State Security v Freedom of Expression: Legitimate Fight against Terrorism or Suppression of Political Opposition?
Year: 2010
Type: article
Abstract: On 31 March 2009, the UN Human Rights Committee (‘the Committee’) adopted its views in the case of A.K. and A.R. v Uzbekistan.1 The Committee held that the conviction of the two authors, who were Uzbek citizens, for seeking, receiving and imparting information and radical ideas related to Islam did not violate any of the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 1966 (ICCPR).2 The case is a telling example of the acute conflict between the fight against terrorism and religious extremism3 on the one hand, and the protection of human rights on the other. At the centre of the case is a radical Islamic organisation—Hizb ut-Tahrir. The organisation’s declared aim is to establish an Islamic state—the Caliphate—and to restore the practice of Islamic piety.4 Conflicting with democratic and liberal ideas, Hizb ut-Tahrir’s ideology seriously challenges the international commitment to freedom of expression and freedom of religion.5 With regard to Uzbekistan, the challenge is intensified by the fact that Uzbekistan’s President Karimov has utilised the situation to repress any political opposition. It is believed that, since the beginning of his campaign of religious persecution, several thousand persons have been arrested in Uzbekistan for their membership in Hizb ut-Tahrir and other underground activities.6 Arrested individuals often claim to have been subjected to torture and ill treatment in order to extract confessions.7
Source: Human Rights Law Review
DOI: 10.1093/hrlr/ngp041
Authors: H. Keller, M. Sigron
Institution: University of Zurich
Language: English
Subfield: Law
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2137973757