His brother met with him in the pre-trial detention center. Photo: Internet Seven days after the disappearance of journalist Khurshed Fozilov, his family was informed that he had been officially charged. The brother of the detained journalist Khushbakht Fozilov told Radio Ozodi that on March 12 he met with Khurshed in the pre-trial detention center […]
His brother met with him in the pre-trial detention center.
Photo: InternetSeven days after the disappearance of journalist Khurshed Fozilov, his family was informed that he had been officially charged.
The brother of the detained journalist Khushbakht Fozilov told Radio Ozodi that on March 12 he met with Khurshed in the pre-trial detention center in Khujand in the presence of a lawyer.
According to him, a criminal case has been initiated against Khurshed Fozilov under Article 307, Part 2, Clause “g” (public calls for violent change of the constitutional order of the Republic of Tajikistan using mass media or the internet) of the Criminal Code of Tajikistan. This article provides for imprisonment for a term of three to eight years.
The journalist’s relatives believe that he is innocent. Khurshed himself told his brother that he categorically disagrees with the charges and considers them slander.
So far, official authorities have not reported when and how the journalist allegedly called for the violent change of the constitutional order of the Republic of Tajikistan.
According to his brother, there are no signs of torture or beatings on the journalist’s face and body, but he has lost some weight.
However, experts believe that most detainees on similar charges are subjected to pressure and torture to extract “confessions,” and sooner or later reports of the journalist’s torture will be made public.
While the State Committee for National Security brought charges against the journalist seven days after his detention, pro-government fake accounts on social media, known as the “answer farm,” launched a campaign to discredit Khurshed Fozilov. He is called “uneducated” and accused of “deceiving the people.”
In response to this slander, his relatives say that Khurshed Fozilov is a graduate of Tajik National University and has repeatedly been awarded certificates of appreciation from the authorities of the city of Panjakent. In one of the photos, a representative of the ruling People’s Democratic Party of Tajikistan in Panjakent is seen presenting him with a gift.
Photo: InternetOn March 6, around 3:00 PM, two unknown individuals in civilian clothes detained Tajik journalist Khurshed Fozilov in the building of the Department of Labor, Migration, and Employment of the Population in the city of Panjakent and took him away in an unknown direction.
It later became known that he was detained by employees of the State Committee for National Security in the city of Panjakent.
Employees of the GKNB confiscated his work computer, personal laptop, and phone.
Khurshed Fozilov is 37 years old and has three children. He wrote news and reports for the independent press from the Zarafshan region. Previously, he and several other journalists were accused of collaborating with the news portal Akhbor.com, which is banned in Tajikistan.