To Mr.Claudio Grossman – Chairman of the UN Committee against Torture

Dear Mr.Claudio Grossmann,

On 18 November, 2013, the Uzbek Service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) posted information about the death of 36-year-old Tavakkal Khozhiev, an inmate of penitentiary facility # 64/47 located in Navoi province as well as excerpt of his appeal to the authorities of the country written in early September. The appeal provides in detail facts of tortures and violence against prisoners executed by the prison administration. Systematic tortures resulting in fatalities, numerous cases of cruel and inhuman treatments urged the prisoner of the strict regime colony to appeal to the authorities of Uzbekistan.

Knowing that such appeals do not reach the country’s leadership, Tavakkal, posing a deadly threat to his life, sent it through his relatives to one of the European countries to have the letter (1, 2, 3, 4) published in the mass media covering issues of the Central Asian region (http://jarayon.com/en/index.php/human-rights/item/185-two-prisoners-died-from-torture-in-uzbek-prisons-over-the-last-month,www.ozodlik.org, www.bbc.co.uk/uzbek, etc. – the Uzbek services of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and BBC – the translator’s note) wishing to draw attention of the global community to the situation of Uzbek prisoners deprived of their rights.

In mid-September, Dilshod Khozhiev (Tavakkal’s elder brother) residing in Sweden, passed the letter through one of his very close friends to Nurillo Maksudov, the head of “Justice and Development” organization. The organization was established in 2009, on the fourth anniversary of the Andijan tragedy and was titled: “Andijan – Justice and Revival”. The aim of the organization has been protection and support of Andijan tragedy victims.

Dilshod passed his brother’s letter to “Justice and Development” hoping that they would manage to have it published as soon as possible by influential media outlets and on the eve of the hearing of Uzbekistan’s 4th periodic report on implementation of the UN Convention against Torture to have the UN Committee informed. But somehow, for some unknown reasons, Tavakkal’s letter remained without proper attention.

At the 24th session of the UN Human Rights Council held in Geneva in September 2013, where Uzbekistan’s universal periodic review report was presented, the ​​public outcry of powerless prisoners of Colony $ 64/47 was not voiced. At the 51st session of the UN Committee against Torture held in Geneva on 29-30 October, where the fourth periodic report of Uzbekistan on implementation of the UN Convention against Torture was heard, the letter written by a group of prisoners of the colony was not published, who eagerly waited for help. While talking with his relatives on phone last time, Tavakkal asked about his letter, and asked them to have his letter published by the international media as soon as possible.

Every day Tavakkal Khozhiev and his friends in misfortune expected cessation of violence, brutality, tortures, inhuman and degrading treatment. All they wanted was to have the prison officials, who lost their senses due to impunity, brought to justice. However, instead of help, prisoners of Colony 64/47 faced more brutal and artful tortures and torments.

On 15 November, relatives of Tavakkal Khozhiev were informed about his sudden death, allegedly he died due to a heart attack. Relatives do not believe the official version of the death of 36-year-old Tavakkal as he was physically very strong and never complained about his heart. They associate Tavakkal’s death with his appeal addressed to the Uzbek authorities which was to be published in independent European media outlets.

We all remember the irresponsible speech of the Uzbek delegation at the session of the UN Committee against Torture on October 29, when Akmal Saidov, the head of the delegation shamelessly tried to justify Karimov’s regime. “In Uzbekistan, decisive and concrete measures have been taken to combat tortures. Such a situation is created, in which not a single torture or other ill-treatment remains unpunished. The Constitution of the country, Article 26, prohibits all forms of tortures. The Criminal Procedure Code also does not allow tortures to collect evidences during investigations. If torture is prohibited by law, who shall violate this law?” shamelessly stated the head of the Uzbek delegation.

Just two weeks after the hysterical speech of Akmal Saidov at the meeting of the UN Committee against Torture, Tavakkal Khozhiev was tortured and painfully killed as he dared to divulge crimes committed in one of the prisons in Uzbekistan.

One of the main objectives of International Human Rights Organisation “Fiery Hearts Club” is to monitor detection and prevention of tortures in Uzbekistan, therefore we have repeatedly raised the issue of systematic use of tortures in the country. A new evidence of systemic tortures in Uzbekistan is the painful death of Tavakkal Khozhiev.

On 16 November, 2013, Uzbekistan law enforcement agencies delivered the tortured and maimed body of Tavakkal to his parents’ house. Several national security officers stayed by the body all the time until it was buried, and totally controlled the funeral procedure. Fearing that relatives could see traces of terrible tortures on his body during the ritual washing of the body, secret service officers allowed only specially trained people to access his body. They gave a few minutes only to the mother to say goodbye to her son, showing his face to her.

Tavakkal’s relatives managed to take pictures of his lifeless body by a miracle, where the naked eye can see many traces of tortures on his face. There are clear signs of stranglehold on the upper part of the forehead and around of the skull, which remain when a rope is applied to torture a human, when the victim’s head and feet are trussed up. On the upper left part of the pinna, there is a blood clot, hematoma. On the bottom right part of the pinna (earlobe), there are clear traces of burns. On the upper right side of the skull, there is a depressed fracture (indentation), and a possible fracture of the basal skull.

Dear Mr.Claudio Grossman!

Uzbekistan is an authoritarian country, where systematic tortures and human rights violations are massive.

International Human Rights Organisation “Fiery Hearts Club” asks the UN Committee against Torture the following:

– to send a special rapporteur on torture to Uzbekistan to clarify the circumstances of the death of Tavakkal Khozhiev, a victim of the Andijan tragedy, and to bring to justice all the prison officials involved in his torture.

– to appeal to the Government of Uzbekistan to start a thorough inspection of Penitentiary Facility 64/47 and bring criminal charges against officials of the colony and prisoners cooperating with the prison administration, whose names were mentioned in the letter of Tavakkal Khozhiev and who systematically practice tortures against prisoners.

– to conduct an international investigation on the tragic May 2005 Andijan events.

Along with this, “Fiery Hearts Club”International Human Rights Organization undertakes an obligation to deal with the circumstances of the death of Tavakkal Khozhiev and to monitor lives of his two brothers in prison and their family members.

Mutabar Tadjibayeva,

Head of the “Fiery Hearts Club”

International Human Rights Organization

27 November, 2013

Paris, France