Additional Name(s): Zumkar, འཛུམ་དཀར་
Gender: Female
Perpetrator: China
Ethnic Group: Tibetan
Religion or Belief: Buddhist – Tibetan
Reports of Torture: No
Reports of Medical Neglect: No
Date of Detainment: June/23/2022
Current Status: Not Released
Religious Leader: No
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Detainment
Reason for Persecution: Adherence to a Religious Figure Possession of Religious Materials Religious Activity Religious Belief
Nature of Charges: Unknown
Dzumkar
Extra Bio Info:
Dzumkar is detained for her adherence to a religious figure.
On June 23, 2022, security officials in Amdo (Anduo) county, Nagchu (Naqu) municipality, Tibet Autonomous Region, detained Dzumkar after finding a photo of the Dalai Lama during a search of her home. The authorities' search of her home came two weeks before the Dalai Lama's birthday.
Related Cases: Yudron
Publicly Available Information:
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"Dzumkar" Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC)
Additional Name(s): Khasan Doniyorovich Abdirakhimov
Gender: Male
Perpetrator: Uzbekistan
Religion or Belief: Muslim – Sunni
Reports of Torture: Yes
Sentence: 8 Years and 3 Months in Labor Camp
Date of Detainment: November/22/2021
Date of Sentencing: December/18/2024
Current Status: Not Released
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Imprisonment
Reason for Persecution: Discussing Religion & Religious Texts Giving, Sharing, & Listening to a Religious Speech Online Activity Possession of Religious Materials Religious Activity
Nature of Charges: Banned Organization Extremism Spreading Propaganda & False or Misleading Ideas, Information, or Materials
Khasan Abdirakhimov
Extra Bio Info:
Khasan Abdirakhimov is in a labor camp for his independent religious activity.
On November 22, 2021, police took into custody Abdirakhimov. Abdirakhimov had originally been sentenced in January 2021 to a period of restricted freedom for downloading, listening to, and sharing on social media the sermons of certain imams that the government has banned. He was charged with "creation, management, and participation in religious extremist, separatist, fundamentalist, or other banned organizations" (Art. 244-2.3 UCC).
On November 25, 2021, the Karshi District Criminal Court canceled Abdirakhimov’s restricted freedom sentence and resentenced him to three years, eight months, and 22 days in prison.
On February 16, 2022, police reportedly completed a new investigation into Abdirakhimov for “distributing or displaying materials containing a threat to public security and public order using mass media or telecommunication, or the Internet” (Art. 244-1.3 UCC).
On an unspecified date, Abdirakhimov was reportedly released from prison after receiving amnesty.
On June 18, 2024, police rearrested Abdirakhimov and seven other Muslims after six of them had attended a meal at the home of a state employee on that day. Reportedly, the employee regularly arranges meetings for Muslims during which he encourages attendees to make illegal statements while secretly recording them. During the arrests, police were dressed in military camouflage, carried machine guns, and used force. The Kashkadarya Regional Police Criminal Investigation Department charged Abdirakhimov with "creating, leading, or participating in religious extremist, separatist, fundamentalist or other banned organizations" (Art. 244-2.1 UCC).
On December 18, 2024, the Karshi Criminal Court sentenced Abdirakhimov to eight years and three months in a labor camp.
Abdirakhimov is married with five children.
Related Cases: Laziz Vokhidov; Gaybullo Jalilov; Anvar Abdullayev; Sardor Jurayev; Jamshid Abdirakhimov; Umar Khalimov
Publicly Available Information:
- "UZBEKISTAN: Eight Muslim prisoners of conscience tortured, handed long prison sentences" Forum 18
- Photo attributed to ©Private [CC BY-NC-ND 4.0] via Forum 18
- "UZBEKISTAN: New trial imminent for Muslim prisoner of conscience?" Forum 18
Additional Name(s): Anatoli Pavlovich Zernichenko
Gender: Male
Current Location: Investigation Prison No. 11, Shymkent
Perpetrator: Kazakhstan
Religion or Belief: Muslim – Sunni
Reports of Torture: No
Reports of Medical Neglect: No
Sentence: 7 Years' Imprisonment
Date of Detainment: October/15/2021
Date of Sentencing: June/20/2022
Current Status: Not Released
Religious Leader: No
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Imprisonment
Reason for Persecution: Discussing Religion & Religious Texts Online Activity Possession of Religious Materials Religious Activity Religious Belief
Nature of Charges: Incitement to Commit Crime & Violence Terrorism
Anatoli Zernichenko
Extra Bio Info:
Anatoli Zernichenko is imprisoned for his religious belief and activity.
On October 15, 2021, authorities in Arys arrested Zernichenko for posting religious texts on Instagram and Telegram in 2020. After the arrest, authorities confiscated religious books and personal items from his home and another property.
On June 20, 2022, the Arys District Court sentenced Zernichenko to seven years' imprisonment for “promotion of terrorism or public calls for making of the act of terrorism…with use of mass media or networks of telecommunications” (Art. 256-2 KCC) and fined him 55,560 tenges. While in prison, authorities have refused access to the Qur’an or other religious literature.
Zernichenko is married with one child.
Publicly Available Information:
- Photo attributed to ©Anna Tukova [CC BY-NC-ND 4.0] via Forum 18
- USCIRF Commissioner Nury Turkel, Tweet, June 20, 2023
- USCIRF Annual Report 2023: Kazakhstan
- “KAZAKHSTAN: Seven years' jail for online Muslim posts” Forum 18