UZBEKISTAN: AUTHORITIES MOVING TO DEPORT

C O N F I D E N T I A L TASHKENT 000792 SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA, DRL, AND INR E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/09/2018 TAGS: PHUM KDEM KIRF PGOV PINR PREL PTER SOCI UZ SUBJECT: UZBEKISTAN: AUTHORITIES MOVING TO DEPORT OPPOSITION LEADER REF: A. TASHKENT 767 ¶B. TASHKENT 777 ¶C. 07 TASHKENT 2012 ¶D. TASHKENT 609 Classified By: POLOFF R. FITZMAURICE FOR REASONS 1.4 (B, D) ¶1. (C) Summary: During a three-day visit to the Ferghana Valley on June 25 - 27, poloff visited Birlik opposition political party Deputy Chairman Pulat Akhunov, who returned to Uzbekistan from exile in Sweden in March 2007 to renew his passport, at his family's estate in Andijon province. Akhunov explained that authorities have so far refused to issue him a new passport, making it impossible for him to leave the country or travel unimpeded within Uzbekistan. Akhunov also described Birlik's plans to hold a national conference in Tashkent in August to elect its leadership and to discuss nominating candidates for the 2009 Parliamentary Election; expressed Birlik's openness towards dialogue with the Karimov regime and its support for greater engagement between the Uzbek government and the West, which he believed would result in greater protections for activists; and heavily criticized the other main opposition parties. On July 3, Akhunov reported that authorities prevented him from leaving Andijon province to attend the Embassy's 4th of July party. Authorities also warned two other Ferghana Valley activists not to attend the event and prevented two activists from meeting with poloff in Andijon on June 26. On July 7, Akhunov informed poloff that he been summoned to a court in Andijon province on July 9 to review his "residency status" in Uzbekistan. Akhunov speculated that authorities were moving to deport him from Uzbekistan, an analysis with which we tend to agree. We will continue to watch Akhunov's case closely, and will lodge a complaint with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs over the harassment of our human rights contacts in the Ferghana Valley, which interferes in our ability to objectively report on the human rights situation in Uzbekistan. End summary. ¶2. (C) During the three-day visit to the Ferghana Valley, poloff also met with recently released activist Mutabar Tojiboyeva at a private hospital in Margilan and discussed the lessening of visible extremist activity in the Ferghana Valley with activists and imams (refs A and B). RETURN FROM SWEDEN TO NEW EXILE AT HOME -------------- ¶3. (C) Accompanied by Ferghana-based human rights activist Abdusalom Ergashev, poloff met with Birlik opposition party Deputy Chairman Pulat Akhunov at his family's estate in Andijon province on June 26. Akhunov returned to Uzbekistan from exile in Sweden in March 2007 to renew his Uzbek passport, which had expired after he turned 45 years' of age (Note: All Uzbek citizens must renew their passports at 25 and 45 years' of age. End note.) He said that he returned because "like many Uzbeks abroad," he "missed his homeland" and wished to visit his relatives in Uzbekistan, including his elderly mother. He also reported freely traveling back and forth between Uzbekistan and Sweden in 2002 and 2003. During his 2003 trip to Uzbekistan, Akhunov participated in a large conference of human rights and opposition activists in Tashkent, in which the delegates voted in favor of pursuing greater dialogue with the government. He also attempted to create an initiative group to run in the 2004 Parliamentarian election as an independent candidate, but the Central Election Committee refused to recognize the initiative group (Note: Birlik remains an unregistered political party and cannot nominate individuals for elections. Individuals can run as independent candidates by forming initiative groups to nominate them. End note.) Akhunov previously served three years in prison in the early 1990s for organizing illegal demonstrations and was later amnestied and granted refugee status in Sweden. Akhunov's family, including his one daughter and four sons, remain in Sweden. UZBEKS STILL REFUSE TO GRANT AKHUNOV NEW PASSPORT -------------- -------------- ¶4. (C) After submitting his passport for renewal to the local Ministry of Interior Passport Office (OVIR) in Andijon province in April 2007, Akhunov said that the OVIR office refused to renew his Uzbek passport or return his old passport. Without a passport, Akhunov cannot leave Uzbekistan or travel freely around Uzbekistan. His only identification is a Swedish identity card (not a passport), which is not recognized by Uzbek authorities. ¶5. (C) Initially, Akhunov assumed that Uzbek authorities were worried that he might attempt to play some role for