On 13 May we commemorate the first anniversary of the Andijan mass shooting, when hundreds of protestors were shot dead by government security forces in Uzbekistan. One year later there has still been no independent inquiry into the massacre, and the exact death toll remains unknown.
"There was so much blood. I was lying down in the street and the blood was running beside me." Mahbuba Zokirova, witness in Andijan trials
Many survivors of the massacre sought refugee status in one of the neighbouring countries. In the Kyrgyz Republic, IANSA members are commemorating the anniversary of the massacre by protesting outside the Uzbekistan embassy in Bishkek.
"I could hear bullets whistling above my head, barely half a metre above." Lutfullo Shamsuddinov, human rights activist, survivor of the massacre.
Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and other human rights organisations have urged the international community to put pressure on the Uzbekistan government for an independent, impartial and thorough inquiry.
Click here to read more about the massacre, including testimonies of survivors and refugees.
The UN Small Arms Review Conference in June 2006 is an opportunity for governments to adopt global measures ensuring that law enforcement officials are held fully accountable for their actions when using armed force. |
