Human Rights Violations in Kyrgyzstan - Nookat Riots 

HRC Memorial presents a report on the events of October 1, 2008 in Nookat, Kyrgyzstan.

Head of Memorial Central Asia program Vitaly Ponomarev visited Southern Kyrgyzstan on December 16-18, 2008. During his trip Vitaly Ponomarev studied various documents, video recordings, mass-media publications, met with advocates, and human rights activists. He also met with the relatives of the 32 residents of the district accused of "Islam extremism" and "mass rioting" who have been sentenced to serve from 9 to 20 years in prison.

HRC Memorial believes that the hasty trial was biased and unjust, and many of the accusations were fabricated. Memorial has information about violations of the procedure and tortures during preliminary investigation. Local human rights activists fear that this trial might become a role model for possible future trials concerning various Muslim communities leading to tension in the radical atmosphere of the region.

The report on causes and effects of the Nookat riots can be found on-line on Memorial web-site (in Russian): http://www.memo.ru/2009/01/27/2701091.htm

January 27, 2009