Open letter to High Representative Catherine Ashton and Secretary Hillary Clinton regarding the continued incarceration of Azimjon Askarov

02/02/2012
Urgent Appeal
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Open letter to :

Honorable Catherine Ashton
High Representative for Foreign Affairs
and Security Policy
Berlaymont, Rue de la Loi 200
1049 Brussels Belgium

Honorable Hillary Clinton, Secretary
U.S. Department of State
2201 C St. NW
Washington, DC 20520

January 26, 2012

High Representative Ashton, Secretary Clinton:

We are writing to express our concern regarding the continued incarceration of Azimjon Askarov. Independent observers unanimously agree that Mr. Askarov’s trial and appeals were marred by serious procedural violations of the laws of the Kyrgyz Republic. During the trial his lawyers were subject to physical attack and threats in the courtroom in the presence of the judge and police, which made it impossible for them to effectively question witnesses.

While in pre-trial detention, Mr. Askarov, an elderly man, was himself the victim of torture. He was humiliated, beaten, and kicked until blood came from his mouth. He was denied access to a lawyer and was repeatedly interrogated as the police attempted to coerce him into testifying against other leaders of the Uzbek community. The police threatened to rape his wife and daughter in front of him.

A renowned U.S. medical expert recently examined Mr. Askarov and concluded that he has suffered severe and lasting physical injuries as a result of his arrest and incarceration. His injuries support his account of torture while in police custody. Mr. Askarov needs immediate medical help for persistent visual loss, traumatic brain injury, and spinal injury. In addition, he requires immediate evaluation for chest pain and shortness of breath, symptoms which are strongly suggestive of coronary artery disease and could be life threatening without immediate treatment. Despite his ill health, Mr. Askarov has announced his intention to embark on a hunger strike in protest at his unjust treatment.

During his many years of work as a human rights defender, Mr. Askarov made a significant contribution to efforts to improve the rule of law in the Kyrgyz Republic and to protect the rights of many individual citizens of the Republic. He is the recipient of numerous international awards for his human rights work. Based on the significant flaws in the handling of his case, his contributions to the Kyrgyz Republic, and his ill health we strongly believe that the Kyrgyz authorities should release him from prison so that he may seek the medical treatment he urgently requires. We have written directly to President Atambayev, but we also want to urge you to press him personally to grant Azimjon Askarov an immediate pardon on humanitarian grounds, or to ensure his release from prison in any other way acceptable under the laws of the Kyrgyz Republic.

Sincerely,

Albanian Helsinki Committe

Article 19

Belarusian Helsinki Committee

Belarusian Human Rights House

Bulgarian Helsinki Committee

CATENA

CATENA, (Turkmenistan)

CBM EU Liaison Office

Centre for Civil Liberties (Ukraine)

Crude Accountability

Centre for the Development of Democracy and
Human Rights (Russia)

EUCAM

Eurasian Transition Group

The Foreign Policy Centre

The Foreign Policy Initiative

Free Press Unlimited

Freedom Files

Freedom Files (Russia)

Freedom House

Frontline Defenders

Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association

Golos Svobody (Kyrgyzstan)

Helsinki Citizen’s Assembly – Vanadzor (Armenia)

Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia

Helsinki Committee of Armenia

Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (Poland)

Human Rights Centre (Azerbaijan)

Human Rights House Foundation (Norway)

Human Rights Monitoring Institute (Lithuania)

Human Rights Watch

Hungarian Helsinki Committee

Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety (Azerbaijan)

International Crisis Group

International Partnership for Human Rights (Belgium)

International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims

International Republican Institute

Jefferson Institute

Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights
and Rule of Law

Legal Policy Research Centre (Kazakhstan)

Moscow Helsinki Group

Netherlands Helsinki Committee

Norwegian Helsinki Committee

Nota Bene (Tajikistan)

The Observatory for the Protection of
Human Rights Defenders

Open Society Foundations

Partner Group Precedent

Partner Group Precedent (Kyrgyzstan)

People in Need (Czech Republic)

Physicians for Human Rights

Promo LEX Association (Moldova)

Protection International

Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union

UNITED for Intercultural Action

World Movement for Democracy

Youth Human Rights Movement

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