The court found Amon Yusupov, a native of Kashkadarya region known on social media as “Sherhon,” guilty of insulting the President of Uzbekistan and sentenced him to imprisonment. This was reported by podrobno.uz.reports.
The court established that in February 2023, while he was in Kazakhstan, he went live on TikTok and made insulting remarks about the head of state and the country’s leadership. The video spread quickly and sparked public debate.
After the incident, Yusupov lived outside Uzbekistan for a long time: first in Turkey, then in Azerbaijan. It was noted that in April this year he was detained in Azerbaijan as a result of оперативные measures carried out by officers of the State Security Service.
At the hearing, Amon Yusupov fully admitted his guilt, apologized publicly, and expressed remorse. His actions were classified under Part 3 of Article 158 of the Criminal Code (“Encroachment on the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan”), and he was sentenced to 4 years in prison.
It was also reported that he had previously been held liable for offenses, but lighter measures were applied on those occasions.
Human Rights Watch previously voiced concern about a growing number of prosecutions in Uzbekistan for online speech, including statements involving criticism of the president and his family members. According to the organization, courts heard several such cases in 2024, and experts assessed this as a violation of rights related to freedom of expression.
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