Tajikistan - May 2025

President Emomali Rahmon signed a law on 14 May decriminalizing ‘posting a like or other sign on social networks’ on posts or material online that the government deems objectionable. The law overturns amendments made to the criminal code in 2018. Since then, over 1,500 Tajiks have been sentenced to prison terms of up to 15 years for liking, sharing, or reposting stories or social media content. While an improvement to de jure freedom of expression, in practice strict laws against participating in ‘extremist groups’—by which the government means all independent religious and political organizations—will continue to limit the de facto exercise of free speech. There has been no indication that sentences handed down under the repealed law will be reconsidered or annulled.

Sources: Radio Ozodi, Times of Central Asia