By empty (5/27/2005 issue of the CACI Analyst)
International rights groups voiced fears of a crackdown in Uzbekistan as rights defenders in Uzbekistan cited increasing harassment in the wake of violence in Andijon on 13 May, RFE/RL\'s Uzbek Service and the United Nations\' Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) reported on 26 May. Bakhtiyor Hamroev, a Jizzakh-based human rights activist, said that a crowd of 70 people came to his house, calling him a \"mercenary\" and \"terrorist\" for providing casualty figures from Andijon that differed from official information, the BBC\'s Uzbek Service reported. Meanwhile, representatives of international rights groups told IRIN that the Uzbek government is tightening controls in the wake of the unrest in Andijon.
International rights groups voiced fears of a crackdown in Uzbekistan as rights defenders in Uzbekistan cited increasing harassment in the wake of violence in Andijon on 13 May, RFE/RL\'s Uzbek Service and the United Nations\' Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) reported on 26 May. Bakhtiyor Hamroev, a Jizzakh-based human rights activist, said that a crowd of 70 people came to his house, calling him a \"mercenary\" and \"terrorist\" for providing casualty figures from Andijon that differed from official information, the BBC\'s Uzbek Service reported. Meanwhile, representatives of international rights groups told IRIN that the Uzbek government is tightening controls in the wake of the unrest in Andijon. Rachel Denber, acting executive director of Human Rights Watch\'s Europe and Central Asia division, said, \"We are concerned over a possible further crackdown and have already seen the beginnings of it.\" Representatives of Amnesty International, the International League of Human Rights, and the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights echoed Denber\'s comments. (RFE/RL)