Navoi Regional Criminal Court considered the appeal in regard of human rights activist Ganikhon Mamathonov on May 15, 2014, and changed the verdict of the first instance court.

Jarayon was informed about this from a source in Uzbekistan.

Judge N.Mamirov from Navoi City Criminal Courtchaireda trial in regard of human rights defender Ganikhon Mamathonov on March 29, 2014 right in penal institutions №64/47 located in Kyzyltepa district, Navoi province, and sentenced the human rights activist to two years,six months and six days in jail.

However, the Court of Appeal made a verdict to sentence the human rights activist for two years, three months and six days. Therefore, in fact the new term of imprisonment for human rights activist Ganikhon Mamathonovwas reduced only by three months.

Based on a copy of the verdict, Jarayon found out that human rights activist Ganikhon Mamatkhonov was indicted on part 1 of article 221 of the Criminal Code of Uzbekistan (“disobeying prison administration rules), which stipulates imprisonment up to three years.

“In particular, on 20 February 2014 at 4.50 a.m., the prisoner (meaning Ganikhon Mamatkhonov – Jarayon’s note), began brawling with U.Ashurmatov, another prisoner, who was on duty that night. Mamatkhonov insulted Ashurmatovand thus tried to disturb rest of other prisoners. When Brigade Commander Sergeant D.Narziev summoned him to his office and tried to find out what happened, the prisoner (meaning Ganikhon Mamatkhonov – Jarayon’s note) tried to deceive the brigade commander, answered his legitimate questions incorrectly and did not provide explanations in writing, which meant a conscious refusal to comply with the legal requirements of the administration. Thus, following a decision of the chief of facility № 11 dated 20 February 2014, the prisoner (meaning Ganikhon Mamatkhonov – Jarayon’s note)was placed in solitary confinement for a period of 17 days and nights.”

While commenting on the trial of human rights defender Ganikhon Mamathonov, Mutabar Tadjibayeva, the head of Fiery Hearts Club International Human Rights Organization,said that the trial was conducted with violations.

“We found out that the first trial of human rights defender Ganikhon Mamathonov was held in the prison, the elderly human rights activist was badly humiliated in the court. For example, the judge did not give Mamathonovany opportunity and right to defend himself. When the defender began reading his defense speech in the court, his glasses were taken away, thus he could not read his text written by hand. When he appealed to the judge about this, the judge did not even pay attention to his verbal appeal.

Furthermore, none of Mamathonov’s family members was informed about the investigation and the trial. Only after his family members hired a lawyer for him, they learned that the investigation and trial of human rights activist had been completed. Ganikhon Mamatkhonov was not questioned either as a suspect or an accused person.

His lawyer attended only the trial of the court of appeal, but the human rights activist did not attend the trial, and the judge did not listen to the arguments set forth in the human rights activist’s appeal,” said Tadjibayeva. She pointed out that that was only a smallpart of the violations committed by the Uzbek court in regard of human rights defender Ganikhon Mamathonov.

Despite financial difficulties, family members of the human rights activistmanaged to hire a lawyer to defend him. However,Tadjibayeva says that Ganikhon Mamathonov’s lawyer did not conscientiously treat his client’s case.

“The lawyer met with Ganikhon Mamathonov, familiarized with the materials of the criminal case, but even after reading the materials, he did not make an appeal on the identifiedviolations. The lawyer only used the appeal written by the human rights activist. Therefore, today we do not know which articles of the Criminal Procedure Code have been violated during the human rights defender’ case. We are aware only of those offenses, which were mentioned in Mamathonov’s appeal.

For example, in his appeal Mamatkhonov wrote that he was not interrogated as a suspect or as a defendant. If no investigation was conducted in regard of his case, then he could not familiarize with the case materials. His lawyer should have written about these serious violations in detail. But, unfortunatelyin many cases lawyers hired to protect rights of political prisoners do not honestly protect their customers,” said Tadjibayeva.

I would remind that human rights activist from Fergana Ganikhon Mamatkhonov was found guilty under articles 168 (Fraud) and 211 (Bribery) in 2009 by the Criminal Code of Uzbekistan and in December 2019 he was sentenced to imprisonment for 5 years.

On January 5, 2010,the Board of Appeal of the Fergana regional court considered the case of human rights activist Mamatkhonov and reduced his prison term to four years and five months.

Also, the court ordered to transfer Ganikhon Mamathonovfrom a prison to a prison colony. However, in April 2010, the human rights activist was put back into the prison.

Ganikhon Mamatkhonov had to be released on March 10, 2014, but on the eve of his long-awaited release,the human rights activist was placed in solitary confinement for allegedly “violations of the internal regulations of the prison administration in the city of Navoi”, where he was serving his prison sentence.

For a long time, Ganikhon Mamathonov’s family members could not find the exact place of his location and the reasons for which he was placed in isolation. His relatives were worried much about his health as the imprisoned human rights activist had had two heart attacks.

Only a few days later, after his son Zhaloliddin Mamatkhonov went to the Punishment Execution General Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Uzbekistan based in Tashkent, his family members were told that Ganikhon Mamatkhonov was kept in the remand prison in the city of Bukhara.

However, family members of Ganikhon Mamatkhonov told Jarayon that until today they have been allowed to visit him.

Sofia DAVRONOVA