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Rule of law Media Freedom

Kazakhstan Debates Foreign Media Accreditation

Following their second reading, the Majilis (lower chamber of parliament) of the Republic of Kazakhstan has adopted the bills "On Mass Media" and "On Amendments and Additions to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the Field of Mass Media," sending them to the Senate for consideration. The documents are designed to regulate the professional activities of mass media outlets. The new amendments are evoking mixed reactions. One of the key proposals was the right of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to deny accreditation to foreign media and their representatives if they pose a threat to national security. This initiative provoked opposition from representatives of the media, who consider such regulations a mechanism for suppressing freedom of speech. "The draft law proposes a regulation on the introduction of press cards, granting the right to simplified accreditation to individual journalists. Frankly speaking, this norm caused great controversy in the working group and society as a whole. The overwhelming majority of the working group members regarded this rule as one that contradicts democratic principles, discredits journalists, and hinders the comprehensive dissemination of information. Therefore, a specific decision was made on this: the rule on press cards was excluded," said Majilis representative, Zhanarbek Ashimzhanov, answering journalists' questions. Other changes proposed in the draft laws include combining online publications and news agencies into the category of "internet publications," as well as shortening the statute of limitations for journalist legal requests and setting shorter deadlines for responding to media inquiries. Among other rules, members of the Majilis also proposed introducing a ban on the publication of materials about LGBT themes and topics. These changes were critically evaluated by experts, and these regulations were not included in the final document as members of the working group concluded that it contradicts both Kazakhstani and international legislation.

Export/import Legislation Rule of law Healthcare Central Asia Kyrgyzstan

Traffickers of Human Organs Detained in Kyrgyzstan

The State Committee for National Security (SCNS) of Kyrgyzstan has detained members of an international criminal group at Manas Airport. The criminals had organized a black-market channel for the illegal sale of human organs abroad. All detainees are citizens of the Kyrgyzstan. According to the investigation, the criminal group looked for patients in foreign clinics who were willing to pay large sums of money for the transplantation of a healthy organ. The gang then found donors in Kyrgyzstan, who were fraudulently induced into undergoing organ-harvesting operations. "Donors necessarily underwent a medical examination, where, regardless of [their overall health], always issued a positive conclusion, after which the organizers through corrupt schemes made false documents on the relationship with the patient necessary for submission to the clinic, where the operation will be held," said the SCNS. Investigators found that the donors received between $1,000 and $7,000 for their kidneys. The recruiters of those donors earned about $3,000, and the organizers of the criminal channel received between $30,000 and $70,000. The SCNS said that all necessary measures are currently being taken to identify all those involved in this crime. Earlier this year, Kyrgyz president Sadyr Zhaparov signed a law on the protection of citizens' health, according to which private and public hospitals can engage in organ transplantation. However, a major stipulation requires that the organ recipient must be a relative of the donor. This loophole in the legislation was exploited by criminals by issuing fictitious documents on family kinship.

Kazakhstan Central Asia Security Rule of law Legislation

Kazakhstan To Increase Number of Female Police Officers

Kazakhstan's Ministry of Internal Affairs plans to increase the number of female police officers in the country to 750, to support the adoption of new laws on domestic violence. Commented the deputy minister for internal affairs Igor Lepekha: "We have female investigators specialized in investigating violence against girls and women. They conduct the initial inquest. We have studied international experience in this matter, we were supported by regional akims [regional administration]. Unfortunately, there are questions about the financing of the program." Earlier this year the police created a special unit to combat domestic violence. It is into that unit that the additional female officers will be recruited. Kazakhstan has adopted a new law on domestic violence, which toughens liability for criminal acts of domestic violence committed against women and children.