Birlik in the December 2007 presidential elections and were delaying the renewal of his passport until after the election. However, when authorities still refused to issue him a passport after the elections, he sued the Andijon OVIR office at a civil court in Tashkent. In April, the civil court dismissed Akhunov case, claiming he had failed to demonstrate to OVIR that he was not a citizen of Sweden (Note: Uzbekistan does not recognize dual-citizenship. End note.) Akhunov asserted that he was not a citizen of Sweden, and submitted to OVIR an official document from the Swedish government to this effect. However, according to Akhunov, OVIR refused to accept the document, claiming that the Swedish government had to reply directly to an official request for information supposedly made by OVIR. Akhunov appealed the court's decision, but he was prevented from attending his appeal by police who detained him on his way to Tashkent. Akhunov believed that he had exhausted all of his available appeals in Uzbekistan and now planned to appeal to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva. ATTACKED IN THE STATE-CONTROLLED MEDIA -------------- ¶6. (C) Akhunov is not under house arrest, and he has been able to travel to Tashkent on occasion, but he is frequently detained by police when he attempts to leave Andijon province and is forced to return home (see para 20). Akhunov speculated that the Uzbek authorities were seeking to make him an example and thus discourage other political exiles from returning home to Uzbekistan. As proof, he shared with a poloff a May 23 article which appeared in the state-controlled Andijon Pravda newspaper, in which the author harshly criticized Akhunov, claiming that he already possessed German and Swedish citizenship and was only seeking "Uzbek citizenship" to continue his "political games" (Comment: According to Akhunov, he has never given up his Uzbek citizenship. End comment.) PULATOV STILL IN CHARGE OF BIRLIK -------------- ¶7. (C) Akhunov confirmed that Abdurakhmon Pulatov, who resides in Washington, remains the undisputed leader of Birlik and its main fundraiser, while Akhunov is Pulatov's deputy. Akhunov reported that Birlik has been holding regional conferences throughout Uzbekistan this year in order to select delegates to attend Birlik's national conference in Tashkent, which is scheduled for August. Birlik's branches in Kokand and Namangan were able to hold their regional conferences on March 9, but Akhunov stated that authorities have so far prevented the Andijon branch from holding its regional meeting. At the national conference in August, Birlik will elect its leadership, although Akhunov fully expected Pulatov to be reelected as party leader and himself as deputy. Birlik also plans to discuss nominating individuals to participate in the 2009 Parliamentary elections as independent candidates. BIRLIK FAVORS ENGAGEMENT WITH THE GOVERNMENT -------------- ¶8. (C) Akhunov stated that Birlik sought constructive relations with the Uzbek government, not confrontation. By engaging in discussion with the government, Akhunov believed that it was possible to resolve their disagreements. With regret, he noted that the government has so far not reciprocated any interest in dialogue with Birlik or other opposition groups. He believed that the "example of Gorbachev" was still too fresh in the minds of government officials and they likely feared that any attempt to liberalize Uzbekistan's political discourse may eventually bring the entire regime and country to the point of collapse. ¶9. (C) Akhunov also supported greater engagement between the Uzbek government and the United States and the European Union. He acknowledged that the government had made modest positive steps since relations began to warm with the West, but he believed that the government has not made any systematic improvements on human rights. Nevertheless, he believed that a further improvement in relations would result in better protections for activists, while further isolating the Uzbek government would likely place activists in greater danger. Akhunov said that a Birlik delegation met with members of the European Parliament and argued against sanctions for Uzbekistan. Akhunov was also critical of what he perceived as Sweden's support for sanctions against Uzbekistan, which he believed was largely because Sweden lacked an embassy in Tashkent and its government was therefore not well-informed about conditions in the country. He noted that a Swedish delegation visited shortly before the EU decided again to suspend visa restrictions on selected Uzbek officials for another six months in April, and he regretted that they did not travel to the Ferghana Valley to inspect conditions there. He agreed with poloff that it was in the interest of the