Said Abdullo Nuri, the founder of the IRPT, and one of the daughters of Hikmatullo Sayfullozoda, a political prisoner and member of the executive board of the IRPT.

Unfortunately, such arrests and pressure on relatives of the opposition have become commonplace in Tajikistan.

Strongly condemning the actions of the Committee for National Security to detain and prosecute innocent citizens, The National Committee for the Release of Political Hostage and Prisoners of Tajikistan (NCRPH) believes that these actions as being contrary to both constitutional guarantees of the Republic of Tajikistan and all international laws and standards, and urges all international human rights organizations, especially Amnesty International, to urge the Government of Tajikistan to comply with international rules regarding the rights of citizens.

The National Committee for the Release of Political Hostage and Prisoners of Tajikistan (NCRPH)

27 th Jun 2020

Warsaw, Poland