A powerful earthquake registering 6.2 on the Richter scale struck Ferghana Valley early July 20, affecting Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. The epicenter of the quake was about 45 kilometers south of the Uzbek city of Ferghana. Unlike some past disasters or politically-sensitive news, the state media immediately announced the earthquake and said that people had been driven from their homes in Tashkent and other areas. While at first no casualties were reported, the Uzbek Emergencies Ministry soon reported at least 13 deaths and 86 injuries. Tajikistan reported one death. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported one activist who said at least five people were killed and over 40 people hospitalized in the Uzbek district of Rishton alone, not far from the Kyrgyz border.
The natural disaster immediately invoked memories of past devastating earthquakes in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan in 1948 and Tashkent in 1966, which had flattened the cities and caused numerous deaths not acknowledged at the time. The Uzbek official state media appeared to report the situation accurately this time, yet couldn’t resist taking a swipe at Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan for planning hydroelectric power stations in the seismologically sensitive regions, which Tashkent opposes primarily because of the potential impact on its irrigation-intensive cotton industry.
There were no reports of collapsed buildings, but it was not certain if any lapses in building codes may have led to the deaths and injuries.
While news of political prisoners in Uzbekistan is generally grim, and dozens of human rights advocates and journalists as well as thousands of religious believers remain imprisoned and in many cases have suffered torture, two cases were resolved this month after considerable outside intervention. Colonel Yuri Korepanov (Ret.), a Russian military officer who was earlier this year arrested and sentenced to 16 years of imprisonment on vague charges of border-crossing and treason for reasons unknown, was finally released from prison, fergananews.com reported.
Colonel Korepanov’s family and Russian parliamentarians had kept up a vocal campaign for his release after his arrest in January, and it is believed that Russian President Dmitry Medvedev likely raised the case during his meeting last month with Uzbek President Islam Karimov. The Russian military man fell ill in prison and had been hospitalized in the prison infirmary before his release.
Abdumalik Boboyev, a correspondent for the US-sponsored Voice of America, has finally been permitted to travel to Germany, ferghananews.com reported. Boboyev was arrested and charged with "libel" last year for his broadcasts, as well as unlawful border-crossing. He managed to avoid prison and the latter charges after an intensive campaign on his behalf by human rights activists and both public and private intervention by US diplomats, but was fined $11,000 for "insulting the Uzbek people."
The journalist was invited for a year of study at a Hamburg institute, but was initially denied permission to travel as a person still under a court ruling. Uzbekistan still retains the Soviet-era practice of requiring exit visas to travel from the country. Finally, Boboyev was authorized to travel abroad for two years, and says he intends to return home after completing his studies.
Boboyev was interviewed before his departure and asked about the potential for an “Arab Spring” in Uzbekistan. He appeared to discount the possibility but said the authorities clearly feared the imitation of the Middle Eastern models, as they had placed increased pressure on reporters and further controls over the Internet and cell phones.
The Uzbek regime seems determined to cut off contact with concerned foreigners and stem the flow of any negative information. A British Embassy staffer was fined the equivalent of $1,600 for “organizing an unauthorized meeting” with human rights advocates, fergananews.com reported.
Leonid Kudryavtsev, a citizen of Uzbekistan employed in the press section of the UK Embassy, was accused of running illegal meetings with local activists. He denied the charges, saying that several educational meetings held at the Embassy with human rights groups were legitimate and in keeping with Uzbekistan’s obligations under international law.
Kudryavtsev has a variety of duties in the press section, including writing press releases, and has accompanied Ambassador Rupert Joy around the country, notably a recent trip through the Ferghana Valley to see local businesses. The Uzbek government appears to have selected a vulnerable staff member without diplomatic immunity, due to his Uzbek citizenship to “send a message.” The Uzbek government could also be retaliating for a number of occasions recently where the European Union has become more critical of the Uzbek dictatorship. Even so, the British ambassador in particular has had increasingly cooperative relations with Tashkent, even sponsoring a fashion event with the dictator’s daughter, Galina Karimova last year.
Catherine A. Fitzpatrick compiles the Uzbekistan weekly roundup for EurasiaNet. She is also editor of EurasiaNet's Choihona blog. To subscribe to Uzbekistan News Briefs, a weekly digest of international and regional press, write [email protected]
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