Uzbek Authorities Foil Activists' Attempts to Commemorate Andijan Anniversary
Human rights activists in Uzbekistan planned to demonstrate on the sixth anniversary of the massacre of demonstrators in Andijan in 2005, but authorities foiled them at every turn.
Various civic groups had called on citizens to come and lay flowers at the Monument of Courage in Tashkent in memory of the victims of the tragedy, in which hundreds of protesters were killed in the Ferghana Valley city.
Yet today security authorities sent in brigades of city workers to plant flowers near the monument and also deployed evidently pro-government youth supporters to discourage the protest, the independent website uznews.net reported.
Uzbek labor rights activist Abdullo Tojiboy-ugli had planned to rally day laborers for a protest, but called from a police station to say that the cops had other plans for him, uznews.net reported. His appeals on the Internet apparently went unread by workers as they failed to show up.
An independent journalist, Marina Veliyeva, told uznews.net that she couldn't leave the house as police were blocking her exit. Tatyana Dovlatova and Vladimir Khusainov suddenly found they had police escorts ready to drive them to a doctor's appointment and take them anywhere -- except to the Monument of Courage.
Anatoly Volkov, who had initiated the open call for remembering the victims, said his house was surrounded by police starting last night, but anticipating trouble, he didn't spent the night at home, and was able to get to the Monument early in the morning to place his flowers.
The Uzbek government has refused to permit an international inquiry into the events of 2005, claiming it was a security operation against extremists and militants and was properly handled. The call for an investigation was among a list of demands for reform in Uzbekistan to precede better relations with the European Union, but the EU dropped its sanctions and the call for the inquiry in 2009.
Uzbekistan replied to a query about the failure to permit an international inquiry from the UN Committee Against Torture by referencing the EU decision:
An independent international inquiry into the events is not necessary. The European Union External Relations Council decided to completely remove the restrictive measures with regard to Uzbekistan adopted in 2005 in connection with the Andijan events.
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