Jahangir Mamatov

The founder of the Congress of the Democratic Uzbekistan Jahangir Mamatov is a politician, linguist, writer, and journalist. His pen name is Jahangir Muhammad.

During the Soviet era

Jahangir Mamatov was born on September 1, 1955, in Samarkand province, Samarkand district. Since his birth certificate was registered late, his date of birth was shown on official documents as November 30, 1955.

He was married in 1980, and has four children. Mamatov’s spouse is also a linguist.

Jahangir Mamatov graduated the 24th high school in Samarkand district with excellent grades in 1972. He studied in the Department of Journalism of Tashkent State University from 1973-1979 and pursued research on ethics in journalism and linguistics until 1981.

He started his career as an editor of the "Toshkent Haqiqati" newspaper in 1973. From 1974-1979 he worked as a deputy technical editor-in-chief of the "Qishloq haqiqati" newspaper. He served in the Soviet Army from 1976-1978.

He worked as an editor at the State TV-Radio Company and hosted broadcasts on the subject of agricultural issues from 1970-1981. From 1981-1982 he worked as a deputy director of the Ulughbek state farm in the Jomboy district of Samarkand province. He also worked for the "Lenin Yoli" newspaper in Samarkand province from 1982-1985.

Because of his critical articles, his house was deliberately burned on December 1, 1984.

From 1985-1990 he worked as a special correspondent of "Sovet O’zbekistoni" in Samarkand province. At the same time, he worked as a correspondent of the "Mushtum" satiric magazine and the "Qishloq Haqiqati" newspaper. During those years more than a thousand of his satirical, critical, and analytical articles were published. Some of his articles were published in the "Youth" reference book, "Pure Dawn", and "525 days that Shook Samarkand" books.

His analytical articles such as “Koran and Weapon,” “Burning Woman,” and “Opening of Closed Doors” regarding the actual problems of the Perestroyka era, had made the author very popular in the Soviet Union Journalists’ Association.

In 1990, at the age of 35, Mamatov received the title of “Honored Journalist of Uzbekistan”. In the same year he was elected as a member to the Uzbek Parliament from the Jomboy electoral district and also was elected as a Vice-Chairman of the Parliament’s Glasnost Committee which he headed until 1993. He wrote "Press Law" and founded the newspaper "Xalq So’zi", the main publication of the Uzbek Parliament.

Uzbek independence

On June 20, 1990, the Uzbek Parliament issued Uzbekistan’s Declaration of Independence. Mamatov was one of the authors of this historic document.

Mamatov organized an investigative group in the parliament regarding the tragic incidents in Bekobod, Boka, Parkent and revealed that those incidents were masterminded by the Uzbek government. Furthermore, Mamatov came up with documents proving the facts that the KGB stood behind the terror acts among the ethnic Uzbeks and Meskhet Turks in the Parkent district of Tashkent province. After those events Mamatov was pursued by the Uzbek government.

The central Committee of the Uzbek Communist Party accused Mamatov of criticizing the Chairman of the Party, Islam Karimov, and The Chief of the Supreme Court on his TV program and asked the Presidium of Parliament for permission to arrest him. But the attempt was rejected by the unity among the peoples’ deputies in parliament.

On August 17, 1991, as his protest against the state coup that took place in Moscow in an attempt to exterminate the democracy which had started to flare up in former Soviet republics, he went to demonstrate with some of his friends in front of the Parliament building and publicly burned his Party member certificate. When he was elected chairman of the Uzbek Journalists’ Association, the government falsified the election results.

The Glasnost Committee where he worked became the real power in Parliament. That is why, even though Karimov attempted to shut down this committee, Mamatov’s did not allow him to carry out his plans. However, eventually, by violating the laws of the Supreme Soviet, Karimov and his team closed this committee. Their goal was to get rid of Mamatov; after he resigned, this committee was re-opened.

In 1991 in the 7th session of Uzbek Parliament, Mamatov along with his fellow-deputies, put forward measures before Parliament to limit Karimov’s attempts to absolute dictatorship. Under pressure from democratic deputies, the Uzbek government had to permit the organization of a committee, regulating the relations between the President of Uzbekistan and Parliament. Mamatov became the Presidential Advisor for Parliamentary Relations in that committee, and subsequently was appointed as a Chief of Uzbek State Television-Deputy of the State Radio and Television Committee.

In opposition

However, as a result of the Karimov administration’s attacks on human rights and democracy in the country, in 1992 after the bloody events in Tashkent city’s Student Town, he felt compelled to resign his position in protest. Before his resignation from his position he declared that dictatorship was reigning in Uzbekistan. It was the first historical event in which a high government official declared his resignation as a sign of protest to Karimov.

