The\r\nInternational Foundation for the Protection of Freedom of Speech \"Adil\r\nSoz\" conducted a study of the situation with the right to freedom of\r\nexpression, receipt and dissemination of information in Kazakhstan in December\r\n2019.
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Itreports:
\r\n- The President of the Republic of Kazakhstan,\r\nKassym-Zhomart Tokayev, decided to decriminalize slander.
\r\nOn December 20, at the meeting of the National Council\r\nof Public Confidence, the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan,\r\nKassym-Zhomart Tokayev, told about the decision to decriminalize article 130 of\r\nthe Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan - “Slander”.
\r\nThe President said that the proposal to decriminalize\r\nslander came at the first meeting of the National Council in September.
\r\n“But it turned out that there are serious\r\ncounterarguments. Some social activists and even human rights activists\r\nadvocate leaving this norm in the Criminal Code, since it is an issue of\r\nprotecting human rights. A number of state bodies in their turn, suggest\r\namending only the first part of Article 130. Several work discussions were\r\norganized, ” the head of state said. - The discussion of this norm is an example that shows how\r\ndifficult it is to find a unified\r\nsolution. Based on the analysis of all the positions and nuances of this issue,\r\nI decided to decriminalize article 130 of the Criminal Code and transfer it to\r\nthe Administrative Code. At the same time, it is necessary to maintain a high\r\ndegree of responsibility in order to guarantee the rights of other citizens, to\r\nprotect them from slanderous inventions and attacks, ”K.-Z. Tokayev\r\nsaid.Tokayev also said that a reasonable compromise was reached under article\r\n174 of the Criminal Code (Institution of social, national, generic, racial,\r\nclass or religious discord).- It is proposed to humanize this article - to\r\namend the existing edition, to present it more correctly. For example, to\r\nexclude the word “excitement” and use\r\nthe more precise concept of “incitement”. Such a wording will make it possible\r\nto ensure more equitable application of the article and take the most disputble\r\nissues off the table, ”he said.
\r\nThe Adil Soz Foundation strongly believes that\r\n“slander” must be decriminalized, but this should be transferred to the Civil\r\ncode.
\r\nCurrently, “slander” is considered to be a private\r\nprosecution, which means that the case is instituted at the request of the\r\nvictim, the defendant is a person who disseminated slanderous information.
\r\nAdministrative law, on the other hand, is a system of\r\nlegal norms that regulates social relations in the field of management activity\r\nof state bodies and officials in performing public functions of the state in\r\nthe process of exercising executive power by state bodies.There is no public\r\nfunction in the defamation offense.The transfer of “slander” into civil\r\nproceedings gives an opportunity to restore the damage completely - moral and,\r\npossibly, material, that was caused by the dissemination of discrediting\r\ninformation. The state has absolutely nothing to do here, and administrative\r\nprosecution is redundant.
\r\n- Police Internal Investigations Division will check\r\nthe fact of inaction of the policemen who did not initiate proceedings on the\r\nattack on journalists.
\r\nOn July 22, at\r\n11 AM, the press conference that was scheduled at the Kazakhstan International\r\nBureau for Human Rights was disrupted by a group of aggressive women. They\r\nshouted, pulled out cameras from cameramen, cell phones from the audience,\r\nfought, obstructed making video, broke expensive equipment and stole\r\nsmartphones. As a result of the pogrom, the camera of the representatives of\r\nRadio Azattyk was damaged, the camera of the Almaty TV channel was also\r\ndamaged, the cell phones of the journalists Sergey Duvanov, Margarita Khodus\r\nwere stolen, the smartphone and camera were stolen from the KazTAG\r\ncorrespondent. Reporters filed a complaint with the police.In August,\r\nrepresentatives of the affected journalists and \r\nmedia announced that the case of the attack on journalists was “red\r\ntaped”.
\r\nAt a press conference in\r\nAlmaty on December 10, Andrei Grishin, editor of the bureau.kz website, said\r\nthat the inaction of police officers that did not initiate proceedings on the\r\nattack on journalists would be checked by the Internal Investigations Division\r\n(IID) of the Almaty Police Department (PD).
\r\n“Our lawyer Inara Masanova\r\nhas ensured that the inaction of the policemen that did not initiate a case on\r\nthe attack on journalists in the press center of Kazakhstan International\r\nBureau for Human Rights and the Rule of Law (KIBHR) will be checked by the Internal\r\nInvestigations Division (IDD) of the Almaty Police Department (PD). This is\r\nstated in the response to the complaint of the lawyer, signed by the deputy\r\nprosecutor of Almaty S. Ermekbayev. As far as we know, investigative actions\r\nwill begin this week, ”said Grishin.
