Arrest and detention of Sukhrat Qudratov
Tajikistan
Lawyers for Lawyers and the Law Society of England and Wales are concerned to learn of the arrest and detention of Sukhrat Qudratov, a prominent defence lawyer in Tajikistan who had represented the former Minister of Industry, Zaid Saidov. According the Tajikistan’s Anticorruption Agency, Sukhrat Qudratov was detained on July 21 on bribe-related charges. Lawyers for Lawyers and the Law Society are concerned that the arrest of the lawyer may be related to his legal assistance and defence of the former Minister.
In March, Sukhrat Qudratov and another lawyer who defended the former Minister, Iskhok Tabarov, announced at a press conference that they had recently faced various threats and intimidation in connection with the case.
Sukhrat Qudratov is the second lawyer of the former Minister to be detained by the Tajik authorities. In March, lawyer Fakhriddin Zokirov was arrested by the State Finance Control and Anti-Corruption Agency on charges of fraud in banking transactions, which allegedly took place several years ago. He is still in pretrial detention.
Read the intervention here.