He continued to lead a group of opposition representatives in the Uzbek parliament, who strongly and openly criticized the emerging Karimov dictatorship, and who persisted in fighting for democracy. Mamatov quickly emerged among the most prominent critics of the Karimov regime’s state policy. He was the organizer of the March 28. 1992, Uzbek Democratic Coalition Forum that took place in the building of the Erk democratic party.

After that, Mamatov led the non-government Turon organization. Even though, this organization could be shut down only by a decision of the Supreme Court, the Ministry of Justice, violating the law, stopped the function of the Turon organization. The belongings of the organization were confiscated.

Jahangir Mamatov wrote the book "Games of Palace" about Karimov’s actions. Even though the government confiscated the manuscript of the book, the copies became very popular and it was published in the newspaper of ERK Democratic Party in 1994.

On February 7, 1993 the Uzbek government banned the newspaper "Erk" (Freedom), which was affiliated with the ERK Democratic party, the main party of the democratic political opposition in the country. At that time, Mamatov was a chief editor of the paper, and also deputy chairman of the ERK Democratic Party itself.

* January 6, 1993: He survived an attempted homicide committed near the building of Erk democratic party. The next day, in the Russian newspaper "Izvestiya", a journalist by the name of Lebedeva wrote that the attack was organized by the government.

* February 7, 1993: The Uzbek government closed the newspaper in which he was working as the editor-in chief.

On February 13, 1993, the Uzbek government, using the police, forcibly evicted him and his family from their house in Tashkent, and the house was seized by the government and he was forced to move to his hometown Samarkand. Speaking for and believing in freedom now became his only goal in life. He was charged with criticizing the President Karimov in the parliament for his dictatorial behavior.

* March 21, 1993: He went to Azerbaijan to participate in the Turkish World Conference as a representative from the Erk Democratic Party. The conference continued in Turkey, where he announced the range of statements about the emerging dictatorship and oppression of democratic opposition in Uzbekistan. Upon his return from Turkey, on April 17, 1993 he was arrested in Samarkand by Uzbek authorities.

Being afraid of Mamatov’s public popularity the Uzbek government designated high level officials of the government such as General Attorney Boritosh Mustafoyev, Minister of Justice Alisher Mardiyev, Internal Affairs minister Zakir Almatov, and Samarkand Province Governor Polat Abdurahmonov to carry out and conduct the special operation of arresting Mamatov, his family members and friends. Many of Mamatov’s friends that worked in high government offices were forced to resign, and Mamatov himself was stripped of his deputy position in parliament.

In exile

With the help of supporters he escaped from jail. His spouse was forced to give up her marriage and announce it publicly. But the brave woman rejected every proposal required by the government. Being framed by Uzbek authorities, his wife, a mother of four children, was sentenced for two years.

During 1993 and 1994 Mr. Mamatov desperately lived in Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Georgia encountering a lot of hardships. He worked as a chief editor of newspaper of ERK for free. At the same time he assisted in publishing the Birlik movement’s "Harakat" magazine voluntarily.

After rescuing his family out of Uzbekistan, he moved to Turkey and during 1994-1998 worked in Koch University in Istanbul, while simultaneously working as a correspondent of the BBC Uzbek Service and for the newspaper "Turkiye".

While living abroad he wrote his book "Quvg’in" ("Exile", trilogy) which revealed the real face of Karimov and his regime. This book was written in simple language and in an understandable way that it reached to the hands of its readers even in remote rural areas of Uzbekistan.

The Supreme Court of Uzbekistan under pressure from the Uzbek National Security Service (successor of former the KGB), accused Mamatov of leaving the country illegally, insulting the President of Uzbekistan, publishing the illegal newspaper of Erk Democratic Party, and launched a criminal investigation for his arrest in 1995. Mamatov was also accused of attempting to overturn the constitutional government of Uzbekistan.

After that event, the Uzbek regime attempted to eliminate Mamatov and sent its secret agents three times. Now it was not safe even in Turkey. He faced strict pressure from Turkish government and he was granted political asylum from the United States through the UN in February, 1998.

The Supreme Court of Uzbekistan made the decision that led to the arrest of Mamatov’s relatives and his sisters who were apprehended in May, 2001.

Many of his books have been published. He resumed his career as a journalist in the United States, and he led the VOA Uzbek Service from 1999-2004. While he led the Uzbek Service of VOA, this radio competed with BBC in Uzbekistan equal terms, VOA gained many more fans around this countrywhere. At the same time he taught Uzbek in American language schools, and since 2001 he has been working as a senior linguist at the Language Research Center.

In 2005 Jahangir Mamatov brought together the leaders of the Uzbek opposition, which had been unable to effectively coordinate their activities over the past fifteen years. As a result, the CDU made a decision to organize a convention composed of all the opposition groups and individuals. And Mr. Jahangir Mamatov was elected as the Chairman of the Congress of Democratic Uzbekistan on September 25, 2005.The Congress of Democratic Uzbekistan was registered in the United States on November 18, 2005.

