MONITORING OF POLITICAL PERSECUTION IN THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN FROM JUNE 1 TO JUNE 30, 2022

On June 1, in Almaty, more than ten people, most of whom were family members of the people who died or were detained during the January 2022 events, came to the building of the Prosecutor’s Office of the city. They demanded to bring the perpetrators to justice and drop the charges against the detainees. The citizens were complaining about the exhumation of the bodies of their dead relatives and claimed that the authorities were trying to pass off the dead as terrorists[1].

On 1 June, in Almaty, Duisebayev Darkhan, Makhanbay Kosai, Karaneyev Nurtas and Kisymbayev Akylzhan, who had suffered torture during the January events, were taken to the anti-corruption service. All four of them were detained after they had come to the building of the Prosecutor’s Office and demanded that those responsible for the torture be brought to justice, later they were released[2].

On June 1, in Almaty, Makhanbay Kosai and Kisymbayev Akylzhan were again detained and brought to the police department of Bostandyk district; they are accused of organizing an unauthorized rally near the building of the City Prosecutor’s Office under Article 488, Part 7 of the Administrative Offences Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan[3].

June 1, Nur-Sultan, «A total of 5,065 pre-trial investigations relating to the January events have been registered in the country. 514 suspects are being held in custody upon court authorization. As of today, 337 criminal cases have been submitted to the court, 331 individuals have been sentenced to various punishments», a representative of the General Prosecutor’s Office, Mr. Kilimzhanov, said[4].

June 1, Shymkent, it was found by the Al-Farabi district court that in January 2022 five of the defendants took part in the mass disorder involving violence, pogroms, and arson. The court found them guilty under Article 272, Part 2/3 of the Criminal Code of the RK and sentenced them to three years of suspended prison sentence[5].

June 1, “The Board of Distribution has decided that we have been making payments to the accidental victims of the January events. We receive requests from citizens and relatives of the victims. We submit all information from organizations and ombudsmen to the competent bodies and we are waiting for their feedback. We received a list of 19 people. We contacted all of them and provided assistance”, said the Head of the Kazakstan Khalkyna Fund, Zhamishev Bolat [6].

On June 1, Radio Azattyk presented a mini-site devoted to the victims of bloody January. Five months later, the authorities still have not published an official list of the dead. Azattyk has gathered information about dozens of people who were shot during protests in Kazakhstani cities on January 5-8, 2022, or died later of their wounds[7].

On June 1, in Nur-Sultan, Sembay Asker was sentenced to 15 days of arrest under Article 488, Part 11 of the Administrative Offences Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan for participation in an illegal meeting near the Supreme Court of Kazakhstan on December 28, 2021, demanding “Freedom to political prisoners” (“Saiasi tutqyndarga bostandyq!”)[8].

1 June, Monitoring of human rights violations in Kazakhstan provided by the human rights movement Kaharman.kz. This is the persecution of activists prior to a peaceful rally announced by the DCK movement on the day of the “Referendum” on June 5[9].

June 2, Semey, Sadyrbayeva Raigul, Article 272 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Amnesty International (AI) demanded that the Kazakh authorities immediately release the activist and bring the police to justice for the alleged torture against her[10].

June 2, Karaganda, Gennady Nadyrbekov was summoned to the police after his questions to the President on Twitter. He filed a statement to the Chief of the Department of Police complaining about the actions of the police officers, and demanding to provide an explanation as to why allegedly covert investigation actions are conducted against him, the lawyer, and why he was summoned to the police without an official summons[11].

On June 2, in Almaty, Makhanbay Kosai was sentenced to 15 days of arrest under Article 488, Part 6 of the Administrative Offences Code of the RK for posting on Instagram an appeal to a peaceful meeting in front of the Prosecutor’s Office on June 1, 2022 with the topic: “2022 jyldyn qantar aiynda bolgan oqys oqigalaryna bailanysty” (in connection with the incidents that took place in January 2020) [12].

3 June, Almaty, Democratic Party activists hung out a banner on an overpass on Al-Farabi Avenue with an appeal to President Tokayev to release Mamay Zhanbolat. The police detained Baiterekov Nurbol, Mirmambetova Gulnar, Duysebaeva Aruzhan and Imanbai Inga[13].

June 3, Zarechniy village, facility LA-155/14, political prisoner Kibirov Shukhrat convicted under Article 164, Part 1 and Article 233, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 6 years and 8 months. The colony creates all the conditions so that he has no chance to be released earlier[14].

On June 3, in Nur-Sultan city, Tamabayeva Galiya was sentenced to 10 days of administrative arrest under Article 488, Part 7 of the Administrative Offences Code of the RK for her Facebook post of March 3, with an appeal to the rally, which was to be held on March 6 at 12 a.m. all over Kazakhstan in front of city akimats [15].

