Ezgulik, a leading human rights NGO in Uzbekistan, had its office equipment seized December 30 in order to pay fines earlier imposed by a court in relation to a libel case, according to a press release from the group circulated via e-mail. Marshals from the Shaykhontokhur District Court seized a copying machine, printer, and other equipment from Ezgulik's central office on Navoi Street to cover fines totalling 250,000 soums (about $154) .
The fines related to a Tashkent City Court ruling on August 4, 2009 regarding a press release by Ezgulik about the death of famous Uzbek singer Dilnura Kadyrjanova. Ezgulik was forced to publish a rebuttal of its previous concern expressed on behalf of family members that Kadirjanova, whose death was ruled a suicide, may have been murdered, and also had to make a public apology. The case involved Col. Jamshid Matlubov, the brother of Bahodir Matulybov, Uzbekistan's Minister of Foreign Affairs, who fathered a child with Kadyrjanova.
Ezgulik had filed a countersuit regarding the case, which also affected another human rights activist, Surat Ikramov, also fined.
Vasila Inoyatova, chair of Ezgulik, said pressure on her organization increased after she spoke at the Warsaw review meeting of the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), criticizing police abuses. On October 7, the court imposed an additional fine for the same case.
The seizure of the equipment follows a theft of a computer from Ezgulik's office on May 24, a case which police have closed.
Inoyatova characterized the losses as "a serious blow" to her organization's activities and vowed to stage protests.
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