Uzbekistan Jails Anti-corruption Blogger For 6.5 Years
Faizan Hashmi Published May 11, 2021 | 01:09 PM
A court in Uzbekistan has sentenced a blogger known for speaking out on corruption to 6.5 years in jail on extortion and libel charges, his lawyer told AFP on Tuesday
Tashkent, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th May, 2021 ) :A court in Uzbekistan has sentenced a blogger known for speaking out on corruption to 6.5 years in jail on extortion and libel charges, his lawyer told AFP on Tuesday.
The case of Otabek Sattoriy, a popular video blogger from the southern town of Termez in the Central Asian country, was widely viewed as a test for authorities who according to rights groups have been clamping down on free speech ahead of a leadership election in October.
A court in the southern Surkhondaryo region sentenced Sattoriy to six years and six months in jail on Monday, lawyer Umidbek Davlatov told AFP, calling the verdict "completely unfair" and pledging to appeal.
"We don't know for the moment on what precise basis the court ruled to send him to jail," Davlatov told AFP by telephone.
Sattoriy is one of a number of bloggers who have gained loyal followings during the last few years as freedoms were relaxed somewhat under President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who styles himself as a reformer.
Rights groups have pointed to cases against Sattoriy and other bloggers as well as harsh new laws punishing online criticism as signs that the former Soviet republic is sliding back into its hardline past.
Sattoriy's videos on YouTube and Telegram saw him regularly criticise top officials in provincial Termez, highlight the high cost of food prices at bazaars and allege corruption at a state gas company.
The Committee to Protect Journalists called the charges against Sattoriy "trumped-up" and "a clear attempt to frighten the press away from covering sensitive issues as presidential elections grow near" in a statement published late on Monday.
Mirziyoyev, 63, is expected to face only token candidates in the October presidential vote, continuing a tradition established by his autocratic predecessor islam Karimov.
Karimov, under whom Mirziyoyev served as prime minister for 13 years, was famous for his authoritarian excesses and intolerance of dissent, which saw government critics tortured during long stints in jail.
Mirziyoyev has publically disavowed torture and clamped down on forced labour while opening the country up to tourism, but has continued to honour Karimov's memory and distaste for opposition.
Related Topics
Recent Stories
Finance Minister calls for reforming tax system to improve country's economy
PM calls for joint efforts to check smuggling, power theft
Infinix Unveils a Vibrant New Chapter with Wahaj Ali: The face of Infinix NOTE 4 ..
PM makes two more appointments in his team
Terrorists of Shangla suicide attack will be brought to justice: Interior Minist ..
Applications Open for 6th Cycle of Start-up Incubation under the National Expans ..
Join vivo's "Light it Up" Social Media Contest in Ramadan to Win vivo V30 5G
Pakistan v New Zealand T20I series: Tickets to go on sale from today
Currency Rate In Pakistan - Dollar, Euro, Pound, Riyal Rates On 29 March 2024
Today Gold Rate in Pakistan 29 March 2024
Journalists call for global action to end Gaza’s humanitarian crisis
CM for generating opportunities to bring direct int'l investment
More Stories From World
-
Romania finds possible drone fragments near Ukraine border
3 minutes ago -
Japan dietary supplement maker probes five deaths
3 minutes ago -
UNGA's revitalization key to promoting world peace, security: Pakistan
23 minutes ago -
Sound of the Underground: the busker aiming to play every London Tube stop
53 minutes ago -
Israeli strikes kill 42 in Syria's Aleppo province
1 hour ago -
Calls for 'smartphone free' childhood grow in UK
2 hours ago
-
Russia hits Ukraine energy sector in overnight attack
2 hours ago -
A-bomb saga 'Oppenheimer' finally opens in Japan
2 hours ago -
Titian's masterpiece "Flora" breathes vibrancy into Sino-Italian art exchange
2 hours ago -
Beijing International Film Festival to open mid-April
2 hours ago -
China's overnight Shibor interbank rate decreases Friday
2 hours ago -
Tokyo stocks end higher tracking Wall Street gains
2 hours ago