Judge Zhalilov's secretary, who did not give his name, told Forum 18 that Zhalilov was not available to talk about the case. "I do not know why the Baptists were fined," he said. Asked whether the confiscated books and materials would be returned, he said he did not know. He also did not know when Zhalilov could be contacted about the case.
Courts to which appeals against such fines are made normally automatically uphold the fines. However, in a recent case in Navoi in central Uzbekistan, the regional criminal court has referred a case involving a Baptist, Alisher Abdullaev, back to the original court for further investigation. Abdullaev had earlier been fined and had books confiscated from him.
In June, Judge Nemat Khatamov referred the case back for "investigation with a different definition." In the ruling, which Forum 18 has seen, Judge Khatamov found that Abdullaev's date of birth was not correctly recorded, and the court had neither established whether or not the confiscated books were illegal, nor whether or not Abdullaev was a leader or a member of the organisation in question.
Khatamov also found that Abdullaev's arguments that police officers acted unlawfully while searching his flat had not been disproved by questioning the police officers concerned, or other witnesses. He also noted that the Navoi regional Justice Department responsible for the registration of the religious organisations were not questioned.
Judge Khatamov was not available to talk to Forum 18 on 8 August.
However, in the Kashkadarya Region of southern Uzbekistan, Judge Oruz Umarov of the regional criminal court on 30 May upheld large fines imposed on two Baptists in Mubarek, Said Tursunov and Vladimir Khanyukov, for unregistered religious activity. Khanyukov is unemployed. Church members had strongly complained about the conduct of the raid which led to the fines, the lack of due process in court procedure, and police and a schoolteacher threatening the children of Baptists at a school.
The children were told that if they attended churches they would be put into
prison.
Judge Umarov was not available to talk to Forum 18 on 6 August.
Also in central southern Uzbekistan, Samarkand Regional Criminal Court last month turned down an appeal against a fine imposed on a local Protestant, Parvina Khodjaeva, for breaking on Article 241 of the Criminal Code, "teaching religion without official permission".
Judge Ravshan Ochilov, who presided, categorically told Forum 18 on 5 August that "Khodjaeva knew exactly what she was fined for".
In an ongoing appeal case, Eduard Kim, a member of a Council of Churches
Baptist congregation in Fergana, in eastern Uzbekistan, failed in his attempt to have his punishment for unregistered religious activity overturned.
Judge Ruzmat Saidakhmedov of Fergana regional Criminal Court upheld on 30
June the original conviction of Kim, for holding prayer meetings in his house for about a year in his house. Kim had also stated that - like other members of the Council of Churches Baptists - registering religious activity with the state is against his convictions.
Judge Saidakhmedov, however, told Forum 18 that the legal process is not
yet over yet. "Kim has made an appeal and the case is continuing," he stated on 6 August. Asked by Forum 18 why permission is needed to pray with fellow believers, Saidakhmedov said he was not sure that Kim only had prayer meetings in house.
