Protests against amendments to the Constitution of Uzbekistan continued at night in Karakalpakstan. Social networks reported on the clash between police and protesters. Local media reports on the dead and injured, while the exact number is unknown. According to Mediazona . Central Asia”, the security forces used tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets.
President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev again flew to Nukus, Gazeta.uz writes, citing Flightradar data: he had already arrived on Saturday evening and reported that if the residents of Karakalpakstan were dissatisfied, then amendments to the Constitution that relate to the republic would not be made.
According to Gazeta.uz, it is now calm in the city, there are almost no cars. Mobile communication works, while access to the Internet is limited.
A state of emergency has been introduced in Karakalpakstan until August 2. The Parliament of Uzbekistan approved the relevant presidential decree.
Protests in Karakalpakstan broke out over a draft amendment to the constitution of Uzbekistan: they deprived Karakalpakstan of sovereignty and ruled out the possibility of secession from the republic.
Ruslan Myatiev, editor-in-chief of TurkmenNews, told The Insider that on June 25, the publication of the draft amendments caused “misunderstanding and quiet protest” among the residents of Karakalpakstan, and on July 1, after the arrest of one of the leaders of the protest, lawyer Dauletmurat Tazhimuratov, by unknown persons, the protests moved into an active phase.
“He went to the parliament of the republic, where he notified the authorities that on July 5 <when the issue of adopting the amendments will be decided – The Insider> he was going to hold a peaceful popular protest against the amendments,” Myatiev said.
After that, he went to the mosque and then went home. Already from home, he began to send voice messages to his Telegram channel stating that “everything is all right with him.” “And then he sent a message, where he said in a trembling voice that the top leadership of the National Security Service (NSS – The Insider) of Uzbekistan had contacted him and demanded that he ‘stop all this’. He was threatened that he was a bribe taker: they allegedly have a video where he takes bribes. They also allegedly have a video of him having sex with men, which is illegal in Uzbekistan. He was also told that they would bring up the old cases of his father – what was meant by this is unknown, ”says Myatiev.
Half an hour after the publication of this message, his sister began to send voice messages to the channel. She could not find her brother in his house, "but she saw broken windows." She also found "traces of blood." “All those living in the house were taken away by unknown people in a tinted bus – presumably, it is in the SNB detention center,” Myatiev retold the message of the activist’s sister.
After that, people began to flock to Tazhimuratov's house. “They saw everything with their own eyes and slowly began to fill the squares and block the roads. OMON officers with shields and batons began to arrive in Nukus. It is not clear if they have firearms. According to the latest reports, the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev flew from Tashkent to Nukus,” Myatiev said.
“There is an opinion that the Uzbek authorities <by their decision to deprive Karakalpakstan of autonomy – The Insider> want to prevent even a hint of the events that are happening now in Ukraine. This time. Secondly, following the example of Russian constitutional amendments, they wanted to reset Mirziyoyev’s term and solve this problem forever. Because the population of Karakalpakstan has always felt independent. My sources say that the majority of the people want to secede from Uzbekistan – they want to solve this problem with amendments, ”says Myatiev.
