In the early morning hours of May 13, 2005,
gunmen attacked several government buildings in the city of Andijan,
in eastern Uzbekistan,
broke into the city prison to release 23 men who faced charges
of religious extremism, and mobilized people to attend a protest
on
the city’s main square. Later that day, thousands of unarmed
protesters gathered on the main square of their own will to vent
grievances about poverty and government repression. At around 5:00
p.m., when Uzbek government forces sealed off the square, the protesters
fled north on Cholpon Prospect, where they were ambushed by government
forces. Hundreds of people were killed.
RELATED
LINKS — BRIEFING PAPER — IMPRISONED UZBEKS |