UN urges Kyrgyzstan not to return Uzbek refugees

GENEVA, June 14 (Reuters) The United Nations refugee agency UNHCR today urged Kyrgyzstan not to return four Uzbek refugees, fearing for their fate if they were forcibly sent home.

In a statement from its Geneva headquarters, the agency called on the government of the former Soviet Central Asian republic to let the men stay there or allow them to leave for countries which have already agreed to take them.

''UNHCR reiterates its urgent appeal to the Kyrgyz authorities to refrain from any action aimed at forcibly returning these four refugees to Uzbekistan,'' it declared.

It said it was ''extremely concerned'' about their fate.

The extradition, sought by the Uzbek government which regards the four as criminals, would violate international law and the 1951 UN Refugee Convention which Kyrgyzstan has signed, the statement said.

The UNHCR intervention followed the rejection on Tuesday by the republic's top court in the capital, Bishkek, of a claim for asylum from one of the four, Rasuljon Pirmatov. Similar requests from the other three had already been turned down.

The four, all recognised as refugees by the UNHCR, fled to Kyrgyzstan after violence in the Uzbek city of Andizhan in May last year which the Uzbek government says was a terrorist coup attempt.

Human rights groups say the incidents were the outcome of a largely unprovoked attack on peaceful demonstrators by Uzbek troops which left hundreds dead. The Uzbek government says 187 died when its troops moved against ''terrorists''.

REUTERS SY BD2214