8 March 2006
A district criminal court in the small town of Dustobad, near the Uzbek capital Tashkent, sentenced a well-known human rights defender and critic of the Andijan massacre, to eight years in prison on 6 March, in a trial that Front Line believes violated international fair trial standards.
Mutabar Tadjibaeva, from Margilan, eastern Uzbekistan was found guilty of a long list of charges, including extortion, land use violations and slander. Ms Tadjibaeva, who is a member of the human rights organisation Fiery Hearts, was also found guilty of membership of an illegal organisation, as her NGO, like the majority of NGOs in Uzbekistan, is not legally “registered”.
“This conviction is politically motivated. Mutabar is being persecuted for her human rights work,” said Front Line Director, Mary Lawlor “Since the Andijan massacre, human rights defenders, journalists and any voices of dissent or criticism are deliberately targeted by the Uzbek authorities. The trial was a sham. Mukhtabar must be released immediately.” 
