On 23 January Kazakh national security agents in Almaty detained a leading opposition activist Igor Vinyavskiy, below, editor of the independent weekly Vzglyad  on criminal charges of “making public calls to violently overthrow Kazakhstan’s constitutional regime,” and ordered his pretrial imprisonment for two months, Article 19 and Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) report.

Editor detained, home and office searched
His home and the offices of Vzglyad were searched that same day and all equipment along with safes, and documents, including journalists’ notebooks were confiscated. The KNB (the Kazakh National Security Committee) opened a criminal case against Vinyavsky on the same day.

On 26 January 2012, a scan of the KNB investigator’s charges was disseminated via the internet, which reportedly served as the basis for initiating the criminal case against Igor Vinyavskiy. The document, dated 23 January, states that on 23 April 2010, 3,892 leaflets with the text ‘Kyrgyzstan got rid of the thieving [ousted President Kurmanbek] Bakiev family. Let’s not tolerate any more, put [them] in the garbage’ were confiscated. Next to the last line a picture of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan is placed.

The scanned document further mentions that a psycho-linguistic analysis dated 16 May 2010 concluded that the text of the leaflet contains evidence of a call to violently overthrow the government of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

If convicted, Vinyavskiy faces 7 years in prison
Local newspapers reported that the charges against the editor were not backed by any evidence. In addition, the charges against the editor did not clarify how the investigators had established Vinyavksy’s authorship of the leaflets and did not explain why the editor was being charged with committing a crime through mass media.

If convicted he faces up to seven years imprisonment. No official information has been made public about the content of the leaflet. However, on 27 January the KNB’s press service website included information about the arrest of Igor Vinyavskiy as part of the criminal investigation into incitement of social hatred in connection with the 16 December 2011 events in Zhanaozen.

Journalist interrogated after speeking in defense of Vinyavskiy
Oksana Makushina, deputy editor of the Kazakh independent weekly Golos Respubliki was interrogated for two consecutive days starting on 1 of February by KNB agents at their headquarters in Almaty in connection with a press conference held on 30 January at which Makushina spoke in defense of Igor Vinyavskiy, imprisoned editor of the weekly Vzglyad.

The agents told Makushina they were questioning her and other panelists from the press conference after an unnamed attendee filed a complaint alleging that extremist materials were distributed at the venue.

According to the CPJ information, Makushina spoke at the press conference along with Vinyavskiy’s wife, Lana Vinyavskaya, and lawyer Sergey Utkin. All three panelists disputed the legality of imprisoning Vinyavsky, who was detained as part of an ongoing crackdown by the KNB on critical media and opposition activists.

Makushina told CPJ that KNB agents interrogated her about the organizers of the press conference, reasons for her participation, the source of the leaflet, the charges against Vinyavsky, and who distributed the materials at the press conference. The agents, Makushina said, also interrogated her about her personal Skype account and how she uses it to contact her sources and colleagues.

Following her interrogation today, three KNB agents produced a warrant to search the newsroom and accompanied Makushina there, where they confiscated the weekly’s main printer and a personal laptop belonging to Golos Respubliki’s office manager, which were used to print the materials for the press conference.

Culture of secrecy prevails in Kazakhstan
Article 19 says the lack of transparency and openness surrounding the charges and the arrest of Igor Vinyavskiy are part of a culture of secrecy established by the Kazakh authorities. This culture was strengthened by the reported intention to introduce new parliamentary rules on 1 February. If introduced, only edited recordings would be made available to the media. Media would no longer be allowed to approach individual members of the Majilis for interviews; instead appointed speakers will be made available.

The introduction of such rules is a clear restriction on access to information and would remove any incentive for a genuine public debate, disempowering individual citizens to engage in and inform political decision-making processes.

Internet goes under control
Kazakhstan tries to control even more the last free speech zone – the internet. The internet remains the only relatively-free platform for people to discuss acute social and political problems in the country.

In 2009 the Internet Law was adopted in Kazakhstan, equating all websites with mass media, according them the same responsibility and regulations. On 30 December 2011, the Kazakh government adopted further rules on the regulation of the provision of internet services.

Internet cafes in Kazakhstan, who were already being equipped with video cameras, now require anyone wishing to use a public computer to provide identification. The amount of time a computer is used will be documented, as well as the websites visited. This information will have to be held for at least six months and should be provided to investigative government agencies upon their request.

Article 19 calls on the Kazakh authorities to refrain from using the context of the violence in December in Zhanaozen to silence its critics and to reverse the introduction of measures that curtail the free flow of information. As a state party to the International Covenant for Civil and Political Rights the Republic of Kazakhstan has legally binding obligations to protect and promote the right to freedom of expression and access to information.

Broadcasting pluralism under threat
Not only the internet but also the traditional media is prevented form broadcasting plural news and views.

The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatović, on 28 December 2011 expressed concern about a controversial law on television and radio broadcasting adopted on the same day by Kazakhstan’s upper chamber of Parliament.

“The law could violate the right of citizens to freely receive and impart information by increasing government control of electronic media. The law does not adequately address opportunities provided by the switch to digitalization in broadcast media and ultimately threatens broadcast pluralism,” Mijatović said.

Human rights defender Zhovtis granted amnesty
While moving towards the control of free speech, Kazakhsta makes also positive steps. The prominent Kazakh human rights activist Yevgeny Zhovtis, right, has been granted amnesty, after serving more than a half of his four-year jail sentence for manslaughter.

The move has been welcomed by the OSCE. In a statement, the OSCE has urged Kazakh authorities to follow the release of Zhovtis with full, transparent probes into recent violence in a western Kazakh city and allegations of electoral irregularities in January elections.

Imprisoned Uzbek editor receives additional five years sentence
English PEN is shocked by news that our Honorary Member Uzbek editor Muhammad Bekjanov, below, held since 1999 on charges widely believed to have been fabricated and whose sentence was due to expire in just a few days, has been served with an additional five year sentence.

On 24 January, just days before Bekjanov was due to be released, a district court in the city of Kasan sentenced him to an additional five-year term after charging him with breaking unspecified prison rules. Bekjanov denied the charges and planned to appeal. The journalist was imprisoned in 1999 in a strict-regime penal colony in Kasan on charges that included distributing and publishing Erk, a banned newspaper, the CPJ reports.

Bekjanov is one of two journalists who have been jailed longer than any other reporter worldwide, according to CPJ research. The other is Yusuf Ruzimuradov, Bekjanov’s colleague at Erk, who was given a 15-year prison term in 1999.

Both journalists were tortured before their 1999 trial began and were jailed in high-security penal colonies for individuals convicted of serious crimes. In a 2003 interview at a prison hospital where he was being treated for tuberculosis, Bekjanov described being beaten and tortured while in prison. He suffered a broken leg and hearing loss as a result, international news reports said.

English PEN urges all his members and supporters to take action on behalf of Muhammad and send letters of appeal to Uzbek authorities. More details are provided here.

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Kazakhstan: Two decades of Independence have not benefited free speach

NHC: Conflict in Kazakhstan should be reselved peacfully

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Human rights challenges in Kazakhstan

The Zhovtis case reaches the UN Human Rights Committee

Kazakhstani HR defender receives the 2010 Sakharov Award

Kazakhstan: referendum rejected, real test for democracy – free and fair elections