CPJ: Mirsaidov 12yr after alleging official corruption

The article reports that on 11 July 2018 a court in Tajikistan found independent journalist Khayrullo Mirsaidov guilty of embezzling and misusing state funds and false reporting to police, and sentenced him to 12 years in a high-security prison. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), publishing from New York, condemned the ruling and called on Tajik authorities to release Mirsaidov immediately. The article finds that his lawyers intended to appeal. CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia research associate Gulnoza Said is quoted stating that journalists such as Mirsaidov should be recognised for reporting on matters of public interest, not imprisoned on what she described as bogus charges. The report states that Mirsaidov was arrested on 5 December 2017, weeks after publishing an open letter to President Emomali Rahmon and other officials in his native Sughd region asking them to crack down on corrupt local authorities. According to the article, the journalist denied the charges, as CPJ had previously documented. The image caption cites Reuters/Mike Segar and notes that President Rahmon addressed the UN General Assembly in September 2015.