Changes in the leadership of the Forum of Free Thinkers of Tajikistan

The Forum of Free Thinkers of Tajikistan, one of the organizations of Tajik civil society activists, has announced a change in leadership.

As reported by the Forum of Free Thinkers of Tajikistan on its Facebook page, Temur Varki – a poet, journalist, and political activist – has been elected as the chairman of the Forum of Free Thinkers of Tajikistan.

Temur Varki has worked as a journalist for many years in various publications in Tajikistan, and then for over 14 years as a journalist for the Russian service of the BBC in Moscow.

The Forum of Free Thinkers of Tajikistan was established by a group of Tajik free thinkers. Previously, the organization was led by Alim Sherzamonov, the deputy chairman of the National Alliance of Tajikistan.

The Forum of Free Thinkers of Tajikistan proclaims its goals as building a society based on the supremacy of rights and freedoms of the individual, to which the state is subordinate, eradicating nepotism, nationalism (xenophobia), and protecting the rights of Tajiks and Tajik citizens anywhere in the world.

The Forum of Free Thinkers of Tajikistan is a member of the National Alliance of Tajikistan, which was previously recognized by the Supreme Court of Tajikistan as a banned organization.