DUSHANBE, September 17, 2015, Asia-Plus – Two leaders of the Islamic Revival Party of Tajikistan (IRP) have been detained in Dushanbe.

The first deputy chairman of the IRP, Saidumar Husaini, was detained yesterday morning.

“Saidumar Husaini, who was supposed to go to Almaty (Kazakhstan) for a week, was taken in custody today morning when boarding a flight for Almaty at the Dushanbe airport,” IRP deputy leader Mahmadali Hayit told Asia-Plus Wednesday afternoon.

According to him, Saidumar Husaini had a round-trip ticket.  “No reason was given for detention of Husaini, who is currently being held at the detention center of the State Committee for National Security (SCNS), Hayit added.

Meanwhile, Mahmadali Hayit himself was reportedly detained by security officers yesterday evening.  His relatives say SCNS officers came to their house at around 6:45 pm and took Mahmadali Hayit with them.

We will recall that the Ministry of Justice banned the IRP on August 28 and gave it 10 days to halt all activities.  The deadline was September 7.

According to the ministry, the IRP cannot legally continue its activities because it does not have enough members to qualify as an officially registered party.  The ministry said that all the party''s branches in 58 cities and districts across Tajikistan have been closed.

Human Rights Watch, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, and the Association for Human Rights in Central Asia released a statement on September 14 urging the Tajik government to reverse its decision to order the closure of the IRP and allow the party to operate freely.  Tajik authorities should also halt their ongoing campaign of harassment against the party and its members and allow independent political parties to operate freely in Tajikistan, the statement said.