A month-long state of emergency has been declared by Uzbekistan in an autonomous republic where President Shavkat Mirziyoyev had to backtrack on several constitutional revisions because of infrequent protests.
Sherzod Asadov, the press secretary for President Mirziyoyev, announced on Telegram on Saturday that the Republic of Karakalpakstan would be under a state of emergency from just after midnight on Sunday (19:00 GMT on Saturday) until August 2.
According to the current Uzbek constitution, Karakalpakstan is a sovereign republic inside Uzbekistan with the authority to secede through a popular vote.
The revised constitution would no longer refer to Karakalpakstan’s sovereignty or right to secede, and Uzbekistan aims to take a public vote on it in the upcoming months.
But in a prompt response to the outcry, Mirziyoyev declared on Saturday while visiting Karakalpakstan that the revisions to the reform’s proposed status must be withdrawn, according to a statement from his office.
The government of Karakalpakstan announced earlier on Saturday that police had detained several additional protestors who had shown resistance as well as the protest’s organisers.
The anonymous collective has since posted several videos of the protests happening in Uzbekistan. These videos are graphic and viewers’ discretion is advised.
https://twitter.com/AnonOpsSE/status/1543377540139581440
https://twitter.com/AnonOpsSE/status/1543378006693105666
https://twitter.com/AnonOpsSE/status/1543379591737253889
