The National Security Service detained Orif Ershanov in Karshi, a city in southern Uzbekistan, on suspicion of belonging to the banned Islamic group Hizb ut-Tahrir (Party of Liberation). He died in custody on May 15.
Witnesses who saw the body told Human Rights Watch that it had heavy bruising to the arms, shoulders, upper chest, legs and soles of the feet. There were open wounds to one arm and his back. Several ribs were broken. Photographs obtained by Human Rights Watch confirmed these injuries. Witnesses also reported that there were indications that objects such as needles had been forced under the fingernails.
“Unfortunately, these horrors are not rare in Uzbekistan,” said Elizabeth Andersen, executive director of the Europe and Central Asia Division of Human Rights Watch. “This is the ninth torture-related death we’ve documented in the past year and a half. The Uzbek government says it’s committed to ending torture, but when people continue to die from torture, this commitment sounds like a mockery.”
Human Rights Watch documented eight torture-related deaths in custody in a briefing paper published in March (available at: http://hrw.org/backgrounder/eca/uzbek040403-bck.htm).
Uzbekistan’s torture record has come under increased international scrutiny in recent months. The U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture concluded in his report following his recent visit to Uzbekistan that torture was “systematic” in Uzbekistan and made recommendations to the government on ending the practice. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which held its annual meeting in Tashkent on May 4-5, has urged the Uzbek government to implement the recommendations.
“An independent investigation into this death must be carried out promptly and those responsible must be held accountable,” said Andersen. “The Uzbek government should also immediately implement the recommendations made by the United Nations to stop torture.”
Ershanov, thirty seven, was a father of four. According to family members he was in good health and had no record of serious illness.
On May 15, local officials informed Ershanov’s family in Yangiul, a small town on the outskirts of Tashkent, that the National Security Service had detained Ershanov in Karshi and that he was seriously ill. They did not tell his family the exact date of his arrest. On May 16, family members traveled to Karshi, where an officer from the Karshi procurator’s office reportedly said that Ershanov had become sick while in National Security Service custody, and was taken to the hospital, where he died two days later, on May 15. The officer said Ershanov died from water in the lungs, which allegedly affected his heart.
The officer questioned the relatives for several hours about their and Ershanov’s activities before releasing the body to the family. An official forensic expert dictated to the relatives a statement that they had no claims against the National Security Service in relation to Ershanov’s death, and told them to sign it. Authorities refused to give Ershanov’s clothes to the family and did not provide the family with a death certificate or any written documentation about the death or circumstances surrounding it. On May 16, officials from the Karshi procuracy promised to supply the family with the results of the autopsy in twenty days.
The family brought the body home at 3:30 a.m. on May 16. At 2:00 a.m. local authorities arrived at the family home and tried to force the family to agree to a burial at 7:00 a.m. that morning. The family refused and buried him at noon. According to relatives, law enforcement authorities were present at the funeral.
Uzbek authorities reportedly found 1,500 Hizb ut-Tahrir leaflets on Ershanov and claimed that he was a leader of the group in Karshi. Ershanov had not been living at home since late 2000, after the imprisonment of one of his brothers for alleged affiliation with Hizb ut-Tahrir. Since then, according to the family, police have regularly visited the family home, asking about Ershanov’s whereabouts and forcing his female relatives to write statements that they will not participate in protests or be involved in anti-constitutional activities.