Books

Jahangir Mamatov is the author of nearly 30 books. Many of his books were published in the United States, Turkey and Azerbaijan, yet his books are strictly forbidden in his homeland Uzbekistan. He is the author of three linguistic books which were all published in the United States.

He has been publishing the www.jahongir.org and online “Turonzamin” magazine since 2001.

# IAK-documentary novel
# "Quvg’in - book 1" (Exile)
# "Quvg’in - book 2"
# "Quvg’in - book 3"
# "Oqsaroy Sirlari" (Secrets of Uzbek White House)
# "Yarmi Chin, Yarmi Ximchin" (Half is true, Half is Satiric)
# "Yaqin Moziy" (A Nearby Past)
# "220 Latifa" (220 Anecdotes)
# "Zehniyat Jumbog’i" (Puzzle of Mentality)
# "O’zligim" (Inner-self)
# "Tarixni Titratgan Kunlar" (Days which shocked History)
# "Panjaralar" (Bars)
# "Samarqand"
# "O’zbeklar va O’zbeklar" (Uzbeks and Uzbeks)
# "Islom Lashkarlari" (Soldiers of Islam)
# "Nurnoma" (Brightness)
# "Vatan Mansiz, Man Vatansiz" (Motherland without me and me without Motherland)
# "The Dark Days"
# "Dictionary of Central Asian Islamic terms" (By Allen J. Frank and Jahangir Mamatov, 2002 Dunwoody Press, US ISBN 1-881265-88-9)
# "Shahidlar Xiyoboni" (The Cemetery of Immortals in Uzbek)
# "Shehitler Hiyabani" (The Cemetery of Immortals in Turkish)
# "Qabohat eshigi" (The door of Evil)
# "Turkiyada to’rt yil" (Four years in Turkey)
# "Ikkinchi front" (Second Front)
# "Assassin" (novel)
# "Ozodlik Oson Emas" (Freedom is not Easy)
# "Aldarko’sa Taxtga Minganda…"(When the liar takes the throne)
# "Qatag’on" (Repression)
# "Tajik-English dictionary" (By Jahangir Mamatov et al 2005 Dunwood Press, US ISBN 1-931546-15-0)

Bibliography

* [http://www.jahongir.org jahongir org]
* Jahongir Muhammad: "IAK" (memoir)
* Ahmadjon Muxtorov: "So’z mulki Jahongirligiga da’vogar",(Ahmadjon Muktorov, chairman of Uzbek Jounalist Association, published "Nominee for Conqueror of Words" article in 1991)
* Yodgor Obid: "Otash qalb uchqunlari"( Yodgor Obid wrote introduction to Mamatov's book)
* Gulchehra Nurullayeva: Munosabat, June 11, 2004 (the article of famous Uzbek poetesses "Reactions")
* Abdurahim Polatov, the leader of “Birlik” popular movement, preface for Jahangir Mamatov’s book, "Nur yo’li"
* "Birlik": "Ozodlikning olovli yo’llari"( An article from the “Birlik” website)
* Certificate of peoples’ deputy
* Certificate of "ERK" democratic party
* Certificate of President Office
* Best journalist of the year. Award. VOA-"Tun in", December, 2000, vol.4 No.6 page 6
* Article about the political course of an American government-May 30, 2001 ("Repression in Uzbekistan", BBG-IBB-VOA-editorial=0-09287 5/30/2001)
* Article about the political course of an American government-May 30, 2001 ("Repression in Uzbekistan continues", BBG-IBB-VOA-editorial=0-09394 8/21/2001)
* Awards for articles about human rights: 2001; 2002; 2003; 2004
* Nasratulla Laheb, "Interviews by Jahangir Muhammad" 2001
* BBC: "Exiled writers", BBC, 2003
* "Confessions of General", BBC, May 18, 2001.
* Muhammad Solih, Leader of “ERK” party, "Xalq Irodasi", "O’zbekistan adabiyoti va san’ati", June 29, 1990. (an article in "O’zbekistan adabiyoti va san’ati" newspaper.)
* Rasim Ekshi, Turkish author, "Dr. Boymirza hayit armug’oni",(an article about Jahangir Mamatov in "Dr. Boymirza hayit armug’oni" book) Istanbul, 1999, ISBN 975-78-15-3
* Arslan Tekin, Turkish author, "Bir Turon Yo’lchisi", Istanbul, 1996, ISBN 975-7893-11-0 (preface for Jahangir Mamatov’s book)
* Abduvali Vohidov, "Zagovorshiki", Newspaper "Trud", May 19, 1995. (An article from Russian newspaper “Trud”)
* Zaynutdinov, Kh. A. The chief of National Security Service investigative department, "Ayblov fikri", September 12, 1994.
* The decision of Uzbek Supreme Court, 2000.
* [www.uzbekcongress.org]