The Supreme Court confirmed the detention of hundreds of Badakhshan residents

The Chairman of the Supreme Court of Tajikistan stated that cases against residents of GBAO have been concluded.

Photo: Internet

The Chairman of the Supreme Court of Tajikistan Shermukhammad Shohiyon stated at a press conference on February 16 that the Supreme Court of Tajikistan has reviewed two cases concerning participants in the recent events in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region. According to him, 77 people were convicted in the first case, and 32 in the second.

The Chairman of the Supreme Court referred to the participants of the protest in Badakhshan as “leaders of criminal groups from Khorog and Rushan” and stated that all of them were held criminally liable for the crimes they committed according to the laws of the country and sentenced to imprisonment for terms ranging from 1-2 years to life.

The Chairman of the Supreme Court reported that he cannot provide detailed information on each case, as they are classified, and the court proceedings are held behind closed doors. Shohiyon explained that the events in Badakhshan posed a threat to national security, the safety of the people, and the constitutional order of the country, which is why they are classified.

At the press conference, Shohiyon mentioned films prepared by the authorities and “confessions” of some Badakhshan activists who were subjected to torture, which were broadcast on state television.

The Chairman of the Supreme Court accused informal leaders in Badakhshan of allegedly being funded for many years by “foreign masters” and opposition groups living abroad, with the aim of destabilizing the situation in Tajikistan. However, Shohiyon did not mention the name of any resident of Badakhshan and did not clarify whom he was referring to when speaking about foreign masters and traitors.

Shohiyon also stated that in the recent events in Badakhshan, as he put it, “criminal groups” were involved in the murder of law enforcement officers, blocking the international highway Tajikistan-China, and obstructing the normal functioning of government authorities by deceiving and provoking residents to take to the streets.

Shermukhammad Shohiyon emphasized that there is no need for further clarification on this issue. According to him, today the residents of Badakhshan continue to live and work “very freely,” and the criminal groups did not achieve their goal, that is, they were unable to destabilize the situation in Tajikistan.

Shermukhammad Shohiyon has repeatedly referred to Badakhshan activists as leaders of criminal groups. According to experts familiar with the situation in Badakhshan, law enforcement agencies themselves have committed brutal crimes in the region, killing and imprisoning residents of Badakhshan, thus suppressing the remaining dissenters. Even international organizations consider the activists whom Shohiyon calls leaders and participants of criminal groups to be innocent and have repeatedly called on the authorities to release them.