government to register groups like Birlik, Ezgulik, and Human Rights Watch, who might be able to independently verify any positive steps the government makes on human rights, but Akhunov doubted this would occur any time soon, acknowledging that "the government loves to shoot itself in the foot." ¶10. (C) Poloff pointed out the apparent contradictions in public statements made by Ezgulik human rights group head and Birlik Secretary General Vasila Inoyatova, who has recently voiced support for both greater engagement with and greater isolation for the Karimov regime. Akhunov acknowledged the apparent contradictions, and explained that while Inoyatova was a member of Birlik, her principal role was the Chairperson of Ezgulik. As the head of a human rights group, Akhunov believed that it was Inoyatova's responsibility to take a more "ideologically pure" but less pragmatic stance on engagement with the Uzbek government. AGAINST THE ODDS, EZGULIK RECONSTITUTING ANDIJON BRANCH -------------- -------------- ¶11. (C) Akhunov reported that Ezgulik - one of Uzbekistan's only nationally-registered human rights groups, which is closely connected to the Birlik opposition political party - was attempting to reconstitute its Andijon branch, which was forced to close after the 2005 events. Andijon-based Ezgulik member Nurmuhammed Azizov recently received an Embassy Democracy Commission grant to restart the organization, which he will head in conjunction with recently released activist Saidjahan Zaybiddinov (thus forming the first active human rights group in Andijon since the 2005 events). Akhunov reported that Azizov had submitted the necessary registration documentation with Andijon-province authorities on April 14, at which time he was told he would have an answer in two months. On June 14, Azizov was reportedly told to wait another month, and still has not yet received a response. Despite their lack of registration status in Andijon province, Akhunov reported that the members of Ezgulik's Andijon branch have been attempting to meet together at least once a month to discuss human rights developments in the province, but some activists from the regions are detained and prevented from attending the meetings (Note: While Ezgulik is registered nationally, its local branch organizations must register separately at the regional and local levels. Ezgulik's branch offices are registered in some areas and unregistered in others, but it now has active chapters in most regions of the country. End note.) CRITICISM, DEFENSE OF ERK OPPOSITION PARTY -------------- ¶12. (C) Akhunov was critical of the Erk opposition party, which began as a splinter party of Birlik (Uzbekistan's first true opposition party),and its leader, Muhammad Solih. Akhunov argued that Erk was much less active in Uzbekistan than Birlik, and most of its activities were conducted by exiles in Europe, especially in Sweden (Comment: In contrast, Birlik appears less active in Sweden and elsewhere in Europe, at least based on Akhunov's description of the party's overseas activities. End comment.) Akhunov said he still respected Solih, whom he described as "charismatic," and was a fan of Solih's poetry, though he thought less of his prowess as a politician. Akhunov alleged that Solih, who now resides in Norway, was no longer actively engaged in politics, but spent most of his time writing books. ¶13. (C) Akhunov also portrayed Solih as being a political opportunist who was ready to side with religious extremists when it was politically convenient for him to do so. He reported that during a radio interview with Radio Ozodlik in 1993, Solih voiced support for the Taliban's capture of Kabul, arguing that it would be bring stability in the country. Akhunov reported that Solih also met with Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) leader Tohir Yuldashev in Istanbul in 1995. Akhunov argued that Solih irresponsibly mixed religion and politics, which he believed then allowed Uzbek authorities to accuse him of playing a role in the 1999 Tashkent bombings. In contrast, Akhunov argued that Birlik and its leaders were careful not to associate too closely with religious extremist. He admitted that Pulatov also met briefly with Yuldashev in Istanbul around the same time as Solih, but said that Pulatov and Yuldashev found little common ground. Their alleged discussion quickly degenerated into an argument over Pulatov not knowing the correct direction to Mecca, leading Yuldashev to reportedly threaten Pulatov. ¶14. (C) Ergashev, who was previously a member of both Birlik and Erk, defended Erk and Solih. He reported being told by unnamed Turkish colleagues that Pulatov and Yuldashev discussed forming a common front against President Karimov, but their discussions stalled after they could not decide which