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Tuhbatulin, Farid

Gender: .
State of concern: .

Who, Why and How exiled:

Farid Tuhbatulin is a co-founder of the non-governmental NGO, Turkmenistan Helsinki Initiative. In the first half of the 1990s, he worked with the NGO Dashoguz Environmental Club, carried out legal-awareness programs, and gathered information on human rights violations in Turkmenistan. He participated in various international legal and human rights conferences. On December 23, 2002, after taking part in one of such conference in Moscow that was attended by both human rights activists and several representatives of the Turkmenistani opposition, he was arrested in his home city of Dashoguz by officers of the Ministry of National Security and sentenced to three years of imprisonment (Eurasianet, 2003).

He has escaped the country in 2003  fearing for his life (HRO,org., 2003)

Category of exile: . (Definitions here.)
Alleged affiliation: Turkmenistan Helsinki Foundation.

Which stages experienced: Stage 1   Stage 2   not Stage 3. (Definitions here.)
Date of most serious incident: 2003.
Violence experienced: .

Stage 1 details (accusations/ charges/ Interpol notice/ extradition requests):

He has been accused of assassination attempt against President Niyazov (Eurasianet, 2003).

Since 2008 he has been receiving threats against him and his relatives from authorities in Turkmenistan  (HRO, org., 2010).

Stage 2 details (arrest/ detention/ extradition):

He spent 102 days in prison confinement 3 months of which spent in isolation (Eurasianet, 2003).

International arrest warrant: .

Countries of transit, asylum and/or residence: .

Legal status (refugee/ asylum seeker/ resident):

He received asylum status in Austria (HRO., org., 2010).

Current status:

As a result of political pressure from the OSCE, the U.S. government and a number of international human rights and environmental organizations, he was released on April 2, 2003, on condition that he confesses and apologizes for his "crimes" (Eurasianet, 2003).

Runs a website critical of the Government. Faces detention if returns to Turkmenistan, remains in Austria (HRO, org., 2010).


Press sources:

Farid Tuhbatulin, 2003. 'Turkmenistan's Crackdown: A View From Jail', Eurasianet, 20th November 2003.[Online]. Available at: http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/civilsociety/articles/eav112103.shtml Last accessed 06 April 2018

 

HRO, org., 2010. "Туркменистан: активисту грозит серьезная опасность", 18 October, 2010. [Online]. Available at: http://www.hro.org/node/9301 Last accessed 06 April 2018