The International Foundation for the Protection of\r\nFreedom of Speech \"Adil Soz\" conducted a study of the situation with\r\nthe right to freedom of expression, receipt and dissemination of information in\r\nKazakhstan in August 2020.
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It reports:
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- The official\r\nrepresentative of the Ministry of Health announced opening of the ministry media center. However, the journalists note,\r\nthat they have questions that can answered by decision making medical\r\nprofessionals and not by an official\r\nrepresentative of the Ministry.
\r\n“The main task of the media center is to\r\ncommunicate with the society, media and government agencies. We will definitely\r\nmake every effort to promptly react to your questions, comments and criticism.\r\nThis refers not only to the questions that will be voiced today at the\r\nbriefing, those to that journalists ask me personally or on social networks\r\ntagging the minister and other heads of\r\nthe ministry. Our goal is both internal and external communications. We hope\r\nfor your loyalty. On the example of the Ministry of Health we would like to show how a \"hearing state\"\r\ncan work, Bagdat Kozhakhmetov said at a briefing.
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- On August 14, the\r\nMinister of Information and Social Development approved the Rules for the Journalistic activity ( Mass Media workers)\r\nat Peaceful Assemblies and journalist\'s distinctive marks.
\r\n\"The rules require that a journalist,\r\nwhen covering a peaceful assembly, have a journalist\'s ID and one or more\r\napproved distinctive marks. The description of the distinctive marks is\r\nprovided in the appendix to the Minister\'s Order.
\r\nThe executive body should take measures to\r\nprovide journalists with an Operational Press Center in cases where the number of participants of\r\na peaceful assembly exceeds 200 or at\r\nthe request of media. The operational press center should be fenced off by tape, provide sufficient visibility for photographing,\r\nfilming and taking interviews, and provided with electricity. At the same time,\r\na journalist has the right to collect information at peaceful meetings both on\r\nthe territory of the operational press center and outside it.
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- A National Media\r\nMeasurement Panel will be created in Kazakhstan to serve as a basis for\r\nmodernization of the state orders system.
\r\nExpert Shavkat Sabirov believes that the\r\ngovernment should not be the one to measure the media market.
\r\n\"National\" means \"state\".\r\nNo one will trust government measurements, knowing its habit to make data convenient for the government, and\r\nnot for the industry. Not a single state in the world takes such measurements\r\nby itself. The state purchases such service from third-party companies that are\r\nindependent and professional in making measurements whatever they measure -\r\nmarket, industry, or something else, ”MIA KazTAG quotes Sabirov.
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-\r\nMaslikhat (city council) of Almaty did not let media be present at its meeting
\r\nAccording to the head of the Almaty maslikhat\r\nadministration Maksat Rakhmetov, it was decided to hold the maslikhat session\r\nbehind closed doors due to the quarantine measures taken in the city due\r\nto Covid-19.The Ministry of Information\r\nand Social Development recommended to the Almaty Maslikhat not to violate the\r\nlaw \"On Access to Information\" and to ensure the broadcast of the\r\nmeeting for journalists.
\r\n- Businessman asks to bring Lukpan Akhmedyarov\r\nto criminal liability \"for violation of privacy and breach of the law of\r\nthe Republic of Kazakhstan on protection\r\nof personal data.\"
\r\n“An Atyrau businessman, that was involved in a\r\ncriminal case a month before, filed a claim against the journalist. The\r\nbusinessman gave a bribe in the amount\r\nof 500 thousand tenge to a police\r\nofficer in Uralsk for assistance in getting work permits for four citizens of\r\nUzbekistan. The businessman is outraged that I disclosed his name and the name\r\nof his company when covering the criminal case, ”the journalist says.
\r\n8 judicial acts\r\nwere issued against media and citizens in connection with the exercise of the\r\nright to freedom of expression , the receipt and dissemination of information\r\non cases of protection of honor, dignity and business reputation in August 2020.\r\nFive of them were in favor of the media, journalists and citizens.
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The\r\nfollowing charges were filed in\r\nconnection with the exercise of the right to freedom of expression:
\r\n- 2 criminal charges, no\r\none in court.
\r\n- 3 claims and\r\nsuits in civil procedure. All of them\r\nwere claims for protection of honor, dignity and business reputation.
\r\n- 1\r\nadministrative charge
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The\r\nfollowing charges were filed since the beginning of the year:
\r\n- 41 criminal charges (including 12 in court).
\r\n- 21 administrative\r\ncharges
\r\n- 52 claims and suits in civil procedure.
\r\nAmong them, 45 claims and lawsuits for protection of honor,\r\ndignity and business reputation.
\r\n- Claims for\r\ncompensation for non-pecuniary damage amounted to 78 million 100 thousand tenge. The courts collected 935 thousand 993 tenge.
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The monitoring was done according\r\nto reports of the Adil Soz Foundation\'s correspondents and information\r\nfrom open sources.
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Head of monitoring service of Adil\r\nSoz Foundation Elena Tsoi
\r\ne-mail: lena@adilsoz.kz
