Freedom House: TJ Freedom in the World 2025

The report states that Tajikistan is classified as “Not Free” in the Freedom in the World 2025 country report, with an overall score of 5 out of 100. The report states the authoritarian regime of President Emomali Rahmon, who has ruled since 1992, severely restricts political rights and civil liberties. The report states the political opposition and independent media have been devastated by a sustained campaign of repression, and the government exerts tight control over religious expression and activity, while wealth and authority are concentrated in the hands of Rahmon and his family. The report states that in May, parliament adopted and in June the president signed legislation banning the import, sale, and wearing of clothes deemed to conflict with “national culture,” with violations punishable by fines, and also imposing restrictions on certain religious, cultural, and family celebrations. The report states independent journalists continued to face persecution, noting that Ahmad Ibrohim, editor-in-chief of the newspaper Payk, was arrested in August on charges of bribery, extortion, and extremism, with a closed-door trial pending at year’s end. The report states authorities persisted in efforts to detain and punish political dissidents who had sought refuge abroad, citing an October court in Dushanbe that sentenced Group 24 leaders Suhrob Zafar and Nasimjon Sharifov to 30 and 20 years in prison, respectively, after being forcibly disappeared in Turkey and emerging later in state custody amid reports of torture. The report states another prominent Group 24 activist, Dilmurod Ergashev, was deported from Germany in November.