one of them would lead it. He admitted that Solih also met briefly with Yuldashev, but claimed that Solih was verbally abused by Yuldashev and almost immediately left the meeting, but not before a photo of them together was taken. Ergashev believed that the whole incident was a provocation aimed at discrediting Solih. Ergashev also defended Solih's statement about the Taliban, arguing that the Taliban were originally students from Kandahar who sought to combat corruption and moral degradation, but were later themselves corrupted by power and the influence of Pakistan. CRITICISM OF BIRDAMLIK, AGRARIAN, AND FREE FARMERS PARTIES -------------- -------------- ¶15. (C) Akhunov scoffed at a recent internet article in which Birdamlik opposition party leader Bokhodir Chiroyev claims that his organization has become the most active opposition group in Uzbekistan. Akhunov agreed that Birdamlik's activities in Uzbekistan have increased lately, but only because Chiroyev, who lives in the United States, "pays his members well through Western Union." Akhunov was unsure of the source of Birdamlik's funding and did not have a solid grasp of their activities, but believed that Chiroyev funded his opposition activities through a business that he operated in the United States with his brothers. ¶16. (C) Akhunov was also dismissive of the Agrarian and Free Farmer opposition political parties. With the exception of Birlik and Erk, which continue to hold meetings for its members in the regions, he noted that the opposition parties had "few members outside of Tashkent." (Comment: While some observers argue that the Agrarian and Free Farmers Party have supplanted Erk and Birlik as the most dynamic opposition parties in Uzbekistan (ref C),we tend to agree with Akhunov's view. Poloff has met with Birlik and Erk members from almost every region of Uzbekistan, but he has met very few Free Farmers or Agrarian party members other than their respective leaders, Nigara Khidoyatova and Marat Zahidov. While we believe that these parties are not complete shams and also have their members in the regions, they appear to be fewer in number and less active than members of Birlik and Erk. Both Birlik and Erk have been weakened over the years through petty infighting and the fact that most of their leaders remain in exile, but we nevertheless believe they remain the most credible Uzbek opposition parties at the moment. We know little about the activities of Birdamlik, but suspect they are less widespread than their public comments suggest. End comment.) THE TRUE FATHERS OF UZBEK INDEPENDENCE? -------------- ¶17. (C) Akhunov shared with poloff several stories about his experience as an elected member of the Soviet Union's last parliament, the Congress of People's Deputies, from 1989 to ¶1991. Only 27-years old at the time he was first elected, Akhunov was the youngest of the parliament's more than thousand deputies. Akhunov recalled how during the August 1991 coup against Gorbachev, Islam Karimov, then the head of the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic, sent a letter to his regional administrators instructing them to support the coup. Ergashev, then a member of Birlik, got a hold of the letter and managed through contacts to have it delivered to Akhunov in Moscow, who by that time was part of the parliamentary committee investigating the coup. Akhunov said he shared the letter with Gorbachev on August 30, 1991, who was reportedly infuriated by its contents. According to Akhunov, the very next day, on August 31, Uzbekistan declared independence from the Soviet Union. Akhunov and Ergashev speculated that Karimov, who they said had not originally supported independence from the Soviet Union, might have decided at that point to declare Uzbekistan independent because he feared being arrested by Gorbachev for his role in supporting the August coup (Comment: It is impossible to verify this story, but if at least partially true, it could explain Karimov's apparent enmity towards Akhunov. End comment.) POLOFF PREVENTED FROM MEETING ANDIJON ACTIVISTS -------------- -- ¶18. (C) Prior to his meeting with Akhunov on June 26, poloff was prevented from meeting with Zaybiddinov and Azizov in Andijon city, who were detained by police that morning. Azizov was detained at a local police station while Zaybiddinov was held at a local tea house. Shortly after leaving Andijon province, poloff received word that both men were released from custody. The incident was reported that night on Uzbek-language Radio Ozodlik, which included telephone interviews with Akhunov and Zaybiddinov. Poloff later spoke with Zaybiddinov, who explained that he was treated "with respect" by the police and provided lunch, but was also told that he could not leave the teahouse until poloff left Andijon