Five years ago journalist Alisher Saipov was murdered in Osh, and since then much has changed: Uzbek authorities have toughened attitudes towards freedom of speech but they now enjoy support from the West.
The brazen killing, or rather execution, of Alisher Saipov, 26, in the Kyrgyz town of Osh on 24 October 2007 shook the journalist circles of the two countries – Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.
Shock, anger and sorry of Alisher’s many colleagues in the two countries who had no doubt that his murder led to the Uzbek government; then the West was sympathetic to the journalists.
The killing of the journalist who published the Uzbek-language Siyosat (Politics) newspaper which criticised Uzbek government policy harshly was more eloquent than words about the ugliness of the Karimov region.
No-one then wanted to deal with Karimov. Two years before the murder of Alisher, the Uzbek president was counted among the world’s rogues for opening fire against thousands of protesters in Andijan on 13 May 2005.
Today, five years later, Alisher is one of the numerous victims of the Karimov regime who, along with hundreds of killed during the Andijan events and those tortured to death in Uzbek prisons, have been forgotten. Karimov has been forgiven everything.
Innocent journalists – Salijon Abdurahmanov, Dilmurod Said, Muhammad Bekjan and writer Mamadali Mahmudov – and others continue to languish in Uzbek prisons.
No-one talks about them, no-one talks for them. Global politics now favour Karimov, exchanging Alisher, Salijon and Dilmurod for a road – transit through the Uzbek town of Termez to Afghanistan.
Until the end of 2014 when NATO pulls out its troops from Afghanistan one of the most repressive regimes in the world – corrupt and soaked in the blood of its citizens – will remain friends of the West.
For Western politicians this is a compromise for the next two years. For Salijon and other imprisoned journalists this is years in horrible prison to which the West has put a blind eye.
For the family of Alisher Saipov this is years without a son, brother and father.
Alisher was one of the brightest journalists of Kyrgyzstan and Central Asia. He was so bright that in his 26 he posed a threat to the Karimov regime.
As an ethnic Uzbek he cared about Uzbekistan, although he regarded Kyrgyzstan as his homeland.
His place in Osh remains vacant. His articles, investigative reports and speeches are being missed, especially now when only few people talk about truth and justice.
The Uznews.net team and colleagues of Alisher Saipov
Source: uznews.net/news_single.php?lng=en&cid=32&nid=21108
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