Representatives of civil society appealed to Emomali Rahmon

Representatives of civil society in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO) have called on President Rahmon to take personal control of the situation in the region in their video address.

Activists from Badakhshan emphasized that residents of the region have been without internet access for over a month, while the state regional television continues to defame the residents of Khorog and the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region as a whole.

“On December 30, the authorities temporarily suspended the investigation into the murder of Gulbidin Ziyobekov and two other individuals killed during the protests in the region from November 25-28, 2021, as well as the 17 wounded by law enforcement gunfire,” the address states.

Addressing the President of Tajikistan, they stated: “The tolerant and patient people of the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region will endure all hardships with their heads held high and will fully support the government.”

In their address, representatives of civil society in GBAO emphasized that despite the low level of access to basic services, high prices and tariffs for food, fuel, and electricity, poor roads in the region, and the highest unemployment rate compared to other regions of the country, the people have always maintained stability and order.

“However, the shooting of peaceful residents, the persecution of youth for any minor offenses by security forces, as well as their judicial prosecution, defamation, and discrediting of all residents of GBAO through the media, and pressure on the education, healthcare, business sectors, students, and other segments of society have crossed all boundaries of tolerance and patience,” they stated.

GBAO civil society activists called Emomali Rahmon the founder of peace and stated that his efforts to establish peace deserve praise, but it is even more difficult to maintain peace. They accused the authorities and law enforcement agencies in the region of undermining societal stability not only in this region but also in the country as a whole, and emphasized that their actions violate stability and peace in our beloved homeland.