Kyrgyzstanis, who were taken hostage by the Tajik side during the border conflict, were tortured at the police station in Gafurov district. They were beaten and demanded to write that they themselves had illegally crossed the border. The Coalition against Torture in Kyrgyzstan reports.
«The villagers are very depressed, they have no desire to contact, it is felt that the crisis has not yet passed. We are trying to clarify, because only with the voluntary consent of a person we have the right to attract experts to record traces of beatings in accordance with the Istanbul Protocol,» Bakyt Rysbekov, Director of the National Center for Prevention of Torture, told.
Lawyers of Jalal-Abad human rights organization «Spravedlivost» (Justice) were involved in the work as experts. According to one of the lawyers, Ravshan Abdullaev, the people were abducted by the Tajik military, who beat them, but the operational officers of the police department of Gafurov district subjected hostages to cruel torture.
The villagers were kicked in the groin and hit in the head with rifle butts.
«They had been beaten for two days. In the end, they were forced to sign prepared in advance documents in the Tajik language. One of the hostages understands the Tajik language — it was written that they were allegedly detained for violation of the state border. Although, in fact, they were taken from their own homes to the territory of the neighboring state. Most of those taken hostage returned home hoping to extinguish the fire, but the military were waiting for them in ambush,» Ravshan Abdullaev told.
Five out of ten hostages are representatives of the Kyrgyz ethnic group, five are the Uzbeks. The head of the national center stressed that an international expert Bermet Baryktabasova was involved in documenting the traces of violence in accordance with the principles and rules of the Istanbul Protocol.
«After filling out the Istanbul Protocol in accordance with the mandate specified in the Law on the National Center for Prevention of Torture, we will submit these documents to the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and ask to ensure the safety of life and health of these people. This is exactly the help that we can provide them today,» Bakyt Rysbekov concluded.
Lawyers of Jalal-Abad human rights organization «Spravedlivost» (Justice) and the public organization Human Rights Movement: Bir Duino-Kyrgyzstan were involved in the work as experts.
In total, 190 Kyrgyzstanis suffered in the border conflict, 36 people were killed, including children. More than 40,000 people have been evacuated from the conflict zone.
