Uzbek authorities fearful of people dressed in white Police in Tashkent prevented a group of activists dressed in white from gathering at Alayskiy Market today. “We were planning on having lunch and taking a photo there,” says Malokhot Jeshankulova,the leader of Birdamlik in Uzbekistan. Apparently the police were unhappy with this meeting and so decided to intimidate some of the members of the group. Knock-knock! Who is there? Jeshankulova reports that someone loudly knocked on her door for about twenty minutes around midnight last night. “The person kept quiet and stood to the side of the door so as not to be visible through the peephole,” says Jeshankulova. She asked her relative,who lives nearby,to come and see who was at the door. He reported that there were two police officers in front of her apartment building. The knocking repeated in the morning. This time the visitors did not hide and she saw two men in civilian clothes through the peephole. She decided to not open the door and a little later heard that they were trying to pick the lock. When they discovered that her key was inserted in the keyhole from the inside they went away. Dressed in white? Stay home! While Jeshankulova was harassed using psychological means,her fellow activist Shukhrat Rustamov was taken physically to Shaykhantokhurkiy district police station this morning. There he was told in no uncertain terms to spend the day at home. Activists Vladimir Khusainov,Tatiana Davlatova and Chamangul Negmanova were put under a house “arrest” of sorts – police cars were parked in front of their houses and did not let them leave their homes. As a result,none of the group’s members were able to reach the market. The activists attracted the attention of the police for having participated in a white gathering yesterday afternoon at Ferganskiy Market. They did nothing wrong during yesterday’s gathering. They had lunch at a café and took a photo while wearing white clothes. They were nonetheless observed by several individuals in civilian clothes who took photographs of them with mobile phones. The Birdamlik opposition movement – based on the principles of nonviolent resistance – is currently running its annual OSH (Ommoviy Shodlik,massive joy) campaign that will continue until September 10. As part of the campaign,participants have been asked to take pictures of themselves in white clothing in public places. Uznews.net
Posted on: Thu, 05 Sep 2013 21:07:27 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015