Nov 10, 2022

Tajikistan’s population is majority Sunni Muslim, with a small Shi’a Muslim community which primarily consists of ethnic Pamiris located in the mountainous eastern part of the country known as the Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO). The latest crackdown on civil society in the GBAO followed protests initially sparked in mid-May of this year. Since then, over 200 residents in the GBAO have been arrested and detained, including at least 90 activists. Journalists have been rounded up and Pamiris have been forcibly repatriated from Russia and given lengthy prison sentences.

Religious freedom has declined in Tajikistan since 2009 after the adoption of several highly restrictive laws. In 2011 and 2012, administrative and penal code amendments set new penalties, including large fines and prison terms, for religion-related charges such as organizing or participating in “unapproved” religious meetings. A 2011 law on parental responsibility banned minors from any organized religious activity except for funerals. Since 2012, USCIRF has recommended that the State Department designate Tajikistan as a “Country of Particular Concern,” or CPC, for engaging in systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom, which the State Department has done every year since 2016.

Visiting Scholar at the Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard University and retired Associate Professor of National Security Affairs at the U.S. Naval War College, Suzanne Levi-Sanchez, joins us today to discuss the persecution of Muslims in Tajikistan and specifically highlights the increasing crackdown on Shi’a Muslims.

Additional Name(s): Aleksander Gabyshev, Габышев Александр Прокопьевич

Gender: Male

Perpetrator: Russia

Ethnic Group: Yakut

Religion or Belief: Shaman

Reports of Torture: Yes

Reports of Medical Neglect: No

Date of Detainment: January/27/2021

Current Status: Not Released

Religious Leader: No

Most Recent Type of Abuse: Detainment

Reason for Persecution: Pilgrimage Religious Activity Religious Belief Religious Expression

Nature of Charges: Assault & Battery Extremism Incitement to Commit Crime & Violence

Aleksandr Gabyshev

Extra Bio Info:

Aleksandr Gabyshev is detained for his religious expression, belief, and activity. 

On January 27, 2021, authorities arrested Gabyshev and sent him to a psychiatric hospital after Gabyshev renewed his calls to “exorcise” President Vladimir Putin from power. Gabyshev was charged with “public calls for extremist activity” (Art. 280-1 RCC) and “using violence dangerous to the life or health of a representative of authority” (Art. 318-2 RCC). Gabyshev allegedly injured a police officer during his arrest.

On July 26, 2021, the Yakutsk City Court ruled Gabyshev be confined to a psychiatric hospital indefinitely.

In September 2021, an appeals court reportedly upheld Gabyshev’s indefinite psychiatric confinement, declaring him “insane.”

In October 2022, the Ussuriisk District Court extended Gabyshev’s psychiatric confinement after the Primorye Regional Court the month before ruled in favor of Gabyshev’s appeal and ordered a new hearing with the Ussuriisk District Court.

On November 30, 2022, the Primorye Regional Court rejected Gabyshev’s appeal against the extension of his forced hospitalization.

In February 2023, a court extended Gabyshev’s psychiatric confinement to June 2023.

In June 2023, a court ordered the transfer of Gabyshev to a general psychiatric hospital with lighter detention conditions in Yakutsk.

In July 2023, the Primorsky Regional Court overturned Gabyshev's court-ordered transfer to a general psychiatric hospital with lighter detention conditions.

Gabyshev has previously been subjected to forced psychiatric hospitalization for his religious expression. In 2019, Gabyshev began a cross country trek from Yakutsk to Moscow with the goal of using his shaman powers to cast out President Putin’s "demons." In September 2019, police abducted him and placed him in a psychiatric hospital for “public calls for extremist activity” (Art. 280-1 RCC).

Publicly Available Information:

Additional Name(s): 安彦魁

Gender: Male

Perpetrator: China

Religion or Belief: Christian – Protestant

Reports of Torture: No

Reports of Medical Neglect: No

Sentence: 1 Year's Imprisonment

Date of Detainment: November/21/2021

Date of Sentencing: November/3/2022

Current Status: Released

Religious Leader: Yes

Most Recent Type of Abuse: Imprisonment

Reason for Persecution: Religious Activity Religious Belief Religious Figure & Religious Leadership Role Travel Abroad

Nature of Charges: Illegal Migration & Entry/Exit of Country

An Yankui

Extra Bio Info:

An Yankui was imprisoned for his religious belief and activity.

On November 21, 2021, authorities from Fenyang city, Luliang municipality, Shanxi province, reportedly detained An, a minister and member of the Zion Reformed Church in Taiyuan municipality, Shanxi, for “illegally crossing the border.”  His arrest was reportedly in relation to a trip to Malaysia five church members took to attend a religious conference.

On November 3, 2022, the Fenyang City Court sentenced An to one year in prison.

Later in November 2022, An was released from prison after completing his sentence.

An had previously been detained while holding a Bible study in 2020.

Related Cases: Zhang Chenghao

Publicly Available Information:
Subscribe to