Uzbekistan: The Saga of Bahodir Choriev

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TASHKENT 001631 SENSITIVE SIPDIS AMEMBASSY ASTANA PASS TO AMCONSUL ALMATY AMEMBASSY HELSINKI PASS TO AMCONSUL ST PETERSBURG AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PASS TO AMCONSUL VLADIVOSTOK AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PASS TO AMCONSUL YEKATERINBURG AMEMBASSY BELGRADE PASS TO AMEMBASSY PODGORICA AMEMBASSY ATHENS PASS TO AMCONSUL THESSALONIKI E.O. 12958: DECL: 2019/12/16 TAGS: PREL PHUM ELAB PGOV UZ SUBJECT: Uzbekistan: The Saga of Bahodir Choriev REF: 09 TASHKENT 1609; 09 TASHKENT 1593; 09 TASHKENT 1585 CLASSIFIED BY: Holly Lindquist Thomas,, P/E Officer, State, Tashkent; REASON: 1.4(B),(D) ¶1. (U) Summary: Uzbekistan officials forcibly returned Bahadir Choriev, leader of the Birdamlik opposition party, to the United States on the morning of December 11. Choriev's presence had prompted much attention from law enforcement officials, and rights activists are in many ways relieved to learn of his departure. End summary. ¶2. (U) Bahadir Choriev is the leader of the Birdamlik ("Unity") opposition party in Uzbekistan. In 2004 he fled to the United States as a refugee and gained notoriety as the "trucker opposition leader," driving a semi-truck around the country and talking about the situation in Uzbekistan to Uzbek exiles and anyone else who cared to listen. He also staged protests in Washington, at one point leading a protest against Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, complaining about its coverage of issues in Uzbekistan. ¶3. (SBU) In mid-October, Choriev returned to Uzbekistan. In a meeting with poloff on December 3, he stated that his return was motivated by a desire to help his activist friends and a sense of duty to his country. He stated his goal was to help create a country based upon the constitution and democratic principles, and to do so by non-violent means. He stated that he did not believe that revolution would be a good thing for Uzbekistan, as it would result in anarchy and extremism, but he hoped that he could work with other rights groups and the government to take steps to move Uzbekistan toward a more democratic system. ¶4. (U) Choriev's presence in Uzbekistan caused an immediate reaction: upon his arrival at the airport, officials seized his passport and U.S. green card, several t-shirts and hats with "Birdamlik" logos, and some personal possessions. Choriev moved to his hometown of Shakhrisabz (about 500 miles south of Tashkent) and remained under strict surveillance, with two cars following all of his movements. When he met with friends, they were harassed by law enforcement. In one case, activists he met with were beaten up (see Ref C). When he tried to hold a founding congress for his party, 30 of the 40 invitees were either detained or had their passports confiscated, and the congress had to be canceled (see Ref C). Following these problems, he decided to move to Tashkent to stay with a brother. ¶5. (U) On December 10, Choriev was called to the airport police station, ostensibly to retrieve his documents and belongings. He was held for several hours, and at 5am the next morning, officials escorted him aboard a plane back to the U.S., buying him an open-ended ticket and giving him just enough time to inform his Tashkent-based brother of the news. ¶6. (C) Even before he was expelled, activists had voiced their concerns with Choriev's activities (see Ref B),believing that he was naC/ve in trying promote nonviolent resistance as a method of political change in Uzbekistan, and that perhaps he forgot about the real situation here while he was away. Now that he has left, some activists have expressed their relief. Bakhtiyor Hamroev, one of the activists beaten up following a brief meeting with Choriev in November, told poloff today that he was glad Choriev left, as he brought too much negative attention to human TASHKENT 00001631 002 OF 002 rights activists, and was unintentionally causing them great difficulties. Even Birdamlik coordinator Diloram Ishakova was relieved, telling an internet news site that pressure against activists started after Choriev arrived, and that she believes it will subside after the upcoming parliamentary elections. ¶7. (SBU) Comment: Choriev seemed an unlikely leader for a color revolution, but officials may have viewed him as such. Part of the problem may have been simply bad timing, as parliamentary elections are approaching on December 27, and officials have noticeably clamped down on anything regarded as opposition activity in its run-up. He also did not have strong grass roots support, however, as the Birdamlik party has decreased in number since he departed (it was prevented from participating in the December 27 elections),and the human rights community viewed him with some suspicion and distrust. The future of Birdamlik as an opposition party, already questionable, is now even more uncertain. BUTCHER BUTCHER