Toggle navigation menu.
Helsinki Default Banner

Helsinki Commission Condemns Imprisonment of Uzbek Activists

WASHINGTON – Helsinki Commission Chairman Senator Sam Brownback [R-KS] sharply criticized the conviction of Uzbek opposition and human rights activists Nodira Hidoyatova and Sanjar Umarov. “With these latest arrests, President Karimov is clearly determined to isolate his country even farther,” said Brownback. “I urge him to pull back from this misguided campaign, release these activists and seek a serious dialogue with Uzbek society before it is too late.”

A criminal court in Tashkent on March 1 sentenced Hidoyatova to a 10-year prison term, accusing her of being part of a “criminal gang.” Sanjar Umarov, head of the Sunshine Coalition, was found guilty on March 6 by a Tashkent criminal court of ‘economic’ crimes and given a 14 ½ year sentence. The verdict will be reportedly reduced by one fourth, in accordance with the amnesty issued by the Uzbek Senate in December 2005.

“President Islam Karimov has run a police state in Uzbekistan since the early 1990s, but since last May’s massacre in Andijan, he has cracked down even harder, in an effort to completely stifle civil society,” said Commission Co-Chairman Christopher H. Smith [R-NJ] “I urge Uzbek authorities to immediately and unconditionally release these moderate opposition activists.”

The Sunshine Coalition emerged in 2005, calling for political and economic reforms. After Uzbek security forces shot hundreds of demonstrators in Andijan last May, the Coalition criticized the use of force and urged an open accounting of what happened.

Commission Ranking Member Benjamin Cardin [D-MD] criticized the sentencing. “Since Andijan, Uzbek authorities have forced many Western NGOs, such as Freedom House and the BBC, to cease their activities in Uzbekistan, and many Uzbek human rights activists have been jailed. The case of Nodira Hidoyatova and Sanjar Umarov is the latest example of the government’s failure to respect its Helsinki commitments.”

Media contact

Category
Country
Issue
Date
Filter Topics Open Close
Hearings

Vladimir Kara-Murza: Putin’s Personal Prisoner

Sep 20, 2023

Stream here: HEARING: Vladimir Kara-Murza: Putin’s Personal Prisoner – YouTube Vladimir Kara-Murza, a father, husband, and a freedom fighter, has been in detention for over five hundred days and is currently being transferred to a prison in Siberia. As he is being moved, his family has lost all contact with him and are faced with worry […]

screen-reader-text
Hearings

Supporting A Democratic and Secure Moldova

Jul 12, 2023

In recent years, Moldova has made notable steps to improve its democratic institutions and combat corruption. President Maia Sandu and her Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) have spearheaded wide-ranging reforms and backed a number of high-profile anti-corruption cases. Moldova has also made strides toward greater integration with the European Union (EU). In 2022, the […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Helsinki Commission Leadership Statement on Georgian...

Mar 06, 2023

WASHINGTON—In response to news that the Georgian parliament is considering Russian-style foreign agent legislation, which would have a chilling effect on Georgia’s vibrant civil society, Helsinki Commission Chairman Representative Joe Wilson (SC-2), Co-Chairman Senator Ben Cardin (MD), Ranking Member Representative Steve Cohen (TN-09), and Ranking Member Senator Roger Wicker (MS) issued the following joint statement: “Since regaining independence, the Georgian people have clearly and […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Helsinki Commission Chair and Co-Chair: Statement on...

Feb 20, 2023

WASHINGTON—Following reports of the sharp deterioration of Azerbaijani dissident Bakhtiyar Hajiyev, Helsinki Commission Chairman Rep. Joe Wilson (SC-2) and Co-Chairman Sen. Ben Cardin (MD) issued the following joint statement: “We are absolutely appalled at the continued unwarranted detention and mistreatment of Azerbaijani civil activist Bakhtiyar Hajiyev, who has been imprisoned on trumped up charges and […]

screen-reader-text
Statements

Tribute to Erika Schlager

Jun 21, 2021

I want to acknowledge one individual who recently announced that she is retiring, Erika Schlager, after 34 years of service to the Commission and to the global community. Erika received her bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina in Greensboro, where she graduated magna cum laude and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She […]

screen-reader-text
Logo_tile_368x331
Press Releases

Helsinki Commission Commemorates 45 Years of Advanci...

Jun 03, 2021

WASHINGTON—To commemorate the 45th anniversary of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the U.S. Helsinki Commission, on June 3, Chairman Sen. Ben Cardin (MD) and commission leaders Sen. Roger Wicker (MS) and Rep. Joe Wilson (SC-02) issued the following statements: “The Helsinki Commission has played a vital role in elevating […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Helsinki Commission Leaders Call on Belarusian Autho...

Apr 13, 2021

WASHINGTON—In response to the ongoing crackdown on journalists and civil society in Belarus, including the detention of RFE/RL consultant Ihar Losik for almost 300 days on spurious charges, U.S. Helsinki Commission Chairman Sen. Ben Cardin (MD) and commission leaders Sen. Roger Wicker (MS) and Rep. Joe Wilson (SC-02) issued the following joint statement: “Despite Aleksandr […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Helsinki Commission Leaders Commemorate Internationa...

Apr 08, 2021

WASHINGTON—Ahead of International Roma Day on April 8, Helsinki Commission Chairman Sen. Ben Cardin (MD), commission leaders the late Rep. Alcee L. Hastings (FL-20) and Sen. Roger Wicker (MS), and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Rep. Gregory Meeks (NY-04) introduced resolutions in the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives celebrating Romani American heritage. […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Chairman Hastings Introduces LITE Act to Foster Shar...

Feb 18, 2021

WASHINGTON—Helsinki Commission Chairman Rep. Alcee L. Hastings (FL-20) on Thursday reintroduced the Leadership Institute for Transatlantic Engagement (LITE) Act to strengthen ties with U.S. allies, protect democratic institutions, and support visionary leadership on both sides of the Atlantic. The legislation was originally introduced in March 2020. “Dramatic disparities in wealth, health, employment, education, and justice […]

screen-reader-text
Press Releases

Helsinki Commission Leaders Decry January 6 Attack o...

Jan 08, 2021

WASHINGTON—Following the violent assault on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, Helsinki Commission leaders Rep. Alcee L. Hastings (FL-20), Sen. Roger Wicker (MS), and Sen. Ben Cardin (MD) issued the following statements: “I never thought that in my lifetime I would see our country’s democratic institutions literally under siege.  In America, we pride ourselves on […]

screen-reader-text
Generic BG 368x331
Press Releases

Co-Chairman Wicker Urges Russia to Reverse Expulsion...

Dec 11, 2020

WASHINGTON—Following reports last week that Russian authorities cancelled U.S. citizen and human rights lawyer Vanessa Kogan’s residency permit and ordered her to leave the country by mid-December, Helsinki Commission Co-Chairman Sen. Roger Wicker (MS) issued the following statement: “The type of human rights work Vanessa Kogan is doing in Russia is essential in a country […]

screen-reader-text
OSCE PA logo 368x331
Statements

ONGOING TRANSATLANTIC ENGAGEMENT THROUGH THE OSCE PA...

Sep 24, 2020

Mr. HUDSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to highlight my recent efforts to engage with our allies across Europe to address the current political turmoil in Belarus and seek a way forward. On September 23, I joined a video call of the leadership of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in […]

screen-reader-text