On January 12, Tajik journalist Dodojon Atovulloev, a fierce critic of Tajikistan’s government, was attacked and stabbed by a stranger in Moscow. Atovulloev was delivered to a hospital with several stab wounds affecting his liver and lungs and with extensive loss of blood. After spending several days in resuscitation department in the hospital, there is no instant danger to his life but the journalist is still in a poor condition. According to unofficial sources, Atovulloev was attacked by a stranger “with a Tajik appearance.”
Atovulloev is the leader of the Tajik public-political movement Vatandor (Patriot). The movement is in fierce opposition to Tajikistan’s government and Atovulloev is well known for his continuous criticism in public statements and media outlets of Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rahmon and his government. Atovulloev has been living in the Russian Federation and Germany for the past twenty years. Tajik authorities have charged Atovulloev for insulting President Rahmon’s dignity and have sent over twenty requests for Atovulloev’s detention to the Russian law enforcement bodies. In 2011, the office of Tajikistan’s Prosecutor General instituted a criminal charge against Atovulloev and requested his extradition from Russia, but received yet another refusal.
In one of his most recent interviews, Atovulloev accused Tajikistan’s president of exercising control over businesses, stating that “any kind of business in Tajikistan is controlled by those who are close to the state power.” Moreover, he said that “the state power in Tajikistan was clannish before, but now it has become a family power. The parents of all Rahmon’s sons-in-law hold high level posts in the Government.”
According to some Russian and Tajik independent experts, the attempt on Atovulloev’s life was likely ordered from Dushanbe. Being an active opponent of “Rahmon’s regime,” he annoyed the state power by his continuous criticism. For instance, Arkadiy Dubnov, a columnist of Moskovskie Novosti, claims that the attack on Atovulloev was not a case of “settling accounts with Atovulloev on private matters,” but rather “an order from Dushanbe” and that “the footprints of the ‘client’ should be looked for in Tajikistan.”
An observer based in Tajikistan, Zafar Abdulloev, says that it is difficult to say now if the attack on Atovulloev was ordered from Dushanbe. At the same time, he warns that if it was indeed an organized attempted murder “then it is a very bad sign of approaching destabilization in Tajikistan.” Furthermore, Abdulloev noted that Tajik authorities were previously prosecuting Atovulloev under the legal framework. But if this was an attempted murder ordered by the state authorities, this means that “the authorities are not confident in their stable position anymore.” Another Tajik expert, Khikmatullo Saifullozoda, doubts that the attack on Atovulloev was “a political order.” While he confirms that Tajik authorities may have had a motive to attack Atovulloev, he believes that if the attempted murder would have been organized by Tajik authorities, “it would have been better organized with the desired outcomes for those who ordered it.”
Tajik media organizations such as the Journalists Union of Tajikistan, the National Association of Mass Media of Tajikistan, and the Media Alliance of Tajikistan, made a statement condemning the attack on Atovulloev and requested a “thorough investigation” by the Russian law enforcement bodies. The statement emphasized that although the motives for the attack are yet unknown, Atovulloev positioned himself as a political activist in opposition to the Government of Tajikistan and “widely used his right to freedom of speech.” Meanwhile, Russian law enforcement detained a 23-year-old citizen of Tajikistan for the attempted murder. However, the suspect was later released.
Atovulloev has given a short interview from the hospital with the Russian media outlet Novaya Gazeta. Atovulloev said in the interview that the attack on him was “a political order.” Furthermore, he claimed that the attempted murder was related to the presidential elections in Tajikistan, which are due next year. Atovulloev believes “that the authorities in Tajikistan try to make everything possible to eliminate the opposition.”
It is not yet clear whether the attack on Atovulloev was arranged by forces close to Tajikistan’s president or a mere “act of hooliganism” as some experts believe. In any case, the attack on a well known anti-government journalist causes strong concerns among Tajikistan’s media and civil society