Nasriddinova is being tortured in the building of the GKNB

Employees of the State Committee for National Security of Tajikistan are torturing Tajik activist Nizomidin Nasriddinov, who was previously extradited from Belarus.

A staff member of this committee reported this. 

Saodat Nasriddinova, Nizomidin’s mother, told Radio Ozodi that on July 24, she received a call from a stranger who introduced himself as “a person close to the authorities” and informed her that Nizomidin was in the building of the State Committee for National Security of Tajikistan and was being tortured and beaten.

“Hearing my scream, the stranger hung up the phone. He did not answer my calls anymore,” Saodat Nasriddinova reported.

After that, the activist’s mother sought help from the Coalition Against Torture, where she was provided with a lawyer. Today, Mukhabbatsho met with Nizomidin, and I confirmed that my son is indeed being held in the detention center of the State Committee for National Security,” the woman said.

On July 31, lawyer Mukhabbatsho Ballayev met with Nizomidin in the detention center of the State Committee for National Security of Tajikistan.

Saodat Nasriddinova, Nizomidin’s mother, reported that according to the lawyer, “Nizomidin is feeling well, and he has not been subjected to torture.” According to the lawyer, he currently needs clean clothes and toothpaste.

Although the lawyer claims that Nizomidin Nasriddinov is not being tortured, a staff member of the State Committee for National Security himself confirmed in a phone conversation that he is being beaten.

The authorities of Tajikistan have not yet officially commented on the detention of Nasriddinov.

Nizomidin Nasriddinov was detained on January 8, 2023, while crossing the Lithuanian-Belarusian border at the request of the authorities of Tajikistan.

Enira Bronitskaya, a representative of the Belarusian human rights organization Human Constanta, told the media that on February 21 of this year, the General Prosecutor’s Office of Belarus did not take into account Nasriddinov’s refugee status and decided to extradite him to Tajikistan. Nizomidin Nasriddinov appealed this decision in court, but apparently, his appeal was not granted.

In Tajikistan, he was accused of “public calls for extremist activities” (Article 307(1) of the Criminal Code) and was put on the wanted list.

Nizomidin Nasriddinov appealed the decision of the General Prosecutor’s Office of Belarus in court, but his appeal was not granted.

Since his detention, he had been in a detention center in the city of Grodno.

After the detention of Nizomidin Nasriddinov, nine human rights organizations called on the authorities of Belarus not to extradite Nasriddinov to Tajikistan.

It is reported that since 2015, Nizomidin Nasriddinov, along with his family, including five children, had been living in Germany. The authorities of Germany granted him and his family political asylum.

Previously, Nasriddinov had spoken at OSCE meetings and identified himself as a member of the political movement “Group 24.”

However, since 2018 he has not been a member of “Group 24”. Recently, he has been involved in car reselling.