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Saddam Gulamov

Russian Diplomats Report No Complaints From Imprisoned Turkmen Activist Saddam Gulamov

Russian embassy officials in Turkmenistan have visited activist Saddam Gulamov, who is serving his sentence at the LB-E/12 penal colony in Lebap Region. Gulamov was said to have described his detention conditions and food as acceptable, and his health as satisfactory, according to a letter sent by Kamil Magomedov, deputy director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Third CIS Department, to Gulamov’s relatives. According to the document, Russian diplomats met Gulamov in person at the correctional facility in late May. The letter states that during the conversation, Gulamov described his detention conditions and food as acceptable, and said his health was satisfactory. Embassy staff also reported that they had observed no visible signs of health problems. The letter notes, however, that Gulamov intends to file a petition seeking changes to the conditions of his imprisonment. Other inmates at the LB-E/12 colony had earlier told Turkmen.news that, at least until autumn 2025, Gulamov had been held continuously in a disciplinary isolation cell. According to their accounts, the prolonged isolation negatively affected his psychological condition. There were also reports of several suicide attempts. Previously published documents show that Gulamov, who was extradited from Russia, was sentenced to five years in prison. The ruling was handed down by the Ashgabat City Court on May 13, 2024. Before being returned to Turkmenistan, Gulamov had been wanted in his home country over social media posts in which he criticized the authorities and former President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov personally. According to the official wanted persons database, Gulamov was accused of calling for the violent overthrow of the constitutional order and publicly inciting extremist actions through the media. The exact charges under which the final sentence was issued remain unknown. Through Russian embassy staff, Gulamov also informed his relatives that he intends to challenge what he describes as procedural violations with the help of a lawyer. These may concern the circumstances of his arrest and extradition, as well as the trial itself.

Society

Man Imprisoned in Kyrgyzstan for Evading Child Support

In Kyrgyzstan’s southern Batken region, a man who had evaded court-ordered child support payments since 2017 has been sentenced to two years in prison, according to the Bailiff Service under the Prosecutor General's Office of the Kyrgyz Republic. This is reportedly the first known prison sentence for such an offense in Kyrgyzstan, signaling a shift as authorities move to strengthen penalties against non-compliant parents following divorce. Under a July 3, 2017 ruling by the Batken District Court, the man was ordered to pay one-quarter of his income in child support until his child reached the age of 18. However, he failed to comply with the court’s decision. As of September 1, 2025, his arrears totaled 501,000 Kyrgyz som (approximately $5,700). On February 2, the Batken Regional Court sentenced him to two years in prison for non-payment. Klara Masalbekova, Head of the Department for Enforcement of Court Decisions at the Prosecutor General's Office, noted that failure to fulfill child-support obligations falls under Article 178 of Kyrgyzstan’s Criminal Code. This article has been progressively tightened in recent years. Under current law, evading child support can result in a prison sentence of up to three years. According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, 1,205 individuals in Kyrgyzstan are currently wanted for child-support evasion. The Family Code of the Kyrgyz Republic stipulates the following alimony contributions for children under 18: One child - 1/4 of the parent’s income Two children - 1/3 of the income Three or more children - 1/2 of the income In a related development, the Kyrgyz parliament has approved in the first reading a bill introducing stricter penalties for non-compliance with alimony agreements or court orders, 24.kg reported. The proposed measures include: Three days’ arrest for a three-month overdue payment Community service of 100-200 hours or up to one year of imprisonment for a 12-month overdue payment A fine of 100,000 som (approx. $1,140) or up to three years in prison for concealing income, understating wages, or refusing employment mandated by a court order The bill aims to reduce the number of delinquent child-support cases and improve compliance with family law rulings across the country.

Prisons

Kazakh Chamber of Entrepreneurs Encourages Businesses to Launch Production Facilities in Prisons

Kazakhstan’s National Chamber of Entrepreneurs "Atameken" and the Committee of the Penal System (CES) under the Ministry of Internal Affairs have discussed the potential for establishing private production facilities inside the country’s correctional institutions. The initiative was presented during a meeting organized by Atameken, Kazakhstan’s largest business association, representing 1.4 million members across 203 industry associations. The discussion focused on practical mechanisms for facilitating business engagement with correctional institutions. “It is important for businesses to understand the real opportunities and economic benefits of working with correctional facilities. The Chamber is prepared to support projects at every stage, offering both advisory and organizational assistance,” said Almat Askar, Managing Director of the Manufacturing Industry Department at Atameken. According to Askar, Atameken is working with government agencies to develop mechanisms that encourage businesses to create jobs for inmates and set up production facilities within the industrial zones of correctional facilities. Guldana Sharipova, Head of the Convict Labor Organization Department at the CES, noted that legislative amendments offering incentives for businesses are already in progress. “We are interested in companies not only launching operations within correctional facilities but also in hiring convicts to work outside the colonies,” she said. According to the World Prison Population List, Kazakhstan ranked 89th out of 222 countries in 2024 in terms of the number of prisoners per 100,000 population. Approximately 35,000 individuals are held in 78 correctional institutions nationwide. Of these, about 23,000 are eligible to work, yet only slightly more than 12,000 are officially employed. Currently, 280 private enterprises operate within the industrial zones of correctional institutions, employing 5,000 inmates. These facilities manufacture products ranging from workwear and building materials to furniture, souvenirs, and consumer goods. This initiative comes alongside broader efforts by the Kazakh government to improve the business climate, including a recent reduction in inspections of private enterprises.