\r\n- The head of the Central\r\nCommunications Service (CCS) Talgat Kaliyev told the journalist that she was\r\ndeprived accreditation because of asking two questions at a briefing in breach\r\nof the rule \"one journalist - one question \".
\r\nAtameken channel journalist Moldir Abdualieva asked\r\ntwo questions at the briefing with the akim (mayor) of the Zhambyl region - the\r\nstate of district hospitals and the scandalous story of a schoolgirl raped in a\r\nstreet toilet.The questions, according to the journalist, were asked in the\r\nmost appropriate way, and the head of the region answered them in detail.
\r\n“However, after the briefing, unfortunately, I had an\r\nunpleasant conversation with the head of CCS Talgat Kaliyev, who said that from\r\nthat day I was deprived of accreditation,” Moldir told on her Facebook page.
\r\nWhen asked about the reasons, Mr. Kaliyev answered\r\nthat according to the new rules, one journalist can ask not more than one\r\nquestion.
\r\n“Firstly, I warned the CCS employees both before and\r\nduring the conference that I would ask two questions. Secondly, why wasn\'t I\r\nwarned about the use of such drastic measures in case of violation of the new\r\nCCS rules? Thirdly, where is the code of those new rules so that journalists\r\ncan get to know them? And fourthly, Mr. Kaliyev, please understand that we are\r\nasking questions not out of personal interest, but in order to inform the\r\npublic! ”, the journalist wrote.
\r\n- New attack on Amangeldy Batyrbekov: Leyla\r\nDarkhanbaeva accuses the journalist of slander and insult.
\r\nOn\r\nDecember 11, at 3 PM a court hearing was scheduled at the Saryagash district court on the new\r\ncharges on journalist Amangeldy Batyrbekov of libel and insult.
\r\nThis\r\ntime the claimant is Leyla Darkhanbaeva.\r\nShe presents herself as a professional\r\nmediator, chairman of the Zangar-Medet public association and accuses A.\r\nBatyrbekov, as well as his wife Gulzada Baimuratova, Pazilkhan Tuimebayev,\r\nGulshan Artykbaeva, Mustafin Baydullaev, Kudret Yerzhebbaev in slander and\r\ninsult. As she believes, the defendants committed these crimes by Facebook\r\nposts.
\r\n- The website of PF Legal Media Center hacked. As a\r\nresult, all content from August 2018 to December 2019 was destroyed.
\r\nOn December 24, the website of PF Legal Media Center\r\nwas hacked. It took IT specialists five\r\ndays to restore the website. Despite the efforts, all the content of the\r\nwebsite from August 2018 to December 2019 was destroyed.
\r\nAs Gulmira\r\nBirzhanova, a lawyer at the media center wrote on Facebook, the best\r\nspecialists were involved in restoring the content, they tested the website and searched the entire\r\nInternet “together with the main IT specialist of a Kazakhstani bank - and found nothing! And there were no\r\ntraces. Traces always remain on the Internet, and this time it was an exquisite\r\nworkmanship. Such hack could be done only by top level professionals, they told\r\nus. ”
\r\nAccording to Gulmira Birzhanova that was the second\r\ncase of hacking the website of the Legal Media Center this year. The first one\r\ntook place in October.
\r\n3 judicial acts were issued against media and\r\ncitizens in connection with the exercise of the right to freedom of expression\r\n, the receipt and dissemination of information on cases of protection of honor,\r\ndignity and business reputation in December\r\n2019. Two of them were\r\nin favor of the media, journalists and citizens.
\r\nThe following charges were filed in connection with the exercise of the right\r\nto freedom of expression:
\r\n- 5 criminal charges, including 4 in\r\ncourt.
\r\n- 8 claims\r\nand suits in civil procedure. All of them - claims for protection of honor,\r\ndignity and business reputation.
\r\nClaims for compensation for non-pecuniary damage in December 2019 amounted to 1,5 million tenge.
\r\nThe following charges were filed\r\nsince the beginning of the year:
\r\n- 48 criminal charges.
\r\n- 74\r\nclaims and suits in civil procedure.
\r\nAmong\r\nthem, 67 claims and lawsuits for protection of honor, dignity and business\r\nreputation.
\r\n- Claims\r\nfor compensation for non-pecuniary damage amounted to 101 million 500 thousand\r\ntenge. The courts collected 9 million 515 thousand tenge.
\r\n- 17 – administrative offence charges.
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The monitoring was done\r\naccording to reports of the Adil Soz Foundation\'s correspondents and\r\ninformation from open sources.
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Head of monitoring\r\nservice of Adil Soz Foundation Elena Tsoi
\r\ne-mail: lena@adilsoz.kz
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For all questions\r\nregarding the monitoring, you may also contact
\r\ninfo@adilsoz.kz
