**Updates IFEX alerts of 11 August, 17 July and 29 June 1998** (CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ has written President Islam Karimov of the Republic of Uzbekistan to draw his attention to the deteriorating health of Shadi Mardiev, a 63-year-old reporter with the state-run Samarkand radio station, who was sentenced on 11 June 1998 to an eleven-year […]
**Updates IFEX alerts of 11 August, 17 July and 29 June 1998**
(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ has written President Islam Karimov of the Republic of Uzbekistan to draw his attention to the deteriorating health of Shadi Mardiev, a 63-year-old reporter with the state-run Samarkand radio station, who was sentenced on 11 June 1998 to an eleven-year prison term for defamation and extortion.
Shortly after his arrest in November 1997, he suffered two brain hemorrhages while in a pre-trial detention center. Although his physical and mental health have continued to deteriorate in the eighteen months since his conviction, he has not been getting the medical attention he needs at the prison’s medical center. Mardiev was hospitalized twice last year for a heart condition, but he was soon returned to his jail cell where poor conditions jeopardize his chances for any recovery.
Mardiev’s plight also concerns CPJ because of the circumstances under which he was convicted. The suit against him stemmed from a 19 June 1997 broadcast that Mardiev produced for state radio in Samarkand, satirizing the alleged corruption of Samarkand deputy prosecutor Talat Abdulkhalikzada.
Following the broadcast, Abdulkhalikzada accused Mardiev of defamation. According to Mardiev’s lawyer, Abdulkhalikzada alleged that Mardiev had used the threat of the impending broadcast to attempt to extort money from him, although he provided the court with little evidence to support this allegation. CPJ believes that the prosecution and prison term may have been used to silence Mardiev, who was known for his critical stance toward government officials and for his satirical writings in the journal “Mushtum”.
According to CPJ’s research, Mardiev is one of only three journalists currently in prison in Uzbekistan.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to the president:
– noting that to imprison Mardiev in reprisal for his work as a journalist violates international press freedom standards that his government claims to uphold, and serves to isolate Uzbekistan from the international community
– urging him to use his good offices to see that Mardiev is released on humanitarian grounds, and that charges against him are dropped
– at a minimum, requesting that His Excellency ensure that Mardiev’s case is again reviewed by the Supreme Court of Uzbekistan in an open trial
– noting that the judicial process should take into account Mardiev’s poor health
– further noting that such an initiative would certainly be viewed positively by CPJ and the international community, which values freedom of the press as one of the pillars of a democratic society
Appeals To
APPEALS TO:His Excellency Islam Karimov
President of the Republic of Uzbekistan
43 Uzbekistanskaya Street
Tashkent, Uzbekistan 700163
Fax: +998 71 139 55 25 / 139 55 10Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