Media Freedom Rule of law

Kazakh News Publisher Says New Media Law Does Little for National Press

Kazakhstan's new law "On Mass Media," recently passed by its lower house of parliament (the Majilis), has agitated the country's reporters. In an interview with The Times of Central Asia, Dzhanibek Suleyev, the publisher of several news sites, remonstrates that the law should have been more supportive of the national press. An aspect of the law that has caused heated discussions is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' new right to deny accreditation to foreign journalists "in case of a threat to the national security of the Republic of Kazakhstan." A few months ago the Ministry of Foreign Affairs didn't renew or refused to issue accreditation to 36 correspondents of the news website Azattyq, the Kazakh affiliate of the U.S. Government's Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). No explanation was given for this rejection, and Azattyq has filed a lawsuit in court. Suleyev explained: "It is clear that the state wants to protect itself and society as much as possible from extremist publications and the spread of deviant morality, but what is proposed for those who simply do their work honestly, every day? We like to impose restrictions, but what about support? I think that if the state were to expand the field of cooperation, the press would be less critical." "Apparently, the state authorities have such an ambiguous opinion of Azattyq. In addition, the lack of accreditation clearly does not prevent 'going on the air,' the audience has access to the materials. I do not think that denial of accreditation to foreign media will become a mass phenomenon. The New York Times or leading sports publications and channels will hardly be denied accreditation. You have to understand that from the point of view of the state, there are ordinary media, and there are structures engaged in propaganda and counter-propaganda, and this should be taken into account," Suleyev explained. Suleyev said that the establishment of a one-year statute of limitations for media materials is a positive development, as it protects journalists' rights. It was initially proposed to set the term at three years from the date of publication. "It is good that it was reduced to a year, three years of limitation is the death of the publication. Of course, I would have liked to reduce the statute of limitations even further, but thanks for that. If journalists are always afraid of the court, how can they work? Because of the long statute of limitations, editorial offices need to keep archives, video, audio and documents, not everyone can do this. Besides, with a long statute of limitations, it is easier to settle scores with the press, to get unwanted people closed down," he said. Suleyev was happy to see more television programs in Kazakh. The new law aims to increase the amount of Kazakh-language and domestic content on television and radio. From 2025 at least 55% of TV and radio programs should be broadcast in Kazakh, rising to 60% from 2027. Retransmission of foreign TV and radio channels will be reduced to 10% from...

Kyrgyzstan Central Asia Migration Uzbekistan Rule of law Legislation borders

Authorities Find Secret Tunnel Connecting Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan

Another underground passage has been found in the Jalal-Abad region of Kyrgyzstan, which was being used to illegally transport both people and contraband goods into neighboring Uzbekistan. The suspects involved have been arrested. That's according to a report from news outlet, Kaktus, which references information from the press service of the Department of Internal Affairs of Kyrgyzstan's Osh region. On April 5, officers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Osh region arrested a female citizen of Uzbekistan who illegally crossed the Kyrgyz border. During the investigation, it turned out that she crossed the international border into Kyrgyzstan through a secret tunnel connecting the two countries. The police opened a criminal case under Article 168 of the Criminal Code of Kyrgyzstan on “Organization of illegal migration, illegal importation of migrants.” On the night of April 12, a local citizen was arrested in the Nooken district suspected of organizing illegal crossings of the Kyrgyz-Uzbek border for payment. According to police, during the arrest, specially marked currency and night vision binoculars were confiscated. In addition, 87 boxes of narcotics with an initial value of about $30,000 dollars were found in his house. This is the third secret underground passageway discovered, with two secret underground tunnels connecting the city of Khanabad, Andijan region (Uzbekistan), with Bekabad village, Suzok district, Jalalabad region (Kyrgyzstan) having previously been identified. Members of a cross-border criminal group consisting of citizens of Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan were captured. On March 17 of this year, a Kyrgyz citizen took a total of 813 mobile phone devices in 16 bags to Uzbekistan using an underground tunnel, and tried to take 1.745 kilograms of gold bars and jewelry out of the country. They were apprehended with physical evidence.

Rule of law Oil & Gas

Kazakhstan Increases Amount of Claim Against Western Oil Companies to $150 Billion

Kazakhstan is demanding compensation for lost profits from the operating consortium of the Kashagan oil field, North Caspian Operating Co (NCOC). Arbitration claims made by Kazakhstan have grown to $150 billion, Bloomberg reports, citing people familiar with the story. An additional claim concerns $138 billion of lost profits stemming from volumes of oil promised to the Kazakh government but not provided by the developers of the field due to delays in Kashagan's startup and production growth. According to the Bloomberg's source, Kazakhstan's claims are also related to problems with the infrastructural arrangement at the Kashagan field, disruptions of production deadlines and cost overruns. "There is another compensation claim related to contracts for the development of Kashagan. They allegedly saw signs of corruption in [the contracts]," the source told Bloomberg. The international scandal underscores the complexity of operating in Central Asia's largest oil-producing country, according to Bloomberg. "Here, large international companies face difficult environmental and geological conditions, as well as a government that is committed to maximizing profits from signed production-sharing agreements," reads the article. Despite the published information, the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan isn't disclosing the details of the conflict, calling it a purely commercial dispute. The parties in the consortium NCOC, which includes Eni, Total, ExxonMobil, Shell, China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC), Japan's Inpex and Kazakh state oil & gas producer, KazMunayGas, believe that they have acted in accordance with the contractual agreements. Earlier, Kazakhstan filed a number of claims in international arbitration against the operators of the Kashagan and Karachaganak oil fields. The claims cover the period from 2010 to 2019.