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Adam Shapiro reports from Kyrgyzstan where he met Kahdija Askarov wife of jailed human rights defender Azimjan Askarov.

Khadija Askarov lives in her and her husband’s home in Bazaar Korgon, in an area of town devastated during the inter-ethnic clashes in 2010. The town, and parts of towns all over southern Krygyzstan, is still being rebuilt with some help from UNHCR, but mostly from efforts within the Uzbek community.

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Kyrgyzstan: Kyrgyz Supreme Court must act on reported fair trial violations in Askarov case, ODIHR delegation saysposted on: 2011/12/19

Bishkek, 16 December 2011 – After visiting prominent human rights defender Azimjan Askarov in prison, a delegation from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) urged Kyrgyzstan’s Supreme Court to take fair trial violations and indications of torture into account when reviewing the case of Askarov and other defendants convicted in relation to the June 2010 violence in the south of the country.

Kyrgyzstan: Open letter to President Otunbayeva as appeal of human rights defender Mr Azimjan Askarov begins on 29 November 2011posted on: 2011/11/28

Front Line Defenders issued an open letter today to Roza Otunbayeva, President of the Kyrgyz Republic, as appeal of human rights defender Mr Azimjan Askarov begins on 29 November 2011.

Kyrgyzstan: Life imprisonment for Human Rights Defender Azimjan Askarovposted on: 2011/06/20

Azimjan Askarov is a human rights defender who has spent 25 years documenting human rights abuses in Kyrgyzstan. He is serving a life sentence after an unfair trial during which he was beaten in detention and denied access to his lawyer.

In 2010 Azimjan was convicted – solely on the basis of a confession beaten out of him – of involvement in the killing of a policeman during recent interethnic violence. No credible evidence was presented against him. The national Ombudsman, who carried out a parallel investigation, said that the charges against him were clearly politically motivated. Azimjan had been working on documenting the human rights violations committed in this region previous to his detention. He had been collecting data about those who had been killed and injured during the recent ethnic conflict.

Kyrgyzstan: Threats against human rights defender Mr Maxim Bratuhinposted on: 2011/06/14

Human rights defender Mr Maxim Bratuhin was threatened by officials on 25 May 2011, after he acted as a witness in a criminal trial which was reportedly initiated based on the defendant's sexual orientation. Maxim Bratuhin is chairman of the board of 'Pathfinder', a public association which works to promote equality for all, and to eliminate discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. 'Pathfinder' defends the rights of the LGBT community in Kyrgyzstan.

Kyrgyzstan: UPDATE - Upcoming final hearing in the Supreme Court Appeal of human rights defender Mr Azimjan Askarovposted on: 2011/04/06

Further to the Front Line Urgent Appeal dated 24 January 2011 and subsequent updates, Front Line has received the following new information concerning the ongoing Supreme Court appeal of human rights defender Mr Azimjan Askarov:

The final hearing in Azimjan Askarov's Supreme Court Appeal against his sentence of life imprisonment is due to be held on 12 April 2011. It is believed that this hearing may be the last chance to have Azimjan Askarov's innocence vindicated.

Further Information

Azimjan Askarov was accused of complicity in the murder of a Kyrgyz policeman during the ethnic conflict in southern Kyrgyzstan in 2010. He was subsequently found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment on 15 September 2010, following a trial which lacked almost any semblance of fair trial guarantees in accordance with Kyrgyz or international standards. His sentence was later confirmed on initial appeal.

Kyrgyzstan: Civic activists seek EU support for parliamentary democracyposted on: 2011/04/04

Civil society representatives visiting Brussels from Kyrgyzstan have called for the European Union to support Kyrgyzstan in its bid to become Central Asia’s first parliamentary democracy.

Further Information

The group highlighted continuing challenges which the Government needs to address with the assistance of the international community, namely access to justice and fair trial, for all Kyrgyz citizens, including ethnic Uzbeks accused of participation in June’s inter-ethnic violence in Southern Kyrgyzstan.

The representatives called on the Kyrgyz authorities to pursue a policy of inter ethnic reconciliation at a time when nationalist sentiments are rising and an international report into the June violence by the Kiljunen Commission is set to be released.

Kyrgyzstan: Life imprisonment for Human Rights Defender Azimjan Askarovposted on: 2011/01/26

Azimjan Askarov is a human rights defender who has spent 25 years documenting human rights abuses in Kyrgyzstan. He is serving a life sentence after an unfair trial during which he was beaten in detention and denied access to his lawyer.

Further Information

In 2010 Azimjan was convicted – solely on the basis of a confession beaten out of him – of involvement in the killing of a policeman during recent interethnic violence. No credible evidence was presented against him. The national Ombudsman, who carried out a parallel investigation, said that the charges against him were clearly politically motivated. Azimjan had been working on documenting the human rights violations committed in this region previous to his detention. He had been collecting data about those who had been killed and injured during the recent ethnic conflict. According to Ms Valentina Gritsenko, chairwoman of the NGO Spravedlivost (Justice) based in Jalalabad, Azimjan Askarov had obtained video footage of atrocities which had taken place, and the police were aware of that.

Kyrgyzstan: Upcoming Supreme Court appeal of human rights defender Mr Azimjan Askarovposted on: 2011/01/21

The Supreme Court appeal of imprisoned human rights defender Mr Azimjan Askarov will take place on 26 January 2011 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Azimjan Askarov is a prominent human rights defender and director of the human rights organisation “Vozdukh” (Air) based in Bazar Korgon. He has been the subject of various Front Line Urgent Appeals, the most recent of which dated 13 September 2010.

Further Information

Azimjan Askarov has been imprisoned since his initial arrest on 15 June 2010, supposedly on suspicion of having taken part in ethnic hostilities between Kyrgyz and Uzbeks in the south of Kyrgyzstan. Azimjan Askarov had been working on documenting the human rights violations committed in this region: for some days previous to his detention, he had been collecting data about those who had been killed and injured during the recent ethnic conflict.

Azimjan Askarov, along with several other ethnic Uzbeks, was subsequently accused of complicity in the murder of a Kyrgyz policeman during the ethnic conflict.

Kyrgyzstan: Open Letter to Secretary of State Clinton re case of Azimjan Askarov during her official visitposted on: 2011/01/10

As United States Secretary of State Hilary Clinton continued her tour of Central Asia with a visit to Kyrgyzstan (today Thursday 02 December) Front Line has published an open letter to the Secretary of State in which the organisation renewed its call for the release of imprisoned human rights defender Azimjan Askarov and raised the issues of denial of due process and use of torture during his trial.

Further Information

During her visit Ms Clinton had a meeting with President Otunbeyeva during which she "expressed to the President the admiration the United States feels for the difficult road that Kyrgyzstan has decided to walk,”.

“This is a bold endeavor that the people of this country have undertaken - reinventing its democratic governance with a strong parliament designed to represent the full diversity of the people and regions in Kyrgyzstan", she added

Front Line is calling on Secretary of State Clinton to take the opportunity of this visit to raise the situation of human rights defenders in Kyrgyzstan with President Otunbeyeva and in particular the serious issues relating to the trial and conviction of Azimjan Askarov.