PETITION OF THE CIVIL SOCIETY ACTIVISTS ON THE SITUATION OF THE UZBEKISTANI HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER ELENA URLAEVA.

[HR-Uzbekistan] The Observatory: Uzbekistan: Petition on the situation of the Uzbekistani human rights defender Elena Urlaeva [2 Attachments]

FROM:

• AIHMM – HRCA

TO:

• *Uzbekistan

PETITION OF THE CIVIL SOCIETY ACTIVISTS

 

ON THE SITUATION OF THE UZBEKISTANI HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER ELENA URLAEVA

10 April 2012

 

On April 5 a well-known human rights activist Mrs Elena Urlaeva, a leader of the unregistered human rights group “The Human Rights Alliance of Uzbekistan” was placed into a psychiatric clinic # 1 in Tashkent. According to her family members and colleagues, Urlaeva started behaving in an absolutely inadequate way soon after she returned from a recent business trip to Turkey. It has been reported that the Uzbek court based on the appeal of Urlaeva’s family members has passed a decision on putting Elena Urlaeva into the local psychiatric clinic for an obligatory medical treatment. At present Urlaeva’s relatives and colleagues tell that her health condition has normalized and she is feeling better.

 

We, the representatives of the civil society, are seriously concerned about Urlaeva’s fate, and hereby sign this petition in order to draw the attention of the international organizations and representatives of the democratic countries to the human rights activist’s situation and call on the following actions:

·         The representatives of the regional office of the International Committee of Red Cross, embassies of the western democratic countries, in particular the Embassies of the European Union, the United States of America, Great Britain, Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy and others, should immediately visit Mrs Urlaeva in the psychiatric clinic to provide a moral support to her, her relatives and colleagues;

 

·         Take all possible measures to establish true reasons of unexpected psychiatric problems the human rights activist started facing;

 

·         Taking inquiries into what type of medical treatment Mrs Urlaeva is undergoing in the psychiatric clinic, to what degree such medical treatment is needed for improving her health and what consequences it might have for her health in the future;

 

·         Regularly visit and keep an eye on the health conditions and personal integrity of the human rights activist while she is kept in the psychiatric clinic if she will have to spend some time at this facility for improving her health;

 

·         In case of absence of a solid ground for keeping the human rights activist in the psychiatric clinic further assist in annulling the court decision which ordered her psychiatric treatment and in her immediate release.

 

The following facts indicate that placing Elena Urlaeva into the psychiatric clinic might be used as a punishment for her human rights activity:

 

Elena Urlaeva has been involved in defending the rights and interests of alleged human rights victims in Uzbekistan for more than 10 years. Obviously most of the perpetrators in the cases of victims Urlaeva represented are the government officials. Urlaeva has been one of the most outspoken critics of the Uzbek authorities for many years, known for her critical reports, interviews and statements from the international tribunes.

 

It can be suggested that as a result of her active civic virtue and human rights activity Elena Urlaeva has made enough enemies. She has been subjected to different forms of persecutions many times: e.g. beatings, threats, humiliations, denial of exit visas, etc.

 

According to Urlaeva part of the persecutions are addressed to her close relatives: her adopted son Mukhammad and husband Mansur Mashurov. In January 2012 Mirzo Ulugbek district hokimiyat (the local executive power or administration) of Tashkent city attempted to take away her adopted son from her and place him into the orphanage. Only after a series of protests by Urlaeva and her colleagues the authorities have ceased their attempt to deprive the activist from her son. In March 2012 Urlaeva’s husband Mansur Mashurov was forcedly taken away to a meeting with the local police. He returned home afterwards very drunk and embarrassed, started demanding Urlaeva stop her human rights activity and going on the protests against the authorities. Then Mansur beat Urlaeva. Urlaeva thinks the city police has set her husband against her.

 

Urlaeva has previously been placed into the psychiatric clinic for obligatory medical treatment for several times under the order of the Uzbek courts. Urlaeva and her colleagues are confident that the Uzbek authorities have used forced psychiatric treatment against her for her dissident views. In her recent interview in December 2011 the human rights activist has already warned that she might be placed into the psychiatric clinic (see. “Position. Without censorship – Forced psychiatry in Uzbekistan as a method of suppression for dissent”, December 2, 2011, http://www.uznews.net/news_single.php?lng=ru&cid=35&nid=18523).

 

She mentioned in her interview that the Uzbek court has already prepared the draft decision on placing her into psychiatric clinic. According to her she would have to undergo a group of psychiatrists should watch her condition for six months and then present the results of their investigation to the court. The court then was expected to pass a decision on whether the activist should be under a forced psychiatric treatment or not. It should be mentioned that this is not the only case when forced psychiatric treatment is used against the representatives of the Uzbekistani civil society.

 

We call on all stakeholders to whom this petition addressed not to ignore our suggestions and call on Elena Urlaeva’s situation.

 

List of persons who signed this petition:

 

Sukhrobjon Ismoilov – leader of the Human Rights Policy NGO “Expert Working Group”, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

 

Mutabar Tadjibaeva – leader of the international human rights NGO “The Club of Courageous Hearts”, Paris, France

 

Yuriy Djibladze – president of the Center for Development of Democracy and Human Rights, a member of the Council for Development of Civil Society and Human Rights under the President of Russia, a member of Coordination Council of the Civic Forum of the European Union – Russia, Moscow, Russia

 

Bakhodir Choriev – leader of public movement “Birdamlik”, the U.S.A

 

Umida Niyazova – leader of the human rights NGO “Uzbek-German for Human Rights”, Berlin, Germany

 

Bahadir Namozov – leader of the Committee for Release of Prisoners of Conscience, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

 

Vasila Inoyatova – leader of “Ezgulik” Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

 

Souhayr Belhassen, President of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH),

and Gerald Staberock, Secretary General of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT),

in the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of FIDH and OMCT

 

Mirvari Gahramanli – Chairperson Oil Workers’ Rights Protection Organization Public Union Baku,Azerbaijan, AZ1060

 

Arthur Sakunts, chairman of the Helsinki Citizens Assembly – Vanadzor, Armenia

 

Steve Sverdlov – Human Rights Watch’s researcher on Europe and Central Asia

 

Olof Kleberg – Vice President of the Swedish OSCE Network

 

Kamoliddin Rabbimov – Director, Center for political studies ”LIGLIS-Center”, France

 

Ulugbek Haydarov – independent journalist, Vancouver, Canada

 

Hasan Temirov and Muhammadsolih Abutov – leaders of NGO “Tayanch”, Sweden, Germany

 

Bashorat Eshova – independent human rights activists, Switzerland

 

Will Lacky – freelance journaliste

 

Vokhid Karimov – NGO Leader, Bukhara Uzbekistan

 

Sonya Zilberman – Founder and Executive Director for Eurasia Law Initiative

 

Gulshan Karaeva – member of Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan, Karshi, Uzbekistan

 

Toshpulatov Yuldashev – independent political scientist