On June 3, in Nur-Sultan, the city prosecutor’s office refused to provide to Gulbarash Zholmukhambetova, mother of Dulat Agadil, who was killed in the pre-trial detention facility, the video of the last hours of her son’s life. The decision of the Prosecutor’s Office says that the video, showing Dulat Agadil, also contains personal information about 4 other persons arrested under investigation and that family members might post this video on social networks/media and thus “the right to personal privacy” could be violated[16].

June 3, Almaty, the arrest of Dzhumageldiyev Arman, the leader of the organized crime group, nicknamed “Dikiy Arman”, was extended until August 7. He is accused of kidnapping 24 passers-by during the January events, according to the press service of the Almaty City Court[17].

On June 4, in Nur-Sultan, Jamie Fly, President of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, met with Information Minister Umarov and other officials to discuss the authorities’ plans for reforming Kazakhstan’s media law[18].

4 June, Monitoring of Human Rights Violations in Kazakhstan for 4 June, provided by the human rights movement Kaharman.kz[19].

On June 5, in Almaty, Sharipov Darkhan held a picket in Zhibek-Zholy street with posters against the referendum saying: “Reconstitution”, “Qandy Qantar urytylmas” (“Bloody January will not be forgotten”). He was detained and taken to the Police Department of the Almaly district.Three hours later he was released [20].

On June 5, in Nur-Sultan city, near the “Zhastar” Palace, at the potential place of the rally there was a concentration of police cars. The area was cordoned off and there were police and people in civilian clothes on the nearby streets[21].

On June 5, in Shymkent, police officers watched at the potential sites of the rally in Al-Farabi Square, in front of the “Shymkent Plaza” shopping center and close to the fountain “Kyzgaldak”[22].

On June 5, in Aktobe, security precautions have been increased near the central stadium, which was designated as the place of the referendum-related rally[23].

On June 5, in Almaty, police cars and vans were parked in Astana Square at the site of the referendum rally. The day before, a police minibus with officers was parked outside the Mega Park shopping and entertainment center on Seyfullina Avenue[24].

On June 5, an action in support of politician Mamay Zhanbolat was held in Almaty.“They promise us democracy, and at the same time Zhanbolat, who was in prison twice under Nazarbayev, is now back in prison again in post-Nazarbayev Kazakhstan. The new Kazakhstan does not start with political repression», said journalist Imanbai Inga, the wife of Mamay [25].

June 5, Almaty, “Some people have officers of the Counter Terrorism and Extremism Unit of the Almaty Police Department on duty outside their houses. The head of the Counter Terrorism and Extremism Unit of the Almaty Police Department, Maulen Kasymzhan, was on duty outside the house of Abzal and Dauren Dostiyarovs”, said Imanbay Inga[26].

June 5, Almaty, polling station No. 257, during the voting of Imanbai Inga the Chairman of the polling station has banned journalists from photo and video shooting. The activist Aruzhan Duisebayeva was denied the right to vote despite she had an absentee certificate while the chairman tried to physically remove her from the polling station[27].

On June 5, a video surfaced in social networks in Almaty, where first a woman dressed in gray comes to the ballot box with ballots in her hands, and after a few seconds a woman dressed in a turquoise jacket and a black skirt. Then they take their places in the commission again. The author of the video, observer Araylym Nazarova, notes that commission members stuffed the ballots into the ballot box when the observer had left for a moment the premises of polling station No. 2, located at 5B Tajikskaya Street[28].

June 5, Almaty, Zhanna Asanova, chairperson of the Territorial Referendum Commission (TRC) of Almaty, gave her comments on the video recording made by an observer, which recorded the alleged ballot box stuffing at the polling station No.2. She said that the commission members caught on video at the moment when they were stuffing ballots into the ballot box have been suspended from their duties “until the circumstances are clarified”[29].

June 5, Almaty city, “…on the day of voting at the referendum, two of our observers had been taken to Alatau district police station.. They were told that the work of the commission was hindered by the fact that they were having coffee and talking among themselves. They were held in the police station for half an hour,” said Nazarova Araylym, chairwoman of the Independent Observers Association”[30].

5 June, Almaty, other violations during the referendum have been reported by observers and the media. A reporter of Azattyk in Almaty has witnessed an alleged case of violation at polling station No. 529. There were two people in the polling booth at this polling station at the same time. They explained that one of them could not read the text of the voting ballot “without eyeglasses”. The woman then went into another booth. She did not answer the reporter’s question as to whether she knew the contents of the proposed amendments[31].

June 5, Almaty, among other violations reported: restriction of observers’ movement, prohibition to make photo and video recordings, violation the secrecy of voting, issuance of ballots without presenting the original identification document, voting on behalf of family members, sending a voter to two polling stations to vote twice. Also, observers and journalists say they noticed that voters were being photographed “for the job report” and were being followed by unknown persons[32].

