Europe and Central Asia Summary of Amnesty International’s Concerns in the Region, January-June 2007 Kazakstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to make respect and observance of human rights and human dignity the cornerstone of their engagement. Human Rights Concerns Ahead of the meeting in Astana AI issued a summary of its most pressing human rights concerns in Central Asia with a particular focus on the plight of human rights defenders in Uzbekistan.(see AI Index: EUR 04/001/2007 and EUR 62/002/2007). Rule of Law and Impunity AI remained concerned that despite professed efforts by governments in Central Asia to fulfil their human rights obligations and actual efforts by some states to remedy the worst abuses, grave human rights violations routinely continued to be committed with virtual impunity. Very few law enforcement officers were brought to trial and held accountable for violations they had committed and yet thousands of people routinely alleged that they had been arbitrarily detained and tortured or illtreated in custody in order to extract a confession. Corruption in law enforcement and the judiciary contributed largely to a climate of impunity in the region. This climate of impunity led to a lack of public confidence in the criminal justice system. People did not lodge complaints as they felt that they would not obtain justice, nor get compensation. Many were not willing to testify against police officers out of fear of reprisals against themselves or their relatives and associates. Beatings by law enforcement officers, especially in temporary pre-charge detention centres and in the streets, were still considered routine. Torture or other illtreatment in detention continued to be widespread throughout the region and systematic in Uzbekistan. Evidence based on confessions extracted under torture were still routinely admitted in court Amnesty International 33 In 2006 the UN Special Rapporteur on torture reiterated his concerns about the apparent widespread use of torture in Uzbekistan. Human rights violations as a consequence of counter-terrorism measures The fight against terrorism and issues of national security were frequently quoted as crucial in securing stability, but only too frequently used as a cloak to clamp down on dissent, consolidate power and target vulnerable groups or groups perceived as a threat to national or regional security, such as banned Islamic groups and opposition political movements. Asylum-seekers and refugees were frequently extradited to China and Uzbekistan, where they were at grave risk of torture, as part of the “war on terror” and counter-terrorism agreements in blatant contravention of international refugee and human rights law. Although the presumption of innocence was enshrined in law, it was violated on a regular basis, especially in the context of national security and “the war on terror”, with suspects branded guilty in public before the start of their trials. Most of the trials in Uzbekistan of people charged with terrorism in 2005 and 2006 were closed or even held in secret, with no advance notice of the start date, no access to relatives or lawyers of the defendants’ choice, no publication of the verdict after the sentencing, and no indication as to where the defendants were being held. Defendants in criminal cases in Uzbekistan and other republics were usually held in a cage during the trial, which might impact on the presumption of their innocence. Human Rights Defenders and Freedom of Expression Although provided for in law, in practice freedom of speech and of the press was severely restricted in Central Asia with few independent media outlets operating freely and governments controlling access to the AI Index: EUR 01/010/2007