Dozens of state company employees, university students and schoolchildren were told to gather at a park in Dushanbe on their day off, but weren't told why, according to the privately-owned Ozodagon news agency . When they arrived, people discovered they were attending a campaign event for the ruling People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan (PDPT), the agency says. Locals say some people wanted to leave but couldn't because the park gates were locked, and photos show some trying to climb over the railings. "After taking a stroll around we decided to go out but faced a difficulty... We, including children, women and elderly, were caged like wild animals in a zoo," said one attendee in a social media post seen by the BBC, which has since been deleted.