Сөз бостандығын қорғау халықаралық қоры
Международный фонд защиты свободы слова
The International Foundation for Freedom of Speech Protection

Violations of Freedom of Speech in Kazakhstan January 2021

1 january 2021

The International Foundation for the Protection of Freedom of Speech "Adil Soz" conducted a study of the situation with the right to freedom of expression, receipt and dissemination of information in Kazakhstan in January 2021.

 

It reports:

 

- Human rights activists note the increased pressure on independent observers and civil society activists on the eve of the parliamentary elections. Tax authoritites suspended activity of several human right organizations for three months and  imposed multimillion fines.  Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law was one of them.

According to human rights activists,  pressure on independent observers and activists has increased n the eve of the parliamentary elections . Civil society activists were arrested for calling for illegal rallies, of involvement in the activities of organizations banned by a court decision.

In January, the tax authorities fined several non-governmental organizations  for millions tenge for alleged violations in filling out tax reporting forms of an informational nature.

- On January 15, the public foundation "Echo" was fined for more than one million tenge by the decision of the State Revenue Department for the Almaly district of Almaty, the activity of the organization was suspended for three months.

- On January 25 the International Legal Initiative was fined more than one million tenge or the same reasons, its activity was suspended  til April 15, 2021.

- On January 25, the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law received an order to pay a fine and suspend its activities til April 15, 2021;

- The activity of Central Asia's first fact-checking resource Factcheck.kz, started and managed by  the NGO "MediaNet International Center for Journalism", may be suspended due to pressure from the tax authorities, which NGOs have been faced since November last year.

Human rights activists are going to appeal the decisions of the State Revenue Department to the State Revenue Department and to the courts.

The international human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) has condemned the "ongoing repressive measures" against human rights organizations in Kazakhstan.

The international organization Front Line Defenders called the pressure on NGOs unprecedented.

 

- On the day of elections to the Mazhilis (lower chamber) of the Parliament, the media faced obstacles in covering the progress of the voting. Most often, members of election commission explained obstruction to journalists' work by   sanitary demands and fighting spread of COVID-19.

- Nurzhan Iskakov, the chairman of the precinct election commission No. 173 in Almaty, used force to  push away  Azattyk radio reporter Ayan Kalmurat  under the pretext that the journalist did not have a PCR test.

Later, the head of the precinct, in an explanatory letter addressed to the head of the territorial election commission, Zhanna Asanova, wrote that Ayan had introduced himself as an observer and did not present documents confirming that he is a journalist.

“There was a misunderstanding in the dialogue between your employee and the representative of the precinct election commission,” Asanova said.

- After the Azattyk reporter Asylkhan Mamashuly drew the attention of members of precinct commissions and observers to the fact that some voters threw more than three ballots into the ballot box (in the regions three ballots were given: for elections to the majilis, the district maslikhat ( council) and the regional maslikhat) the head of the polling station No. 446 demanded that Azattyk reporter leave the precinct. She referred to the fact that Almaty region was in the “yellow zone” for the risk of COVID-19, so she could let the  journalist to work for five minutes only.

On the evening of January 10,  Azattyk reporter was not allowed to attend the counting of votes at polling stations 4 and 5 in Almaty. The chairman called the police, stating that media representatives were not allowed to attend. The head of the district election commission also spoke out against the presence of the journalist.

- Correspondent of "Nasha Gazeta" Georgy Govorov was not allowed to the polling station No. 1 half an hour before the counting of votes. The pretext was the lack of seats for observers. Such decision was made by the precinct election commission.

- The chairman of the election commission No. 318 in Nur-Sultan demanded that Azattyk reporter Sania Toiken stop filming the actions of the members of the election commission. The pretext was that the journalist interfered with the process and did not have a PCR test though  the journalist was makeing video from a distance of 4 meters.

- Orda.kz reporter Saule Sadenova was not allowed to enter the 379 polling station in Almaty on the grounds that the she did not have a PCR test for Covid-19. It took her half an hour to remind and explain  the rules for the journalist and to get through.

Also, France Press news agency journalist reported that he was not allowed to enter precincts under the pretext of the lack of a PCR test.

- Elena Kulakova, Radio Azattyk reporter for the Karaganda region,  was demanded to take a PCR test right at the precinct. She was told that otherwise she could not come in and cover the elections. Elena had to state that the  decree of the chief state sanitary doctor does not demand  journalists to take PCR tests. After that she was allowed to continue working.

According to Elena, other journalists passed the test.

- At polling station 894 in Almaty, Azattyk reporter Nurtai Lakhanuly was not allowed to cover the votes count. He had to call the spokesperson  of the akim of the Enbekshikazakh district of the Almaty region. The spokesperson  in his turn turn, made a call to the chairman of the commission and the journalist was allowed to do his work.

 

- The Uralsk police, on behalf of the prosecutor's office, initiated a pre-trial investigation into the  article “Land scandal in Uralsk - the mother of the prosecutor became the owner of five land plots” published in Uralskaya Nedelya. The chief editor of the newspaper, Lukpan Akhmedyarov, was summoned for interrogation.

- On January 30, on Saturday, the chief editor of Uralskaya Gazeta, Lukpan Akhmedyarov, was summoned to testify at the Abay police department of Uralsk. The police received an order from the prosecutor to initiate a pre-trial investigation into the article "Land scandal in Uralsk - the mother of the prosecutor became the owner of five land plots" published by  the newspaper "Uralskaya Nedelya"  on November 27, 2020

The Department of Internal Affairs did not inform  Akhmedyarov about the charges.

 

- For the whole month  Pavlodar journalists cannot get details of the criminal case initiated in response to the  article by journalist Olga Voronko. The Police Department refuses to provide information, citing the "interests of the investigation."

The Pavlodar region police department refused to hold a briefing and provide details of the criminal case, that was initiated after an article by journalist Olga Voronko.As it was reported, the article “21-year-old millionaire is arming the police” was published on December 26 on the ratel.kz. The article told about the state procurement carried out by the police department of Pavlodar region in a special order.

For the whole month, Pavlodar journalists repeatedly appealed to the press service of the Pavlodar region police department with a request to clarify the charges in  dissemination of information about private life filed in response to Olga Voronko's article. The investigation into the case has been going on for a month now, but no one knows any details (at what stage it is, what is the journalist's procedural status, what she is suspected of and what information she disseminated was considered the private life of the applicant).

The press service refused to conduct a briefing on the case, saying that information on the case can not be disclosed in the interests of the investigation.

 

8  judicial acts was  issued against media in connection with the exercise of the right to freedom of expression , the receipt and dissemination of information in January 2021. Five of them was  in  favor of defendants.

 

The following charges were filed  in connection with the exercise of the right to freedom of expression:

- 1 criminal charges,  none  in  court.

- 5 claims and suits in civil procedure. All were claims for protection of honor, dignity and business reputation.

Claims for compensation for non-pecuniary damage amounted to 11 million tenge. The courts collected 5 million  tenge.

 

- 2 administrative charges

 

The monitoring was done according to reports of the Adil Soz Foundation's

Head of monitoring service of Adil Soz Foundation

Elena Tsoi
e-mail: lena@adilsoz.kz

 

For all monitoring questions, you can also contact info@adilsoz.kz

 

 

Violations of Freedom of Speech in Kazakhstan January 2021
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