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Detained Tajik Opposition Leader Denounces Rahmon


A group of Tajiks protest in front of the U.A.E. Embassy in Moscow against the arrest of opposition leader Umarali Quvatov in Dubai.
A group of Tajiks protest in front of the U.A.E. Embassy in Moscow against the arrest of opposition leader Umarali Quvatov in Dubai.
DUSHANBE -- A Tajik opposition leader detained in Dubai has denounced the fraud case against him and accused Tajik President Emomali Rahmon of running a "totalitarian regime."

In an open letter smuggled out of the detention center where he is being held, Umarali Quvatov said the accusations leveled against him were "a direct consequence" of his battle against the "oppression of the Tajik people" by Rahmon's government.

Quvatov was arrested in Dubai on December 23 at the request of Tajik authorities.

He is being accused of illegally obtaining about $1.2 million through fraudulent business activities.

Quvatov is a former business adviser to Rahmon's daughter, Tahmina.

In his letter, Quvatov says he has yet to be formally charged.

Earlier this year, he set up the Group 24 opposition movement.

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