Jehovah’s Witnesses

For Immediate Release
February 15, 2012
(Russian)

Uzbek officials refuse to release prisoners of conscience—indefinite prison time awaits

TASHKENT, Uzbekistan—Sergey Ivanov, one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, was looking forward to seeing his friends and family again. He had spent the last three and a half years in an Uzbek labor colony and was anticipating his release in January 2012. However, instead of freedom, he was transferred to the Tashkent city jail to wait for a new court trial. Authorities now accuse him of a prison regime violation which can lead to another three years of imprisonment.

Relatives of another prisoner, Olim Turayev, a 38-year-old medical doctor and one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, also learned that he was accused of the same violation and transferred to the Tashkent city jail to await further sentencing. Both Ivanov and Turayev were imprisoned for “unauthorized religious activities” that ranged from studying the Bible in a private home to merely talking about the Bible with others.

Prison officials had visited these men while they served their original sentences and told them that unless they renounced their faith they would not be released. It seems Uzbek officials are intent on sticking to their word.

Media Contacts:
J.R. Brown, Office of Public Information, tel. +1 718 560 5600
Belgium: European Association of Jehovah’s Christian Witnesses, tel. +32 2 782 0015
Britain: European Association of Jehovah’s Christian Witnesses, tel. +44 208 906 2211