[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 105 (Thursday, July 22, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1625-E1626]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   UZBEKISTAN'S LITANY OF VIOLATIONS

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 21, 1999

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, as Chairman of the Commission 
on Security and Cooperation in Europe, I rise today to highlight the 
persecution of religious believers in Uzbekistan. The problem is 
worsening by the day, as the crackdown continues under the guise of 
``anti-terrorism.'' While there is some justifiable threat of 
terrorism, the widespread violations of rule of law and human rights 
perpetrated by authorities are not defensible, especially in light of 
Uzbekistan's OSCE commitments.
  Under President Islam Karimov, Uzbekistan has been the second most 
repressive former Soviet republic, next to Turkmenistan. Karimov has 
used new constitutions and referendums extending his tenure to remain 
in office, where he seems determined to stay indefinitely. In mid-1992, 
he cracked down on all opposition parties, driving them underground or 
into exile, and all opposition or independent media were eliminated.
  In Uzbekistan today, human rights are systemically violated. 
Arbitrary arrests, abuse and torture of detainees are pervasive, and 
flagrantly politicized judicial proceedings are routine. According to 
Human Rights Watch/Helsinki, there are well over 200 individuals who 
are prisoners of conscience either for their religious or political 
activities. Defendants have been convicted of criminal offenses based 
on forced confessions and planted evidence. The regime has also refused 
to register independent human rights monitoring organizations (the 
Human Rights Society and the Independent Human Rights Society), while 
groups which cooperate closely with the government (Society for the 
Protection of the Rights of the Individual) have been registered 
without delay. On June 25, Uzbek police savagely beat Mikhail Ardzinov, 
one of the country's most prominent human rights activists.
  A key component of Uzbekistan's assault on human rights has been a 
thoroughgoing campaign against religious believers. Since 1997, 
hundreds of independent Muslim activists and believers associated with 
them have been arrested. In February of this year, bombs exploded in 
the capital, Tashkent, which killed sixteen bystanders and damaged 
government buildings, narrowly missing President Karimov and government 
officials. Karimov accused Muslim activists of having carried out a 
terrorist attack intended to assassinate him. The harassment and 
detention of Muslim activists has greatly intensified since then and an 
ongoing series of show trials had discredit them as dangerous religious 
extremists. Last month, six people were sentenced to death and another 
16 received prison terms ranging from eight to 20 years in a trial that 
by no means met Western standards for due process. Since then, two 
arrested Muslims have died in prison, and there is no sign of a let up. 
President Karimov has argued that the threat of Islamic fundamentalism 
in Central Asia's most populous and traditional state necessitates a 
hard line, especially because Islamic radicals from neighboring 
Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan are determined to subvert 
Uzbekistan's secular, developing democracy. But the state's repressive 
policies are radicalizing Muslims and turning them against the regime.
  Non-Muslims faiths, particularly Christians, have also been subjected 
to harassment, imprisonment and violations of their religious liberty, 
especially those who share their faith and are actively meeting. 
According to Compass Direct, Ibrahim Yusupov, the leader of a 
Pentecostal church in Tashkent, was tried and sentenced last month to 
one year in prison on charges of conducting missionary activity. 
Another court in June sentenced Christian pastor Na'il Asanov to five 
years in prison on charges of possession of drugs and spreading 
extremist ideas. As with other cases mentioned below, witnesses attest 
that police planted a packet of drugs on Pastor Asanov and also 
severely beat him while he was in detention.
  Also in June, three members of the Full Gospel Church in Nukus were 
sentenced to long prison sentences. Pastor Rashid Turibayev received a 
15-year sentence, while Parhad Yangibayev and Issed Tanishiev received 
10-year sentences for ``deceiving ordinary people'' as well as 
possessing and using drugs. Their appeal was denied on July 13. Reports 
indicate that they have suffered severe beatings in prison, have been 
denied food and medical attention, and their personal possessions have 
been confiscated by the police, leaving their families destitute. 
Recently, the most senior Pentecostal leader in Uzbekistan, Bishop 
Leonty Lulkin, and two other church members were tried and sentenced on 
charges of illegally meeting. The sentence they received was a massive 
fine of 100 times the minimum monthly wage. The leaders of Baptist 
churches, Korean churches, the Jehovah's Witnesses, as well as many 
others, have also been subjected to harsh legal penalties. Although 
they have filed for registration, local authorities refused to sign 
their documents.
  Mr. Speaker, the State Department's report on Human Rights Practices 
for 1998 reported that the Uzbekistan law on religion ``limits freedom 
of religion'' with strict registration requirements which make it 
virtually impossible for smaller church organizations to gain legal 
status. The law passed in June 1998, ``prohibits proselytizing, bans 
religious subjects in school curriculums, prohibits teaching of 
religious principles, forbids the wearing of religious clothing in 
public by anyone except clerics, and requires all religious groups and 
congregations to register or re-register.'' Also approved last May was 
a second law establishing the penalties if one were convicted of 
violating any of the statutes on religious activities. The penalties 
can range anywhere from lengthy prison sentences, massive fines, and 
confiscation of property, to denial of official registration rights. On 
May 12 of this year, Uzbekistan tightened its Criminal Code, making 
participation in an unregistered religious group a criminal offense, 
punishable by a fine equivalent to fifty times the minimum monthly wage 
or imprisonment of up to three years.
  Mr. Speaker, these actions indicate that the policies of the 
Government of Uzbekistan toward religious groups are not moving in the 
right direction.
  In fact, these initiatives are in direct violation to Uzbekistan's 
OSCE commitments, including Article 16.3 of the Vienna Concluding 
Document which states that ``the State will grant upon their request to 
communities of believers, practicing or prepared to practice their

[[Page E1626]]

faith within the constitutional framework of their States, recognition 
of the status provided for them in the respective countries.'' In the 
Copenhagen Concluding Document of 1990 Article 9.1, Uzbekistan has 
committed to ``reaffirm that everyone will have the right to freedom of 
expression including the right to communication. This right will 
include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information 
and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of 
frontiers.'' Uzbekistan's current course of strangling all forms of 
religious discourse is a flagrant, deliberate, and unrelenting 
violation of these principles.
  Last year Congress overwhelmingly passed the Religious Freedom Act of 
1998 which reaffirmed the United States' commitment to supporting 
religious freedom abroad through U.S. foreign policy. Considering the 
litany of violations affecting religious liberty and the ongoing 
persecution of believers, it is time for Congress to consider our aid 
programs to Uzbekistan, including our military cooperation programs 
which cost about 33 million dollars in this year alone. Congress should 
also reconsider our trade relationship with Uzbekistan and scrutinize 
other programs such as Cooperative Threat Reduction where we can 
leverage our influence to help protect religious liberty and human 
rights.

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