Mary Lawlor met with imprisoned journalists

The UN Special Rapporteur met with Abdullo Gurbati and Daler Imomali.

Photo: Internet

According to Asia-Plus, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Mary Lawlor, met with Abdullo Gurbati and Daler Imomali in the pre-trial detention center in Dushanbe.

The meeting of the delegation took place this week. Details of the meeting have not been disclosed.

Asia-Plus, citing its sources, reports that the convicted journalists stated that they do not consider themselves guilty, that their arrest is related to their journalistic activities, and that they do not recognize the verdict issued against them.

One of the members of the UN delegation, who visited the detention center with Lawlor, reported that the rapporteur reviewed the cases of the convicted Tajik journalists and met with judges and prosecutors. He stated that on December 9, a press conference will be held at the UN headquarters in Dushanbe, where the rapporteur will discuss the results of her visit to Tajikistan and answer questions from journalists.

It has been reported that journalists Abdullo Gurbati and Daler Imomali expressed a desire to be transferred to the same cell.

It was previously reported that UN Special Rapporteur Mary Lawlor would assess the situation of human rights defenders in Tajikistan during her official visit to the country from November 28 to December 9, 2022.

It was also reported that Mary Lawlor would focus on Tajikistan’s compliance with the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders and other relevant international human rights documents to ensure favorable conditions for human rights defenders to carry out their legitimate and peaceful activities in defense of human rights.