The deputy speaker of the Uzbek parliament, Alisher Qodirov, has proposed banning all Soviet symbols and ideology in the country. Qodirov made the comment in response to a September 3 court decision in the southeastern Uzbek city of Samarkand to hand a parole-like sentence to a local resident that stemmed from his cooperation with a pro-Soviet Russian group and his activities promoting the restoration of the Soviet Union. The 74-year-old man, whose identity was not disclosed, was found guilty of calling for the disruption of the constitutional order in Uzbekistan. The charge stemmed from posts on Telegram in which he denounced the legality of the Soviet collapse in 1991 and said he cooperated with a pro-Soviet Russian group. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Uzbek Service, click here.
