Amnesty International Report 2017/2018 The State of World’s Human Rights, an annual report released by Amnesty International (AI) on February 21, notes that the Tajik authorities continued to impose sweeping restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression and of peaceful assembly in 2017 to silence critical voices.  Police and security services reportedly continued to persecute human rights lawyers and their families.  Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people were subjected to violence, arbitrary arrest and discrimination, according to the report.  The authorities forced thousands of women to remove their hijabs to comply with the law on traditions, the report says.

Tajik lawyers under pressure

The report says less than half of the 2,000 lawyers registered nationwide had managed to requalify by December and were licensed to practice.  Amendments introduced in 2015 to the law on the legal profession reportedly increased government control over the licensing of lawyers and significantly cut the total number of lawyers licensed to practice, drastically reducing citizens‘ access to justice.

Defense lawyers who took up politically sensitive cases, or cases related to national security and counter-terrorism, faced increasing harassment, intimidation and undue pressure in connection with their legitimate professional activities. Human rights lawyers faced arbitrary arrests, prosecutions on politically motivated charges, harsh prison sentences and the harassment of their families and colleagues. Many human rights lawyers fled the country for safety, according to the report. 

Undermining of traditional cultural values

Consensual same-sex sexual relations were not criminalized but continued to be highly stigmatized.  Since 2014, the Interior Ministry included “homosexuality and lesbianism” in its list of “amoral crimes, prostitution and procurement”.  The report says LGBTI people were targeted in two public campaigns to prevent and combat “amoral behavior” and crimes against “morality” launched in 2015 by the Office of the Prosecutor General, the Interior Ministry and the State Committee on Women’s Affairs and Family.   LGBTI individuals were reportedly subjected to violence, arbitrary arrests, detention and discrimination, including being forcibly registered on MIA lists.  In October, the Interior Minister announced that the names and personal details of 367 individuals suspected of being LGBTI had been entered on the Interior Ministry register ostensibly to protect them and to “prevent the transmission of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS.”  The authorities accused NGOs working with LGBTI people in the context of sexual health of undermining traditional cultural values.

Many women had their hijabs forcibly removed

The report says that President Emomali Rahmon in August last year signed into law amendments to the Law on Traditions regulating the practice of cultural traditions and celebrations.  The amendments compelled citizens to wear traditional dress at cultural celebrations or ceremonies, such as weddings and funerals.  Women in particular were prohibited from wearing black at funerals.

In the same month, police and local officials reportedly approached over 8,000 women who were wearing the Islamic headscarf (hijab) in public places, ordered them to remove it because it was against the law and asked them instead to wear a headscarf tied behind the head in the “traditional Tajik way.”

Dozens of women were briefly detained, many had their hijabs forcibly removed, according to the report.  Government officials reportedly claimed that the hijab was a form of “alien culture and tradition” and a sign of “extremism”.  Shops selling Islamic clothing were raided by security forces and many were forced to close.

Information under control

The report says the Tajik authorities last year continued to impose sweeping restrictions on freedom of expression and the media and controlled virtually all forms of access to information.

Journalists reportedly continued to be subjected to intimidation and harassment by police and security services.  Tens of journalists were forced to flee the country fearing reprisals for their critical reporting.

In May, the authorities unblocked access to some social media sites and search platforms, such as Facebook, Vkontakte and YouTube.  However, access to media platforms considered to be promoting

“extremism”, such as BBC, CNN and Ferghana.ru, reportedly continued to be blocked.

In July, Parliament adopted new legislation granting the police and security services powers to obtain information about internet sites visited by individuals.  The law was proposed following claims, which were not substantiated, by some officials that over 80% of internet users accessed sites with “extremist” content, according to the report.