DUSHANBE, January 8, 2014, Asia-Plus – Monitoring conducted by the National Association of Independent Media of Tajikistan (Nansmit) in 2013 reportedly recorded 82 instances of direct violations of rights of journalists and media outlets in the country.

Conducted under support of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), the monitoring reportedly recorded 276 reports concerning the situation of freedom of speech in the country, including 129 reports about the actual state of media in Tajikistan, 82 reports about direct violations of rights of journalists and media, and 65 reports about conflicts and charges brought against media and journalists.

Monitoring by Tajik media watchdog, in particular, noted that preparations for and holding of the 2013 presidential election have affected the situation of freedom of speech in the country.

In 2013, orders by head of the communications service agency to block a number of news websites were among the main reasons for restriction of access to socially significant information, the monitoring said.

Tajik media watchdog also notes that adoption of Tajikistan’s new law “On Periodical Print and Other Mass Media” was a main step toward the development of legislative basis for activity of media in Tajikistan.