Zhumasapar Dadebayev

Zhumasapar Dadebayev is an ethnic Turkmen civic activist and blogger originally from the Saraykol area (now Takhtakopir region) of Karakalpakstan. He had been living in Istanbul, Turkey since 2018, where he advocated for greater autonomy or sovereignty for Karakalpakstan and identified himself as founder of a political initiative (Dostluk Party) representing Turkmens of Karakalpakstan. On 10 January 2022, while in the suburbs of Istanbul, he was detained and forcibly transferred to Uzbekistan in an operation believed to involve Uzbek special services. He was then detained upon arrival at Tashkent International Airport on 12 January 2022. On 10 August 2022, the Mirzo-Ulugbek District Court in Tashkent convicted him and sentenced him to 12 years in a penal colony. His appeal was rejected by the Tashkent City Court on 27 October 2022, upholding the original sentence. The charges against Dadebayev especially those relating to terrorism, incitement of ethnic or religious hatred, participation in extremist organisations, and conspiracy to seize power are connected to his online activism and public support for Karakalpakstan’s sovereignty rather than evidence of violent actions. Dadebayev’s charges politically motivated. His trial was closed to the public, which limited transparency and independent scrutiny of the evidence and proceedings.

Zhumasapar Dadebayev is an ethnic Turkmen civic activist and blogger originally from the Saraykol area (now Takhtakopir region) of Karakalpakstan. He had been living in Istanbul, Turkey since 2018, where he advocated for greater autonomy or sovereignty for Karakalpakstan and identified himself as founder of a political initiative (Dostluk Party) representing Turkmens of Karakalpakstan.