Relatives of natives of Badakhshan are being persecuted again

Law enforcement agencies are pressuring the relatives of residents from GBAO.

Employees of the organized crime department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for GBAO are pressuring the families of residents from the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO) who are wanted internationally.

According to the online portal Pamir Inside, which mainly covers events in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region, in Khorog, as well as in the Shugnan and Roshtkala districts, parents and close relatives are summoned to the police department and forced to call their relatives abroad, persuading them to “voluntarily return” to Tajikistan.

In most cases, police officers summon the relatives of individuals who have criminal cases opened against them for their online activity, including likes, comments, and posts criticizing the authorities. Recently, President Emomali Rahmon signed a decree abolishing criminal liability for likes and comments.

Moreover, authorities promise to exempt from criminal liability those who voluntarily return and write a “statement of repentance.” In some cases, those who returned voluntarily were indeed released, but there are also cases where individuals were arrested and sentenced to imprisonment after their return.

According to Pamir Inside, Ministry of Internal Affairs employees are rewarded for the return of wanted citizens, and they receive promotions. Therefore, pressure on families continues.

Reports of pressure on the relatives of wanted residents from GBAO come against the backdrop of a recent incident where Moscow police detained Roshtkala district resident Nasima Sufishoeva in the Moscow metro and urgently deported her to Tajikistan. Upon arrival in Tajikistan, the woman disappeared, and law enforcement agencies did not disclose her whereabouts.

However, Radio Ozodi, citing its sources, reported that Sufishoeva was detained and deported at the request of Tajikistan.

in the Moscow metro following a request from Tajik authorities. The reason, it is reported, was her activity on social media. It is reported that the woman was seen in old videos of protests by residents of Badakhshan that took place in Russia.

It is known that Nasima Sufishoeva previously worked in the internal affairs bodies of GBAO, and her family actively supports the political regime of Emomali Rahmon in Tajikistan. She is also the sister of Sufisho Garifshoev — the deputy head of the internal affairs department of the Roshtkala district. In Moscow, she has three minor children left behind.