[inspic=41,left,fullscreen,350] In the morning of May 12 Uzbek border guards gunned down 34-year old citizen of Tajikistan Alisher Boikuziev at the Khavast part of Syr Darya Oblast in Uzbekistan. Sodikdjon Mirzoev, the assistant to the head of Zafarabad rayon of Tajikistan, informed Ferghana.Ru information agency about the incident.

As the relatives of Boikuziev told the information agency “he was running small scale trade and often times crossed the border of neighboring republic.”

On May 12 while he was crossing the border on his bike at Khavast border area Boikuziev was stopped by the border guards. Alisher told them that his documents had been checked by another group of border guards and was going to take off. However, the border guards fired at him causing mortal wound. The officers also attacked half-dead person, breaking his arms and legs.

In the afternoon of May 12 the relatives of Alisher took his body to his village where he was buried.

For information: this is the second accident this year when the citizens of Tajikistan are being under the fire by Uzbek border guards. On March 30 24-year old Ilkhom Madjidov, the citizen of Tajikistan, was also gunned down when he attempted to illegally cross Tajik-Uzbek state border at Zafarabad part. He was permanently injured and hospitalized in central rayon hospital.

Independent expert Ulugbek Umarov thinks that “…similar accidents can happen again in the future until the neighboring republics cancel visa regime”.

“According to the charter, the soldiers are allowed to fire at the frontier intruders under strong reasons. Instead of giving warning shot they start firing at people,” Umarov notes.

He believes that in order to prevent tragic incidents it is necessary to increase the number of officially functioning border points. During various holidays Uzbek side closes the more than a half of check points. That forces people to illegally cross the border.

Photo: The World Factbook