Frightened with protest activity in other countries where public rallies have led to the change of political regimes, Kazakhstan’s government has continuously pursued the policy of restricting citizens’ right to peaceful assembly.
Serikzhan Bilash, who fight for human rights in Xinjiang, China, has been detained in Kazakhstan.
For her publications she was repeatedly persecuted, because of it she was forced to change her place of residence within the country.
This Working Paper of FORUM-ASIA seeks to highlight the experiences and perspectives on civic space from local and global contexts. One chapter of the Working Paper is dedicated to problems for civil freedoms in Kazakhstan.
The Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law and the Norwegian Helsinki Committee criticize the mass detentions taking place on December 16-17 in five main cities.
EP urges Kazakhstan to abide by its international obligations and respect human rights and fundamental freedoms; calls on the Kazakhstan’s authorities to put an end to human rights abuses and any form of political repression in accordance with the principles and articles 1, 4, 5 and 235 mentioned in the EPCA.
Human rights issues included torture; political prisoners; censorship; site blocking; criminalization of libel; restrictions on religion; substantial interference with the rights of peaceful assembly and freedom of association; restrictions on political participation; corruption; and restrictions on independent trade unions.
There was no meaningful improvement to Kazakhstan’s poor human rights record in 2018. Authorities did not allow peaceful protests that criticized government policies. Trade unions remained restricted from freely determining their structures. Some activists were released from prison, but politically motivated prosecutions continued. A court banned an opposition movement as “extremist” and authorities targeted its supporters. Impunity for torture and ill-treatment in detention persisted. Free speech was suppressed, and independent journalists harassed or prosecuted for their work.
This update covers developments on the freedoms of association, peaceful assembly and expression in Kazakhstan from March to June 2018.
The report points to pervasive corruption within migration police services and increased discrimination in Kazakh society against migrants leading to their inability to formalize their presence on the territory of Kazakhstan.
NGO «KAZAKHSTAN INTERNATIONAL BUREAU FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND RULE OF LAW»
