A political activist asked the United Nations to investigate the behavior of the Tajik security forces in the events of 2021 and 2022 in Badakhshan Mountainous Autonomous Region.
Asliddin Sherzamonov said at the conference on minorities in Geneva on December 1 that an independent international commission should be established for this purpose.
Three people were killed in the 2021 incident in Roshtkala and Khorog, and at least 34 people were killed in the operations of the security forces in Rosht and Khorog in 2022 . The General Prosecutor’s Office reported the death of 29 people.
The President of Tajikistan called them members of criminal groups and confirmed that he gave the order for the operation. Their relatives say that these people had no weapons and only went to the streets to express their opinion and protest.
Asliddin Sherzamonov said at the UN meeting that a hundred people were injured in these incidents, and dozens of others were arrested in Tajikistan and Russia and imprisoned for a long time in closed-door trials. “More than two thousand people are seeking refuge abroad,” he added.
“The Pamirs have been suppressed since 2008, the murders have not been investigated, and the detainees suffer from brutal treatment,” added the cultural activist.
According to Asliddin Sherzamonov, human rights defenders, activists, civil society leaders and journalists are also among those arrested: “More than 200 non-governmental organizations working on human rights, gender equality, education and economic empowerment were forced to close. The civil society, which was once active in the Ministry of Defense, is now in a state of fear and cannot report on the violation of the law by the authorities.”
In August 2023, the Tajik authorities confirmed that they had abolished the activities of five social organizations in Badakhshan in half a year. An organization that, according to them, “had links with criminal groups.” They also changed the name and status of several institutions.
“Immediate and unconditional release of civil society leaders; economic development of the Central Bank of Ukraine; official recognition of the Pomirs as an independent minority with full rights and freedom” was one of Asliddin Sherzamonov’s other wishes.
In the last year or so, many Western organizations and countries have criticized the authorities of Tajikistan for dealing with the Pomirs. Amnesty International asked the government of Tajikistan to stop retaliating against Pomeranian activists .
Fernand de Waren, the UN special rapporteur on minorities, also said in October that “the protesters were treated harshly in the events of 2021 and 2022 in Badakhshan, and these events should be investigated impartially and fairly.”
The government of Tajikistan calls such an operation a factor in strengthening security, and arrests and arrests are a way to prevent crimes against society and officials of the Central Security Service. Its opponents say that the purpose of the operation was to suppress dissidents and dissidents.
Badakhshan Mountain Autonomous Region is the largest region of Tajikistan in terms of area. It has about 250 thousand inhabitants. The majority are followers of the Ismaili branch of the Shia religion and consider Prince Karim Aqahon IV as their religious leader. Part of the people speak local languages known as “Pomir languages”.
Source : Радио Озоди