21-year-old history teacher in Pakhtachi district of Samarkand province was handed 12-day administrative arrest for a comment on a Telegram channel in which he insulted the prophet Muhammad.
The comment was posted on December 30. On January 7, screenshots of the comment surfaced on social media calling for the man to be held accountable.
On January 9, law enforcement officers examined the teacher's phone and confirmed that the comment was his. They filed a report on administrative liability under Article 184-3 of the Administrative Code of Uzbekistan: "Production, storage, or distribution of materials promoting national, racial, ethnic, or religious hatred charge (entails a fine of 50 to 100 basic units or administrative arrest up to 15 days with confiscation of the materials and means for their production and distribution).
A court hearing was held in the Pakhtachi district the same day, with the teacher pleading guilty.
In addition to his 12-day arrest, the court ordered the destruction of his phone and restricted his use of his Telegram account. He will also be ordered to pay 741,600 soums (US$60) for his arrest expenses.
