The International Foundation for the Protection of Freedom of Speech\r\nAdil Soz made a study of the situation with the right to freedom of expression,\r\nreceipt and dissemination of information in Kazakhstan in December 2017.
\r\nIt reports:
\r\n- Head fo the Unionof Journalists of Kazakhstan Seytkazy Mataev is out of prison.
\r\nOn December 4, Seitkazy Mataev left the penal colony\r\nin Zarechny village.
\r\nAlmost all leading media came to welcome the chairman\r\nof the Union of Journalists of Kazakhstan (with the predictable exception of\r\nthe TV channels \"Khabar\" and \"Kazakhstan\"). Some\r\njournalists came to Zarechny early in the morning, some arrived by noon, those\r\nwho were more informed, came at 3 PM. Mataev was released at 5 PM.
\r\nA brief improvised conference focused on two issues:\r\n\" health\" and “plans for the future\". The essence of the answers\r\nwas that there are health problems, but the main concern now is the fate of\r\nAset Mataev, the youngest son of Seitkazy and the editor-in-chief of KazTAG,\r\nwho stays behind bars.
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- On December 28, the\r\nPresident of Kazakhstan, N. Nazarbayev, signed the law \"On Amendments and\r\nAdditions to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on\r\nInformation and Communications\".
\r\nHuman rights activists believe that\r\nthe suggestions of the journalistic community made during the discussion of the\r\nbill were ignored.
\r\nSo, the public (about 500 people)\r\naddressed the Senate deputies with an open letter before the adoption of the\r\nlaw in the upper house of Parliament. It noted that a number of the main\r\nprovisions of the document significantly contradict the international standards\r\nof freedom of speech \"and restrict the implementation of constitutional\r\nguarantees for the free recept and dissemination of information, freedom of\r\nexpression, impede the media from complete implementation of the President\'s\r\ntask to fight corruption.\"
\r\nIn particular, additional tools for cencoring\r\ncommentators in social networks and other Internet resources were introduced,\r\nthe procedure for providing information becomes more complicated, the period\r\nfor providing answers to journalists\' requests was increased from three to\r\nseven working days. Amendments to the media law oblige journalists to obtain consent for the\r\ndissemination of personal and family secrets, although these concepts do not\r\nhave an exact legal content.
\r\nThe document introduces the concept\r\nof \"information infringing on legitimate rights and interests\" and\r\nthe term \"propaganda\".
\r\nOn December 25, the Senate of the\r\nParliament had adopted the law \"On Amendments and Additions to Certain\r\nLegislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Information and Communication\r\nIssues\", Adil Soz Foundation\r\ninitiated the signature collection under the appeal to the President of the\r\nRepublic of Kazakhstan N. Nazarbayev with the request to forward the law to the\r\nConstitutional Council of the RK \" for a sucessful conclusion \"and\r\nveto it in the interests of the entire Kazakhstani society.
\r\nOn December 28, the President of the\r\nRepublic of Kazakhstan N. Nazarbayev signed the law \"On Amendments and\r\nAdditions to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on\r\nInformation and Communications\".
\r\nThe law is put in force 10 days\r\nafter its official publication.
\r\nOn December 29 state media published\r\nthe Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. 128-VI of December 28, 2017 \" On\r\nAmendments and Additions to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of\r\nKazakhstan on Information and Communications \".
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- Ex financial police agent accuses «Vremya» newspaper\r\njournalist Tokhniyaz Kuchukov of libel
\r\nOn December 14 Zhetysu District Court No. 2 of Almaty\r\ncontinued to consider the private complaint of the former financial police agent\r\nTalgat Makhatov. Makhatov accuses the correspondent of the newspaper “Vremya”\r\nTokhniyaz Kuchukov of libel (Article 130, part 2, libel). The journalist wrote\r\na number of articles about Makhatov’s detention under suspicion of murder of\r\nMedet Zhamashev, Almaty customs officer.
\r\nThe articles were initiated by Almaty\r\nprosecutor\'s office press-release, published on July 3, 2017 about\r\ninvestigation of the murder of Zhamashev conducted by investigation group of\r\nthe Ministry of Internal Affairs and suspicions on Makhatov’s crimination.
\r\nA numbert of media published a series of\r\narticles about the ex-agent after the prosecutor\'s office statement. However,\r\nthe only jpurnalist whom Makhatov accused, was “Vremya” newspaper\r\ncorrespondent. The ex-agent claimed that publications in “Vremya” spawned the\r\nseries of publications.
\r\nAs it was reported earlier, Makhatov became known in\r\ncertain circles as Agent Sanych (aka Concrete). He was the main witness for the\r\nso-called \"Khorgos cas.\" five years ago.
\r\nKuchukov\'s lawyer, Gennady Nam made a motion to\r\nenter scans of the articles about Talgat Makhatov published in various media\r\ninto the case file as various the only way to prove Kuchukov\'s innocence and\r\nevidence that Kuchukov had no malicious intent and, as the lawyer believes, relied\r\non official information. Bbesdies, a number of electronic media also told about\r\nthis case in detail.
\r\nJudge Nurgul Batyrhan rejected G.Nam’s motion\r\nand the lawyer challened the judge. On December 14, 2017, Judge Kairbaev\r\nconsidered the challenge and rejected it.
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5 criminal charges were brought againt media and citizens in connection\r\nwith the exercise of the right to freedom of expression, the receipt and\r\ndissemination of information in December.
\r\n60 trial and pre-tiral criminal charges were brought in connection\r\nwith the exercise of the right to freedom of expression, instruction and\r\ndissemination of information since the beginning of the year.
\r\n3 judicial acts were issued on cases of protection of honor,\r\ndignity and business reputation (including 1 in appeal) in December. None of\r\nthem were in favor of the media, journalists and citizens.
\r\n75 letters before action and claims for protection of honor,\r\ndignity and business reputation were filed in connection with the exercise of\r\nthe right to freedom of expression since the beginning of the year. Claims for\r\ncompensation for moral damage from the beginning of the year amounted to 196\r\nmillion 460 thousand tenge. The courts collected 54 million 20 thousand\r\ntenge.
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The monitoring was done according to reports of the Adil Soz\r\nFoundation\'s correspondents and information from open sources.
\r\nHead of monitoring service of Adil Soz Foundation Elena Tsoi
\r\ne-mail: lena@adilsoz.kz
For all questions regarding the monitoring, you may also contact
\r\ninfo@adilsoz.kz
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