province. Zaybiddinov further explained that he was prevented by authorities from traveling to Tashkent in April to meet with poloff. Despite the detentions, Zaybiddinov requested that poloff continue to remain in close contact with him, as he believed it provided him with a certain amount of protection fr om the authorities. ¶19. (C) On June 26, Akhunov speculated that the detentions of Azizov and Zaybiddinov were the result of an overreaction by local authorities in Andijon, and not the result of an order from Tashkent. Since the 2005 Andijon events, he said that Andijon's regional administration has become the most paranoid in Uzbekistan and sought to limit any independent activity. AKHUNOV PREVENTED FROM ATTENDING 4TH OF JULY RECEPTION -------------- -------------- ¶20. (C) On July 3, Akhunov informed poloff by telephone that authorities once again prevented him from leaving Andijon province and therefore could not attend the Embassy's 4th of July party. Zaybiddinov was also prevented from attending the event. In addition, recently released activist Mutabar Tojiboyeva was told by local police that she could not leave Margilan to attend the 4th of July event, even though she was earlier told by local police that she could attend the event (ref A). Zaybiddinov noted that the July 4 event was very well-attended by government officials, and speculated that authorities might therefore have decided to prevent the Ferghana Valley activists from attending (Comment: While we believe there is some truth to Zaybiddinov's observation, many other opposition and human rights activists freely attended the 4th of July event, including some from the Ferghana Valley. End comment.) AUTHORITIES MAY DEPORT AKHUNOV -------------- ¶21. (C) On July 7, Akhunov called poloff to inform him that he been summoned to a court in Andijon province on July 9 to review his "residency status" in Uzbekistan. Akhunov speculated that authorities were moving to deport him from Uzbekistan and possibly strip him of whatever remains of his Uzbek citizenship. To a certain degree, Akhunov seemed relieved that the Uzbek government appeared to be making a final decision regarding his status, even if it means he will be deported back to Sweden without an Uzbek passport. COMMENT -------------- ¶22. (C) Especially compared to other Uzbek human rights and opposition activists, Akhunov struck us as being particularly articulate and politically savvy, and he appears to be well-respected by others. We agree with Akhunov that the Uzbek government appears to be moving to finally deport him from Uzbekistan back to Sweden. While Akhunov claimed that he had not consulted with the Uzbek government before returning to Uzbekistan, we know of several other recent cases where Uzbek officials or intermediaries aided the return of exiles and refugees. For example, another young Erk opposition activist who returned to Uzbekistan from Sweden at roughly the same time as Akhunov reported receiving an offer of safe return by government intermediaries as long as he promised to stay out of politics. The young oppositionist was eventually sentenced to prison in Uzbekistan on what appear (at least so far) to have been legitimate charges of assault (ref D). In addition, we have heard from several activists that officials at Uzbek Embassies in Europe and the United States aided the return of Andijon refugees with unofficial offers of amnesty, at least two of whom appear to have been later sentenced to prison in Uzbekistan (septel). These efforts might be part of a government campaign to either weaken the opposition parties or silence some of its critics by offering certain exiles and refugees amnesty and safe return to Uzbekistan. However, why the government would then subsequently persecute some of these individuals remains unclear. The government's attack on Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's (RFE/RL) broadcasts might also fit into this pattern. ¶23. (C) Harassment of our human rights contacts in Andijon and elsewhere continues to interfere with our ability to objectively report on the human rights situation in Uzbekistan. We will lodge a complaint with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs over the detention of Zaybiddinov and Azizov during poloff's trip to Andijon on June 26 and the decision of authorities to prevent Akhunov, Zaybiddinov, and Tojiboyeva from attending our 4th of July event. As Akhunov noted, the government is often its very worst enemy, as detaining activists so that they cannot meet with poloff and others comes off much worse than anything the activists are likely to report. We also will continue to watch Akhunov's case closely, and will weigh in against any attempt to deport him or strip him of his Uzbek citizenship without due process of law. NORLAND