Centre1: Father of IRPT leader buried in Tajikistan

Centre1 reports on 24 October 2016 that on Saturday 22 October 2016, 95-year-old Tillo Kabirov (Тилло Кабиров), father of Muhiddin Kabiri (Мухиддин Кабири), leader of the Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan (IRPT), died. According to the article, Tillo Kabirov was buried the same day in accordance with Muslim custom in his home village of Kasamdara, Fayzabad district. The article reports that Muhiddin Kabiri was unable to attend because he had been living outside Tajikistan for more than a year owing to the closure of the party and the persecution of its members. Per the article, in December 2015 Tillo Kabirov and some of his relatives were detained by the country’s security services and held for several days under arrest; several days later a video appeared online in which relatives asked Muhiddin Kabiri to return to Tajikistan. The article reports that after this detention Tillo Kabirov’s health deteriorated, and that when his relatives tried to send him to Turkey for treatment, security service representatives prevented his departure by removing him from the flight at the last moment. The article reports the authorities accused the IRPT and its members of an attempted military coup in September 2015; it states that in summer 2016, 16 party members were convicted on charges of terrorism, extremism, coup attempt and attempting to overthrow the constitutional order. Two deputies of Kabiri — Mahmadali Hait (Махмадали Хаит) and Saidumar Husayni (Саидумар Хусайни) — received life sentences, the article reports. Other IRPT members received prison terms ranging from 15 to 28 years. The article reports that the only female defendant, Zarafo Rahmoni (Зарафо Рахмони), was sentenced to two years but released under amnesty in September 2016. Sources cited: Centre1’s own reporting.