A/HRC/37/49/Add.2 monitoring mechanisms demonstrate a lack of respect for the right to privacy and reveal a deficit of trust in its own citizens, but concerns have also been expressed against the overly intrusive surveillance measures by the National Security Service. The Special Rapporteur was also concerned to learn about the different “supervision” lists maintained by different government agencies; it was unclear to him how many registers and “watch lists” currently existed. B. Religious detainees 67. The number of detainees imprisoned on vague charges relating to “religious extremism”, “anti-constitutional” activity or membership in an “illegal religious group” — also known as “religious detainees” — is unconfirmed. The estimate ranges between 5,000 and 15,000 individuals, while the official data is unknown. Thousands of Muslims have allegedly been imprisoned on accusations of belonging to terrorist, extremist or banned organizations or exercising the right to freedom of religion or belief. It is hard to know whether those detainees were indeed involved in violence or other crimes or whether they were only “guilty” of taking their faith seriously. 68. The Special Rapporteur heard of individuals being randomly arrested at gatherings in tea houses or on the streets and charged under articles 159 (infringements or overthrowing of the constitutional order of the Republic of Uzbekistan) and 244 (2) (creation, leadership or participation in religious extremist, separatist, fundamentalist or other prohibited organizations) of the Criminal Code, which are both punishable with imprisonment of 10 to 20 years. Some were also charged under article 216 (illegal establishment or reactivation of illegal public associations or religious organizations and active participation in their activities), which is punishable with imprisonment of up to five years. 69. The Special Rapporteur also received reports that many religious detainees have had their terms arbitrarily extended by the prison administration for additional periods of one to three years, sometimes repeatedly for alleged violations of internal prison rules (article 221 of the Criminal Code). In some cases, the cumulative extended terms were longer than the original sentence. Furthermore, he received reports of religious detainees suffering from beatings, mistreatment, torture and denial of the right to practise their religion in custody. Some prisoners who tried to exercise their freedom of religion or belief while in detention were reportedly punished for openly praying. Reading the Qur’an, Bible or other religious literature was also banned. 70. Families, especially mothers and wives of religious detainees, complained of their breadwinners being imprisoned for a long time. Some lamented the arbitrarily extended prison terms, while others expressed their feelings of injustice, as there is no alternative mechanism to address their grievances. Some families faced difficulties visiting prisoners (maximum of three days allowed per visit, but most of the time, that is reduced to one day or half day) and letters or food to prisoners were sometimes blocked. Health facilities in some prisons were reportedly limited, hence there was a lack of medicine for prisoners. 71. Many prisoners reportedly did not have access to lawyers or were pressured to plead guilty, while most lawyers were unwilling to take up the cases of religious detainees, as they are considered difficult. Many prisoners complained of unfair trials, in which officials who violated the law or abused their power were never prosecuted or punished. Despite some judicial reform efforts, the challenges in the judiciary system, including the independence of judges and lawyers, remain a concern. People sometimes resorted to paying bribes to officials in order to resolve the cases of their family members. 72. During his mission, the Special Rapporteur visited Jaslyk Prison, which, according to the prison administration, housed about 700 inmates. He spoke with a number of inmates, including a few in private. The warden told him that the inmates were free to practise their faith so long as their practices did not violate internal prison rules, regulations and strict schedules. The prison authorities cited the secular commitment of the Constitution as grounds for not giving any special dispensation for practice of one’s faith. For example, during Ramadan, prisoners who wished to observe the fast were free to retain 13