Tashkent Province
Persons accused of "Wahhabism" faced abuse ranging from job loss to physical abuse and long imprisonment. During the reporting period, at least 25 defendants were convicted on nonspecific charges of affiliation with "Wahhabi" groups in nine separate trials in Tashkent City and Tashkent Province alone. In April 2007, 6 men in Surkhandarya Province were convicted belonging to a Wahhabist sect and sentenced to between 3 and 6 years' imprisonment. According to a reliable source, the confessions of the defendants were extracted through torture. On February 14, 2007, the Tashkent City Criminal Court convicted two women on charges of "Wahhabism" and subjected them to fines. On December 19, 2006, the Tashkent City Criminal Court convicted Shoakmal Nosirov and Farkhod Muminov of belonging to a Wahhabist sect and sentenced them to between 6 and 9 years' imprisonment. The men were arrested after organizing a camp for 50 children that included Qur'an reading contests. Most of the children's fathers were in prison on religious extremist charges. In a separate trial on September 12, 2006, the Tashkent City Criminal Court convicted nine defendants and sentenced 8 of them to 6 years' imprisonment; the ninth defendant received a sentence of 8 years.