Last edited: October 31, 2004


Jailed Uzbek Journalist Gets Asylum in U.S.

PlanetOut.com, October 28, 2004
http://www.planetout.com/news/article.html?2004/10/28/1

By Ben Townley, Gay.com U.K.

SUMMARY: Ruslan Sharipov, the journalist imprisoned in Uzbekistan for homosexuality to the anger of human rights workers worldwide, has been granted asylum in the United States.

Ruslan Sharipov, the journalist imprisoned in Uzbekistan for homosexuality to the anger of human rights workers worldwide, has been granted asylum in the United States.

According to a press release from the World Association of Newspapers (WAN), Sharipov was released last week after the United States agreed to offer him sanctuary.

Sharipov’s case has received international media attention, with civil and human rights organizations as well as international lesbian and gay groups calling for his release.

He was originally arrested under sodomy laws that dated back to the country’s Soviet rule, but was also quickly charged with having sex with minors.

Human rights groups at the time claimed that this charge was fabricated in a bid to discourage international press interest in the story. They claimed the allegations were politically motivated, since Sharipov had criticized the Uzbek government in the past.

Despite continually denying the charges, Sharipov dismissed his lawyer and “admitted” his guilt last year. He later said he was forced to sign the confession as a result of ongoing torture and abuse.

Speaking in a statement Wednesday afternoon, WAN’s director of press freedom programs, Kajsa Tornroth, said the group was relieved at the asylum offer.

“We are relieved that Mr. Sharipov is beyond the reach of the Uzbek authorities, and we hope that he can one day return to a free and democratic Uzbekistan,” Tornroth said.


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