The problem of obtaining asylum in the Russian state has existed for several decades. Unfortunately, government bodies are too subjective in relation to certain persons. Often this leads to rather dire consequences. Thus, a considerable number of cases were recorded when people were unjustly deported. A similar problem arose with the famous journalist Ali Feruz, whose biography will be described in this article.
Who is Ali Feruz?
Ali Feruza's real name is Khudoberdi Nurmatov. He was born in 1986 in the Uzbek city of Kokand. At five, the boy moved with his mother to Russia. He studied at the Ongudai school in Altai. There he receives his first passport and citizenship. However, after three years, the young man takes a new name and surname, after which he goes to Kazan.
At the age of 19, Ali entered the Department of Arabic at the Russian Islamic University. In 2008, Feruz marries a Kyrgyz citizen, after which he returns to his homeland. In Uzbekistan, Ali begins to trade in the market.
The biography of journalist Ali Feruza is really unusual. The young man changed his place of residence seven times and each time faced with many problems. Ali’s relations with the Uzbek authorities look especially interesting.
Feruz and Uzbek special services
In 2008, Ali settled in his native state. Having a higher Russian education, the young man preferred to engage in trade in Uzbekistan. The problems began on September 28, 2008, when Feruza was kidnapped from the house by representatives of the SBU (Uzbek security service).
Law enforcers demanded information from Ali about the political views of his acquaintances. According to Ferouz himself, for two days, SBU employees used brutal torture and threatened his pregnant wife. The young man was beaten and tortured for several days. Feruza was later falsely charged and then imprisoned. Only in 2011, Ali was offered cooperation, as a result of which he managed to be released.
Harassment in Asian countries
Feruz did not stay at large in Uzbekistan for long. Just a week after the release, law enforcement officers again appeared to Ali. This time they demanded information about a certain Islamic underground. The young man managed to leave Uzbekistan on time.
Together with his wife, Ali went to Kyrgyzstan. In this state, he hoped to obtain temporary asylum. However, Feruza was not lucky here either: an agreement was signed between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan on the transfer of wanted persons. Ali went to Kazakhstan, where the situation repeated.
Prison in Tashkent. See photo below.
In Astana, Feruz appealed to the Office of the UN High Commissioner. Ali requested refugee status in a "third country", which, as a rule, is the United States or some European state. However, Feruza was denied. At the end of 2011, the biography of the future journalist Ali Feruza was already spoiled. Multiple prosecutions, a prison term, a large number of charges - with all this "baggage" the young man decided to go to Russia.
In Russian federation
In 2011, Feruz moved to Russia - this time without a family. However, the problems did not end there. In 2012, a bag containing an Uzbek passport was stolen from a young man. The ability to legalize in Russia has become close to zero. The fact is that in order to restore Ali’s passport, he would have to contact the Moscow Embassy of Uzbekistan. There, most likely, Feruza could be sent to their homeland. Fearing new persecution, the young man applied for temporary asylum. However, the Russian authorities provided Ali with a refusal.
At the moment, journalist Ali Feruz is in a hopeless situation. Without a passport and a temporary asylum document, the young man faces a temporary detention center and subsequent deportation to Uzbekistan.
Ali Feruz - Novaya Gazeta journalist
Over the six years of his stay in Russia, our hero has changed a lot. According to his friends, the young man stopped practicing Islam. Ali became an atheist belonging to any religion, although tolerantly, but with a certain amount of hostility. Perhaps this is due to the journalist’s recent come-out: Feruz said that he considers himself an open homosexual.
In 2014, the young man was accepted into the editorial office of Novaya Gazeta. Ali Feruz received journalist status here shortly after he brought a note on Mirsobir Khamidkariev, an Asian citizen kidnapped in central Moscow, who was later transferred to the Uzbek security service. The journalists liked the note, however, our hero was advised to learn Russian. Two years later, Feruz returned to the editor. According to representatives of Novaya Gazeta, Ali today is a strong, confident, and brilliantly writing person.
Feruza's career
According to the representative of Novaya Gazeta Elena Kostyuchenko, Feruz quickly gained the status of an indispensable professional. The young man is a brilliant polyglot: he knows six languages, including Turkish, Arabic, Uzbek, Kyrgyz, Kazakh and Russian. Ali constantly helps out his colleagues: in 2016, while trying to make a military coup in Turkey, Feruz translated the Turkish news. During the terrorist attack in Istanbul, Ali contacted local residents and contacted representatives of the media.
Journalist Ali Feruz, whose photo is presented in our article, makes vivid and memorable reports. Not without his help was revealed fraud with the payment of the work of janitors in Moscow. Ali investigated the fight at the Khovansky cemetery, compiled a report on the slave system in Golyanovo. In fact, Feruz got a great job, which is appreciated by his peers. There was only one problem - the complete absence of a passport and citizenship.
What do human rights defenders require?
Over the past few months, a real stir has created around Feruza. Human rights activists do not stop writing articles and complaints, and Internet users sign petitions. At the end of 2016, the editor-in-chief of Novaya Gazeta Dmitry Muratov turned to the head of the Russian state with a request for help to Feruz. In response, presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the administration was aware of the situation with the journalist. However, they do not yet know what to do with Ali Feruz, whose photo you will find in the article.
What are Uzbek law enforcement officers accusing Feruza of? Ali has opened a criminal case on the recruitment of people in organizations of a radical nature. Recently, evidence was given by a convict for terrorism, a resident of Tambov, Alexander Nikitin. According to him, it was Feruz who was the main recruiter in one of the terrorist systems. At the same time, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs has no complaints against the journalist: Ali was not wanted, did not commit crimes and is not suspected of extremism.
Feruza's defense
Many international human rights defenders advocate Ali. According to them, the deportation of Feruza to his homeland will result in a long term of imprisonment and cruel torture. Uzbek representatives insist on the immediate deportation of Feruza. According to the SBU, Ali is involved in the Salafi movement, which preached jihad. Feruz allegedly shaved his beard, reoriented from a radical Muslim to an atheist, after which he decided to hide in Russia.
Russian human rights activists do not find evidence in the words of representatives from the SBU. The journalist’s advocates are convinced that Feruza’s persecution is connected with his unconventional political and world views. It has long been known that in many countries of Central Asia, dissenters are persecuted and brutally tortured. Moreover, Ali is openly gay. In Uzbekistan, homosexuality is punishable by three years in prison.
