Thirteen Uzbeks detained in Russia for eight months, seek help as embassy offers no support

According to F.D., one of the detainees who contacted Kun.uz, the 13 Uzbeks – including five women – had been working at the “Zolotoy gorod” recreation center in the Kireyevsky district of Tula. After their documents expired, they were detained by police.

The detainees say they are being held not as criminals but as “witnesses.” Currently, the men are being kept in the temporary detention facility in Kireyevsky district, while the women are held at a detention center on Aleksinsky highway in Tula city.

“We have been here for eight months. Every day we live in difficult conditions. Among us are five women. We have appealed many times to the embassy, the consulate, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but nothing has changed,” F.D. said in their appeal.

The detainees reported harsh conditions at the facility, insufficient food and inadequate medical care. Some of them were even offered to go and fight in Ukraine, but they refused.

According to the appeal, the group already has tickets for their return. They have even asked to be deported at their own expense if necessary.

They said they had contacted Uzbekistan’s embassy and consular offices in Russia multiple times, but to no avail.

Kun.uz has the full list and personal details of the 13 citizens.

It should be recalled that not long ago, the “Return to Homeland” charity initiative was announced. Under this program, embassies and consulates were tasked with identifying Uzbeks held at deportation centers abroad and submitting their names to the Migration Agency. The agency was to purchase their tickets within one to three working days, with priority given to returning women and children from Russia, Turkey, and other countries.