PROSECUTORS SEEK TO MERGE SUNSHINE COALITION LEADERS'

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TASHKENT 000269

SIPDIS


SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EUR/CACEN, SA, AND DRL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/02/2016
TAGS: PHUM PREL PGOV ECON UZ
SUBJECT: PROSECUTORS SEEK TO MERGE SUNSHINE COALITION LEADERS'
TRIALS

CLASSIFIED BY AMB. JON R. PURNELL, FOR REASONS 1.4 (B, D).

REF: TASHKENT 0186 AND PREVIOUS


1. (C) Summary: January 30 was scheduled to be the last day of
Sunshine Coalition co-founder Nodira Khidoyatova's trial on
tax evasion charges. It also was to be the first day of
fellow co-founder Sanjar Umarov's trial on similar
accusations. Instead, the judge postponed action on both
cases and entertained a prosecution motion to combine the two
into a single trial. Surprisingly, diplomats and human rights
activists were allowed to observe the hearing. Given the
legal maneuvering by the prosecutor and defense attorneys, we
expect the process to continue until mid-February. Despite
the increased time now being dedicated to the two cases, in
the end, we expect the final verdicts will be "guilty," but in
view of the bizarre theatrics involved in the process, we
cannot exclude the possibility of light or even suspended
sentences. End summary.

ACT ONE: NODIRA KHIDOYATOVA'S NON-VERDICT
--------------


2. (C) Sources in the Free Farmers Party (Ozod Dehqonlar)
informed the Embassy that judge Zakir Isayev of the Tashkent
City Criminal Court would deliver a verdict in the tax evasion
trial of Sunshine Coalition co-founder Nodira Khidoyatova on
the morning of January 30. Fellow co-founder Sanjar Umarov's
trial was scheduled to begin on the same day. That morning,
guards admitted about 20 observers, including poloff and a
British diplomat, human rights activists, and Khidoyatova's
family, into the cramped basement courtroom. Nodira
Khidoyatova sat in the defendant's cage. Her sister, Ozod
Dehqonlar head Nigora Khidoyatova, told poloff later that her
sister seemed well and in good spirits. (Comment: We agree.
Nodira looked healthy, well rested, and fashionably dressed in
jeans, a sweater, and high-heeled shoes. She held a Bible,
which she occasionally opened to apparently random pages and
read during the prosecuting attorney's presentation. End
comment.) She frequently made eye contact with her sister,
and on occasion the two whispered to each other, and even
shared a laugh across the courtroom.


3. (C) As the hearing began, the judge denied motions,
reportedly filed earlier by the defendant herself, to declare
the hearing closed and to fire her defense attorney.
(Comment: If Khidoyatova indeed filed such motions, she may
have done so under pressure from investigators. End comment.)
The State Prosecutor then read the indictment against
Khidoyatova. The indictment included the accusation that, as
director of the petroleum firm Buyuk Siymolar, Khidoyatova had
conspired with Sanjar Umarov to sell Uzbek petroleum products
abroad and hide the proceeds - allegedly more than USD 3
million - from tax authorities in offshore bank accounts.
(Note: While post has no information suggesting that
Khidoyatova has had business dealings with Umarov, we would
not be surprised if the two cooperated in business, though
Khidoyatova's family has consistently denied it. End note.)


4. (C) In light of government accusations of complicity
between Khidoyatova and Umarov, the prosecutor asked the judge
to combine the two cases into a single trial. Both the
prosecutor and defense attorney asked the judge to instruct
the attorneys on how to proceed. The judge thus adjourned the
trial until the afternoon. During the recess, Khidoyatova
reportedly met with her defense attorney. In the afternoon
hearing, which lasted about 35 minutes, Khidoyatova again
firmly denied the charges against her and asked that
additional specialists be called to testify regarding Buyuk
Siymolar company documents, including records of previous tax
inspections, which she said would prove her innocence. It is
still unclear whether both Khidoyatova and Umarov will
eventually appear in court together.

ACT TWO: SANJAR UMAROV'S FALSE START
--------------


5. (C) After a brief intermission, court officials summoned
observers back into the courtroom for the opening of Sanjar
Umarov's trial. Umarov is accused of grand larceny and tax
evasion, in addition to other charges, in connection with his
business dealings. Umarov is being tried together with three
other men, identified as technical specialists with one of
Umarov's petroleum ventures: Rashot Hasanboyev, Ilhom Usmanov,
and Ravshan Babajanov. Babajanov had not been arrested, and

TASHKENT 00000269 002 OF 002


was therefore seated in the front bench of the courtroom, and
not in the defendants' cage with Umarov, Hasanboyev, and
Usmanov. (Comment: Umarov, like Khidoyatova, appeared healthy,
alert, and relaxed. End comment.)


6. (C) The judge opened the hearing and informed the
defendants of their rights and responsibilities in court.
Then Babajanov's attorney, noting that he had only recently
joined the defense team, asked the judge to postpone the trial
for four days while he familiarized himself with the case
materials. Judge Isayev asked the prosecutor for his opinion,
whereupon the prosecutor stood and declared, "The law gives
each defendant the right to an attorney who is well informed
on his case. As the defense attorney's motion does not
contradict the law, I support it." (Comment: The prosecutor's
statement was unnecessary and clearly intended for the benefit
of the observers. End comment.) Thus, the judge adjourned the
trial until Friday, February 3.

WHAT'S NEXT?
--------------


7. (C) Umarov's lawyer noted that, if the judge agrees to
consider the Umarov and Khidoyatova cases as one, the two
defendants may or may not appear in court together. He said
that combining the cases would be difficult, as there would be
two defense teams on the same case with different sets of
information. Nigora Khidoyatova said that, in view of the
defense motions for new evidence and witnesses, she expects
the trial to continue at least until mid-February.


8. (C) Comment: We expect that the Umarov-Khidoyatova trial
will continue to be open to the public (or as much public as
will fit into the small basement courtroom). While post has
yet to receive an official response to its request for access,
courthouse guards put up little resistance to the diplomats
and unregistered human rights activists who appeared at the
court. Much of the process seems geared to international
observers, including the defendants' incongruously fashionable
dress and the prosecuting attorney's paean on the rights of
defendants. Notwithstanding the GOU's formalistic show of
openness and transparency, it would be unprecedented if the
trial did not end with a guilty verdict. However, this is no
ordinary case, and Umarov and Khidoyatova are no ordinary
defendants. We cannot exclude the possibility of unusually
light or even suspended sentences.

PURNELL