New research from Amnesty International shows that Tajik authorities are committing systemic discrimination and serious human rights violations against the Pamir minority. The Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO) in eastern Tajikistan is home to several ethnic groups from the Pamir minority, who mostly practice the Shiite Ismaili sect of Islam. Denied recognition as a minority by central authorities and considered ethnic Tajiks, the Pamirs face systemic discrimination, suppression of cultural and religious institutions, political oppression, and brutal reprisals for defending their rights.
“The ongoing persecution and human rights abuses against the Tajik Tammy minority reached alarming proportions many years ago. But almost no one sounded the alarm. The Tajik authorities blocked almost all information from the region, while the international community remained silent for a long time. This serious human rights crisis has been largely ignored, said Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia: “This requires immediate attention and action from the international community to defend the Pamir. the rights and dignity of the people. ”
The ongoing persecution and human rights violations suffered by Tajikistan’s Pamir minority reached alarming proportions many years ago. But almost no one sounded the alarm
Marie Struthers, Director of Eastern Europe and Central Asia at Amnesty International
Tajikistan: Retaliation against Pamir minorities, suppression of local identity, suppression of all dissent Highlighted violations of economic, social and cultural rights resulting from: repression of Pamir language, cultural practices and identity; heavy presence of security forces from other parts of Tajikistan; violent repression of protests and general arbitrariness Detention; Pamir Ismaili community faces socioeconomic marginalization in Gorno-Badakhshan province.
Discrimination and securitization
Central authorities fostered a culture of prejudice against the Pamirs. State-sponsored narratives portrayed them, especially the Ismailis, negatively, leading to widespread discrimination. This policy manifests itself in repressive practices, including the suppression of the use of the Pamir language in media, education, and public life, the exclusion of Pamirs from influential positions within state administration and security agencies, and the extortion and destruction of local employment opportunities and Pamir Enterprises.
The heavy presence of security forces from other parts of Tajikistan reflects the authorities’ disdain for the ethnic Gorno-Badakhshan people. “The word ‘Pamir’ [for the security forces] method […] Separatists, opposition, main enemy,” said one interviewee.
The presence of security agencies, including the Ministry of Interior (MIA) and the Council of National Security (SCNS), has increased significantly in the GBAO. Security forces set up armed cordons on roads and city squares, including in GBAO’s capital Khorog, which was patrolled by heavily armed police and troops. “Khorog’s security forces behave like wolves tending sheep. ‘You shouldn’t be walking like this; you shouldn’t be laughing!’
GBAO’s security operations include surveillance, intimidation, and excessive use of force (often justified as a fight against terrorism and organized crime), accompanied by arbitrary arrests and prosecutions of local informal leaders and ordinary Pamirs, despite a lack of credible evidence.
“The repressive securitization of Gorno-Badakhshan province brooks no scrutiny. Local residents are considered hostile by the central government and people are harassed and discriminated against on a daily basis,” said Mary Struthers.
The repressive securitization of Gorno-Badakhshan province brooks no scrutiny. Local residents are considered hostile by the central government and people are harassed and discriminated against on a daily basis
Marie Struthers, Director of Eastern Europe and Central Asia at Amnesty International
Crackdown 2021-2022 and its consequences
Tensions increased after the killing of prominent Pamir figure Gulbiddin Ziyobekov in November 2021. The man was unlawfully killed, possibly amounting to an extrajudicial killing. In response to four days of protests in Horugh, security forces used firearms against a previously peaceful crowd, killing two protesters and allegedly injuring about a dozen others.
“We escorted women away […] To a safer place. That’s when a bullet hit me. They were in uniform and filmed from the building’s entrance. Some of them were standing directly at the entrance, some were on the second or third floor,” one protester said, describing law enforcement officers’ excessive use of deadly force.
After making false promises of effective investigations, authorities instead persecuted informal community leaders, harassed civil society, and intimidated and prosecuted ordinary Pamirs.
A second episode of violence occurred in May 2022, when authorities violently dispersed peaceful protests in Khorog and Rushan, resulting in the deaths of dozens of Pamirs, including informal leader Mamadbokir Mamadboki Mamadbokir Mamadbokirov, they were shot dead by unknown gunmen in a pickup truck – likely an extrajudicial killing. According to independent reports, 24 civilians died, some during the crackdown and some in alleged unlawful killings in revenge.
The ensuing crackdown on civil society resulted in the arbitrary detention of more than 200 human rights defenders, dissidents and influential figures, such as journalist and activist Ulfatkhonim Mamadshoeva and lawyers Faromuz Irgashev and Manuchehr Kholiknazarov. They were sentenced to 21, 29 and 15 years in prison respectively in December 2023 in secret trials, with details of the charges made public just six months later.
arbitrary detention and torture
Tajik authorities have frequently subjected Pamirs to arbitrary detentions, alleged torture and other ill-treatment, with reports of forced confessions and trumped-up charges of crimes against “public security”, “fundamental principles of constitutional order” or “administrative order”. Legal proceedings lacked transparency and due process, with many trials lasting only a few days. Reports of torture and other ill-treatment were common during the 2021-2022 crackdown.
One detainee following a protest in May 2022 said he was deprived of sleep for two days, beaten with fists and batons, and hit on the head with a thick book.
“When they asked and I didn’t answer, they wrapped my fingers with wet wipes and [fixed it with] tape. They put the clamps on and open something up. this [electric] The current is very strong. They did this with different fingers. They do this twice a day, four times in total,” he said.
The international community must urgently raise concerns about the human rights violations faced by the Pamirs with the Tajik authorities
Marie Struthers, Director of Eastern Europe and Central Asia at Amnesty International
“In the wake of the protests in Gorno-Badakhshan Province in 2021-2022, systemic discrimination against the Pamir community has become even more entrenched, leading to fear, harassment and human rights violations. The international community must intervene in all possible venues, especially is the international occasion to urgently raise to the Tajik authorities concerns about the human rights violations faced by the Pamirs, to express solidarity with the Pamirs, to provide protection to those seeking asylum abroad, and to take decisive measures to act against this evil in Tajikistan system,” said Mary Struthers.
