The disappearances of two Istanbul-based Tajik dissident activists in the past month have come as little surprise to human rights defenders focused on transnational repression. As things stand, there is no word on the fate of Nasimjon Sharifov and Suhrob Zafar, both members of the Group 24 Tajik opposition group. The possibility remains, of course, that neither the Turkish nor Tajik states are involved—but at the same time the fact that they have vanished without trace has drawn attention to how Turkey and Tajikistan have been categorised by rights watchdog Freedom House as among the top five …