Security

Hostage-Taker in Almaty Airport Drama Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison

A knife-wielding man who took a hostage at Almaty International Airport before being disarmed by a former boxer who grabbed the weapon has been sentenced to 11 years in prison, media in Kazakhstan reported on Wednesday. Mashrapbek Baratov, 67, was sentenced in an Almaty court for the March 7 incident in which he held an airport employee by her hair and made threats as security officials gathered nearby. He let go of the woman after Musa Abdraim offered himself as a hostage, then disarmed the hostage-taker shortly afterward. Several witnesses filmed the scene with their phone cameras, and the images circulated widely on the internet. Baratov admitted guilt, and his trial was conducted in a relatively short time. He had been charged with hostage-taking, hooliganism, and intentionally making a false report of a terrorist act, according to Tengri News, a media outlet based in Kazakhstan. Abdraim won praise for his bold action from Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and the World Boxing Council.

Corruption

Former Justice Minister From ‘Old Kazakhstan’ Sentenced to Nine Years in Prison

Former Minister of Justice Marat Beketayev has been sentenced to nine years in prison with confiscation of property for crimes linked to large-scale corruption. Beketayev is widely regarded as a representative of the "Old Kazakhstan" of the first president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, a term widely used to describe officials removed from power in the wake of the January 2022 unrest and associated with systemic corruption. Verdict Handed Down The Anti-Corruption Service of Kazakhstan announced on June 30 that Beketayev was convicted of fraud, embezzlement on an especially large scale, and illegal participation in entrepreneurial activities. Details of the case remain classified. The charges were formally submitted to the court in March 2025. Beketayev served as Minister of Justice from 2016 until early 2022. Following the January unrest, he was appointed as an advisor to the Prime Minister but was quietly dismissed in December 2022, a fact that only became public knowledge in February 2023. He was detained in October 2023 while allegedly attempting to flee the country. According to investigators, he abused his office by lobbying for the interests of an affiliated company and awarding it annual contracts for unnecessary services, actions that reportedly inflicted significant financial damage on the state. Fallout from the January Events Beketayev’s dismissal came immediately after the events known in Kazakhstan as "Bloody January" (Qantar), when protests initially triggered by rising liquefied gas prices escalated into nationwide unrest. From January 3-7, 2022, major cities were engulfed in chaos. Government buildings, law enforcement agencies, and military units were attacked; 238 people were reportedly killed, including children and police officers. The worst violence occurred in Almaty, where protesters stormed the city administration, the president’s residence, and the airport. Order was restored on January 8 with the intervention of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), at the request of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Open-source information and official investigations suggest the unrest was orchestrated by supporters of former president Nursultan Nazarbayev, who had stepped down in 2019 after nearly 30 years in power. In the aftermath, many high-ranking officials were removed or prosecuted. Among them was former Prime Minister and National Security Committee (KNB) Chairman Karim Massimov, who was sentenced to 18 years in prison for orchestrating what authorities describe as a coup attempt. Nazarbayev’s nephews, Samat Abish and Kairat Satybaldy, also faced charges. Abish received an eight-year suspended sentence due to his "sincere repentance," while Satybaldy, accused of economic crimes, paid approximately 700 billion tenge ($1.5 billion) in restitution and was released. The post-Qantar purge extended to numerous grassroots organizers and ordinary citizens involved in the unrest. In political discourse, the divide between Tokayev's supporters and the remnants of Nazarbayev’s influence is often described as a split between "New Kazakhstan" and "Old Kazakhstan." Beketayev’s Legacy and Links to Major Scandals Beketayev is considered an ally of Massimov and thus part of the old power structure. He was also involved in one of Kazakhstan’s most controversial international legal disputes, the case involving Moldovan businessmen Anatol and Gabriel Stati. In 2017, $22...

Journalists

Tajik Journalist Rukhshona Khakimova Transferred to Prison After Closed Treason Trial

Rukhshona Khakimova, a Tajik journalist convicted of treason, has been transferred from a detention center in Dushanbe to a correctional facility in Nurek. The relocation was confirmed by a relative on April 22, who reported being informed of the transfer when attempting to deliver a package to the journalist. Khakimova was sentenced to eight years in prison on February 5, 2025, following a closed-door trial. Her case is among several related to an alleged attempted coup. Despite the prosecution’s request for a 17-year sentence, the court handed down an eight-year term. The judge did not account for Khakimova's family circumstances; she is the mother of two young children, the eldest only two and a half years old, and the youngest nine months. She was taken into custody directly from the courtroom. The case against Khakimova was initiated in June 2024 by Tajikistan’s General Prosecutor’s Office under charges of high treason. The accusation stemmed from a journalistic survey she conducted on China’s influence in Tajikistan. In the course of her reporting, Khakimova interviewed several individuals later implicated in the purported coup case, including former MP Saidjafar Usmonzod, who received a 27-year sentence, and her uncle, Shokirjon Khakimov, sentenced to 18 years. However, her interviews also included individuals unconnected to the alleged conspiracy. Before her arrest, Khakimova was placed under a travel restriction enforced by a signature bond, and all her identification documents had been confiscated. She was living in a rented apartment in Dushanbe. At the time of her arrest, authorities reportedly seized approximately 230,000 somoni ($21,427) from her personal bank account, funds she and her husband had saved toward purchasing a home. Khakimova is one of the few women in Tajikistan working openly with independent media. Her sentencing has become emblematic of the country’s increasing suppression of free speech. Human rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, Reporters Without Borders, and The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, have condemned her prosecution as a violation of press freedom, and have called for her immediate release. Additionally, a petition signed by 130 women in Tajikistan appealed to President Emomali Rahmon to commute Khakimova’s sentence, urging humane consideration for the mother of two. These efforts, however, have thus far failed to change her legal status.