What about the draft law on mass media?

The International Foundation for Protection of Freedom of Speech "Adil Soz" appealed to Aida Balayeva, the Minister of Information and Social Development,  asking if the ministry is still developing a draft new law regulating the creation and distribution of mass information?

"Adil soz" reminded that back in November 2017, Dauren Abayev, then-Minister of Information and Communications of the Republic of Kazakhstan (MIC RK) said in his interview to "Open Dialogue" program on  Khabar TV that in 2018 work would begin on a completely new law regulating the activities of the media. " We are ready to start next year. But this work is not one year, unfortunately, I think it will take two or three years ”, - he explained. (https://youtu.be/zyn0REa7VmA).

The Adil Soz Foundation immediately offered  the ministry  to cooperate  in the development of a new draft law. In January 2018 Adil Soz received a response signed by Vice Minister A. Azhibayev. In addition to  compliments and references to the complicity of that work, the letter promised that “the ministry will inform you about the beginning of the development of a new draft law in the field of information”.

At the end of 2018, Bekzat Rakhimov, the then-director of the department of state policy in the field of mass media of the MIC RK, said at the Media Kurultai, : “This will be a new law. We conducted a study to decide which  option we are to present to the society. It would be either the law "On Mass Media", or a combination of the laws in force. That is, it may be a unified law on information issues, where several separate chapters will be devoted to media issues ”(https://kaztag.kz/ru/news/zakonodatelstvo-kasayushcheesya-smi-mozhet-byt-vklyucheno-v-unifitsirovannyy-zakon-ob- informatsii-sch).

Several years have passed, the head of the country has proclaimed and consistently pursues the policy of the listening state. His demand  to involve representatives of civil society in the legislative process in the field of human rights was voiced for many times. However, there is no publically available  information about the work of the Ministry of Information and Social Development on the draft of a new law regulating the activities of the media and journalists. Nothing is heard about the participation of representatives of the civil sector and the journalistic community in this work either. At the same time, other state bodies, in particular, Ministry of Digital Development, Innovations and Aerospace Industry of the Republic of Kazakhstan, propose  legislative innovations that unreasonably restrict the rights of journalists and freedom of expression in general. 

"Adil Soz" requests to ensure transparency and collegiality of this activity and confirms its readiness to fully assist in this work.