Torture still widespread in Tajikistan 20 years after the country acceded to anti-torture treaty
The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel,Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Convention against Torture) cameinto force in Tajikistan on 10 February 1995. By acceding to the treaty, the authoritiesof Tajikistan pledged to protect everybody under their jurisdiction fromtorture and other forms of ill-treatment, to reflect in law and practice theprinciples enshrined in the Convention, to cooperate with the Committee againstTorture and to implement its recommendations.
Buttwenty years later, torture and impunity for it remain widespread in thecountry. From 2011 to 2014, members of the NGO Coalitionagainst Torture in Tajikistan documented more than 100 cases of men, women andchildren who were allegedly subjected to torture or other ill-treatment. Perpetratorswere brought to justice only in exceptional cases. The human rights groupsjointly issuing this statement believe that many victims oftorture did not file complaints for fear of reprisals.
Heightened internationalattention to torture in Tajikistan in recent years and thorough study of the situationby international human rights bodies and mechanisms including the Committeeagainst Torture and the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel,inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (Special Rapporteur ontorture) resulted in the issuing ofa set of recommendations to the authorities.
On the twentiethanniversary of the treaty entering into force in Tajikistan, the human rightsgroups jointly issuing this public statement published a briefing, entitled“Tajikistan needs to do more to end torture,” which provides an up-to-dateoverview of the current situation of torture or other forms of ill-treatment,including in the army.
Noteworthy positive stepstaken by Tajikistan in recent years include introducing an article on torturein the Criminal Code (Article 143) with a definition of torture that is in linewith that contained in the Convention against Torture. As a result, by 2014, fourcriminal cases under this article were opened; and the courts orderedcompensation to the families of two men who had died as a result of torture.
The briefing identifiesserious gaps and weaknesses in the legislative and institutional frameworks. Ithighlights practices that continue to facilitate widespread torture and virtualimpunity for the perpetrators in Tajikistan. Among other issues, it focuses onthe lack of sufficient legal safeguards accessible to detainees in pre-trialdetention and the need to routinely implement existing ones; the lack of anindependent mechanism to investigate torture allegations; and the need forregular, independent, unannounced and unrestricted visits to inspect detentionfacilities across Tajikistan.
Amongdozens of cases of ill-treatment documented by NGOs in Tajikistan in recentyears is the case of Samandar Jalolzoda. The young man was reportedlysuddenly grabbed by police officers and dragged into a police car as he waswaiting for his grandfather on a street in his home town of Panjakent in theevening of 4 December 2014. When the grandfather walked up to the police carasking why they had detained his grandson, an officer started the car abruptlyand allegedly hit him with such impact that he fell over and sustained bleedinginjuries. Police took Samandar Jalolzoda to Panjakent City police station,where officers reportedly hit him with a water bottle and kicked him in anoffice on the third floor. Thanks to an intervention by Samandar Jalolzoda’sfather, police let his son walk free the same evening without charges. On 5December, Samandar Jalolzoda wrote a complaint about the police ill-treatment,which his parents personally delivered to Sugd Regional Prosecutor's Office thesame day. A forensic medical expert examined Samandar Jalolzoda on 10 Decemberand recorded injuries to his body. On 7 January 2015, Panjakent CityProsecutor's Office informed Samandar Jalolzoda that no criminal case would beopened into his allegations of ill-treatment. A complaint prepared by his lawyeragainst this decision is currently pending with Sugd Regional Prosecutor'sOffice.
It is clear thatTajikistan must do more to eradicate torture. The authorities should mark thetwentieth anniversary of the Convention against Torture’s coming into force byensuring that the case of Samandar Jalolzoda is investigated thoroughly,impartially and independently and that anyone found to be responsible forill-treating him is brought to justice. In addition, the authorities should acton the recommendations included in the briefing “Tajikistan needs to do more toend torture” as a matter of urgency.
For further information, please contact:
The NGO Coalition against Torture in Tajikistan: notorture.tj@gmail.com
Anne Sunder-Plassmann, International Partnership for Human Rights(IPHR): +49-40-38631458, anne.sunder-plassmann@iphronline.org
Nicole Buerli, WorldOrganisation Against Torture (OMCT): +41-22-809 49 26, nb@omct.org
This statement is submitted by the coalitions againsttorture in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, the HelsinkiFoundation for Human Rights (Poland) and International Partnership forHuman Rights (Belgium) – the initiators – together with AmnestyInternational and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT). Theinitiators of this statement have received financialassistance for its production from the European Union. The document’s contentsare the sole responsibility of the organizations issuing it and can under nocircumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union