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ASTANA (TCA) — Kazakh authorities have deported two observers from the Italian Federation for Human Rights (IFHR) after not allowing them to meet a Kazakh judge who was fired following the acquittal by his court of an opposition activist earlier this month, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reported. Continue reading
ASTANA (TCA) — The chief judge of the Aqtau City Court in Kazakhstan's western Manghystau region, Malik Kenzhaliev, has been fired after his court acquitted an opposition activist in a high-profile case, RFE/RL reported. Continue reading
BISHKEK (TCA) — In order to seize the property of foreign citizens and investors in Kyrgyzstan, some judges make illegal decisions in the interests of organized criminal groups. Such phenomena decrease the investment attractiveness of the state, block foreign investment and cause great damage to the country’s economy, Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov said at a meeting of the Judicial Reform Council on December 27. The Council discussed the implementation of the President’s decree on measures taken as part of the ongoing judicial reform and new bills in this area. From January 1, 2019, five new codes and two laws will come into force in Kyrgyzstan. The new codes provide for the introduction of new institutions such as the Unified Register, the investigating judge, the digitization of the investigative offices and courtrooms, and probation. Successful judicial and legal reform will directly depend on the work of these institutions. “People’s confidence in the judiciary will be restored,” the President said. He explained the peculiarities of the current reform. Earlier, the judicial and legal reforms were carried out separately while they will be implemented together from 2019. It is impossible to consider them separately, Jeenbekov added. Old-fashioned thinking On the President’s initiative, an expert working group was established to monitor the activities of the judicial and legal reform in May. “According to the WG, this work is still hampered by our old-fashioned thinking. Law enforcement and supervisory authorities do not want to abandon the old repressive laws, and some government agencies lack the political will to carry out the reform,” the President said. The Government and Parliament are late in adopting certain very relevant laws. The reform’s preparatory stage has been completed, and the time has come to work in the new legal space from January 1, 2019, he added. The reform should change the population’s attitude to the authorities, including the judiciary. “Our people waited for this reform for a long time. The revolutions of 2005 and 2010 occurred due to the lack of such reforms and because of corruption and injustice,” Jeenbekov said. Minor crimes When the codes come into force, the courts and investigators will have much more work. Not very serious crimes have been removed from the Criminal Code and transferred to the Code of Misdemeanors. They are not considered crimes now. The new code does not provide for the imprisonment of those who have committed minor crimes, the President explained. “For instance, the Сode imposes fines and correctional works for those who had stolen a bicycle, TV set, or a chicken. Sentences for certain types of crimes will be reduced. The society should educate criminals, but not just punish them,” he said. There is no practice of applying the new laws in the country. Therefore, law enforcement, control and judicial authorities, together with the monitoring working group, should analyze the practice of applying new laws, travel to all regions of the country and hold meetings. Unfair decisions People often complaint about the work of judicial and law enforcement...
BISHKEK (TCA) — Three Kyrgyz politicians have filed a libel lawsuit against former President Almazbek Atambayev and a TV channel he founded, adding to pressure on the ex-leader, RFE/RL reports. Continue reading
BISHKEK (TCA) — The parliament in Kyrgyzstan has approved in first reading a bill that would eliminate immunity for ex-presidents, potentially opening the path for the prosecution of the country’s former President Almazbek Atambayev, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports. A total of 100 lawmakers in the 120-seat chamber voted for the bill on December 13. Two voted against it, and 18 lawmakers were not present. The parliamentary committee for legislation, state structures, and judicial issues approved the bill in late November. The bill needs to be approved in two more readings by the lawmakers before President Sooronbai Jeenbekov can sign it into the law. The vote comes amid persistent tension between Jeenbekov and his predecessor Atambayev — two politicians who used to be known as close allies. In October, Kyrgyzstan's Supreme Court ruled that the immunity enjoyed by the country's former presidents is unconstitutional. In recent months, some politicians and lawmakers have called for the investigation of some of Atambayev's decisions while in office. Several of his close allies have been arrested on charges of corruption in recent months. Atambayev helped steer Jeenbekov, who had been his prime minister, into the presidency in an October 2017 election. Atambayev has criticized Jeenbekov since March for sacking or arresting a number of his close allies in what he called a “pseudo-anticorruption” campaign. Two Atambayev allies who served as prime ministers when he was president, Sapar Isakov and Jantoro Satybaldiev, were arrested in June on corruption charges. In October, Atambayev's former adviser Ikramjan Ilmiyanov was detained in Russia and brought by Kyrgyz authorities to Bishkek where he was arrested on corruption charges.
ASHGABAT (TCA) — Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov has pardoned 796 prisoners to mark the International Day of Neutrality marked on December 12, Turkmen state media reported. Continue reading
