Freedom of the Press 2008 - Tajikistan

Status: Not Free
Legal Environment: 25 (of 30)
Political Environment: 28 (of 40)
Economic Environment: 24 (of 30)
Total Score: 77 (of 100)
(Lower scores = freer)

Freedom of speech is guaranteed by the constitution, but the media situation remained largely moribund in the wake of successful government efforts in 2004-2006 to force independent reporting to the margins. In August, President Imomali Rahmon signed amendments criminalizing libel and defamation on the internet with penalties of up to two years in prison. This innovation followed a tightening of restrictions on the media in 2006. The long-ruling president also demonstrated his particular understanding of the role of the press in society when he called on the media to "raise patriotism."

In a welcome development, the Supreme Court sentenced Aslan Usmanov to a 15-year prison term for the 1995 murder of journalist Muhiddin Olimpur, former head of the BBC's Persian Service in Tajikistan and one of a number of unsolved murders of journalists dating back to the country's 1992-1995 civil war. Usmanov, a field commander with the United Tajik Opposition at the time of the killing, was convicted of masterminding the murder.

While 2007 saw no reports of violence against journalists, harassment took other forms. In July, the prosecutor's office in Dushanbe opened a criminal libel case against Editor-in-Chief Saida Qurgonova and reporters Muhayo Nozimov and Farangis Nabieva of the newspaper Ovoza for an article that was critical of the singer Raikhona Rahimova. The case, which began at the Supreme Court in Dushanbe in October, highlighted the potential effects of the country's recently tightened libel legislation, as it involved an article that quoted critical comments from an internet forum about a performance Rahimova had given in Afghanistan. Although the case was resolved amicably, it served to put journalists on notice that their use of online sources could land them in legal difficulties possibly leading to stiff fines or even prison time.

The independent newspaper Nerui Sukhan, one of a number of media outlets sidelined in 2004-2006 for falling afoul of licensing regulations, remained out of print in 2007. The BBC was also unable to regain its FM broadcast license in 2007. Registration difficulties also affected the NGO Internews, which was blocked from plans to open community radio stations.

State-run media had a dominant presence, particularly in the broadcast realm. All three television stations with a nationwide reach – Tojik, Sughd, and Khatlon – were state-run. It should be noted, however, that the independent regional television station Somoniyon regained its license in 2007. The state retained powerful tools for exerting control over print and broadcast media through direct and indirect ownership, licensing requirements, control of printing and transmission facilities, and subsidies. The internet was freer, although official efforts to block websites critical of the government in 2006, the passage of new internet-focused libel legislation in 2007, and the low rate of internet penetration in Tajikistan – estimated at less than one-half of one percent – rendered the relative freedom of the medium a limited blessing in the country's overall media environment.