The Week's Best: 8 RFE/RL Stories You Need To Read (Or Watch)

Hey, you’re busy! We know rferl.org isn’t the only website you read. And that it’s just possible you may have missed some of our most compelling journalism this week. To make sure you’re up-to-date, here are some of the highlights produced by RFE/RL’s team of correspondents, multimedia editors, and visual journalists over the past seven days.

After Brutal Attack On Government Critic, Uzbek Ministry Blames The Victim

Miraziz Bazarov, an Uzbek rights campaigner and government critic who has defended gay rights, remains hospitalized after three masked men assaulted him on March 28. Earlier the same day, attackers disrupted a cultural group led by Bazarov, beating at least two people. In response, Uzbekistan’s Interior Ministry issued a statement saying that Bazarov had provoked the incidents with videos that “humiliate our national culture.” By RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service

After Struggles With Hungarian Schools, Mother Of Autistic Boy Launches Aid Project

Goran’s parents say he’s an advanced reader who loves learning languages. But he also has a mild form of autism associated with difficulties in social skills and communication, and his family struggled to find support for him at a Hungarian public school. His mother, Henrietta Zadori, decided to launch her own foundation to help other families navigate the same system. By RFE/RL’s Hungarian Service

As Domestic Violence Surges Amid Pandemic, Russia Targets Victims’ Support Group

Russian help lines have recorded a surge in domestic violence during the year of COVID-19 restrictions. Meanwhile, a leading organization dealing with the issue is being evicted from its premises after being declared a “foreign agent” by the authorities, who say its calls for government agencies to help protect victims constitute “political activity.” By Current Time

Navalny’s Prison Ordeal Revives Grim Memories Of Magnitsky’s Death In 2009

With relatives and supporters of imprisoned opposition leader Aleksei Navalny raising the alarm over the deterioration of his health in custody, the situation has echoes of the 2009 death in custody of tax attorney Sergei Magnitsky. Magnitsky’s death after numerous complaints that he was being denied medical care prompted the West to impose targeted sanctions against alleged human rights abusers in Russia and other countries, marking a significant shift in international diplomacy. By Robert Coalson

Uzbek Singer Warned Of Beating After Announcing Run For President

Well-known Uzbek singer Jahongir Otajonov says he was threatened with bodily harm after announcing plans to run for president of the Central Asian nation. Security-camera footage in Otajonov’s Istanbul office showed three men warning him that there was a contract out for his beating. By RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service and Stuart Greer