June 5, Almaty, observers of the League of Young Voters of MISK (Youth Information Service of Kazakhstan) reported that at the polling stations there were cases when voters took photos of themselves “to report on their work”. Also, observers documented the issuance of ballots without providing the original identification document (by photo in the cell phone) and cases of voting on behalf of family members[33].

June 5, Almaty, journalists of MISK told that they had noticed that they had been followed near polling stations №55, 57 and 257. A MISK journalist, who was carrying out a quick poll at polling station No. 257, reported that unknown people, who arrived in a dark colored car, started filming her on video[34].

5 June, Almaty, Alatau district, polling station No. 532, “All day long observers have not been able to get the protocol of opening of the polling station, a protocol was drawn up regarding this fact. There were no curtains on the booths, and our documents were checked” – said Abdullayev Shukur from the association of independent observers “Mukalmas”^[35].

June 5, Karaganda, at polling station No 47 a reporter of Azattyk has witnessed that several times two people entered the voting booths at once. It was only after the reporter started to record these facts on video that members of polling station commission demanded people to leave the booths and vote one by one. Some people agreed to leave, while others ignored the demand and continued to stay in the booths with two people at a time[36].

June 5, Karaganda region, Temirtau, at polling station No.313, voters were also in a booth by two. Four observers who were sitting opposite did not pay any attention to it. After the journalist’s questions the chairperson of election commission herself started to monitor the process, directing the coming voters to the booths[37].

June 5, Nur-Sultan, “They set up a bunch of organizations, five or more observers per polling station, who sign in any act given by a commission member or chairman and these observers are associated with the precinct commissions in one way or another”, says Shvetsova Elena, head of the Public Foundation “Erkindik Kanaty”[38].

5 June, Nur-Sultan, “Four reports on removal of observers from the polling station were filed within 4 hours from the beginning of voting. The Fund considers this to be “purposeful persecution of observers”. One observer was sent away from polling station No. 1 at the Eurasian National University named after Gumilyov, another one was removed from polling station No.88. One more was removed from polling station No.104” – says Shvetsova Elena, head of the Public Foundation “Erkindik Kanaty”[39].

June 5, Nur-Sultan, The Public Foundation “Erkindik Kanaty” believes that there is a hidden scheme for the removal of independent observers: observers from third-party organizations report that “Erkindik Kanaty” observers violate the election law with the “tacit consent” of precinct commissions and make a number of complaints against “Erkindik Kanaty”, after which the precinct referendum commissions draw up reports on the removal[40].

5 June, Nur-Sultan, “I came to the polling station at 8:23 a.m. and observed the voting process. Everything was going very calmly. And at a certain moment the members of the commission prohibited me to leave the place for an observer, and thus prevented me from observing the whole process, although I did not impede the voters by any means, but nevertheless they decided to remove me from the polling station. The report on the removal was signed by many other observers” – says Sagym Maya, an observer of the PF “Erkindik Kanaty”[41].

June 5, Nur-Sultan, “They removed me from the first polling station, at first they removed me, and then they asked for my ID card of the coordinator of the monitoring group. I handed it over. And then they gave me the report saying that I was removed, although I was not registered there, and I came to get our observer, who has written that he was removed”, – says the head of the PF “Erkindik Kanaty: Shvetsova Elena [42].

June 5, Nur-Sultan, at the polling station No. 2, the Chairman of the Commission Utenov Aldazhar Kusherbayevich impeded the movement of observer of the League of Young Voters within the polling station, and did not allow her to inspect the ballot box, booths and table with ballot papers. According to Batyrbekova Arailym she was subjected to pressure from the Chairman of the Commission: he threatened to remove her from the polling station[43].

June 5, Nur-Sultan, Azattyk journalists were denied entry to polling station No. 59 in the Schoolchildren’s Palace, where the President of Kazakhstan K.Tokayev arrived to vote in the referendum. The police and security service of the president said that they “were not on the list”[44].

June 5, Nur-Sultan, at the polling station No. 300 in the 125th school, the journalist of “Arbat.media” Gumarova Asem was refused to cover the voting in the referendum. The commission members refused to accredit her notwithstanding that she had documents and an editorial assignment. The refusal to accredit her was explained by the fact that there was no outgoing number of the editorial assignment[45].

5 June, Akmola oblast, Talapker village, Slambekova Sakypzhamal, chairwoman of the polling station commission, demanded Azattyk reporter Toyken Saniya and videographer Akseitov Kenzhetai, who came to polling station No. 685 to cover the voting process, not to make any filming and leave the polling station[46].

June 5, Akmola oblast, Talapker village, Slambekova, chairwoman of the polling station commission, said that she would have to call the police if media representatives did not leave. The film crew stayed near the polling station for about two hours, the police did not come. The journalists got through to the Central Election Commission, and an employee who introduced himself as a lawyer promised to call the commission and assured them that they would be allowed to cover the voting process. But the journalists were not let in[47].

On June 5, Semey, at polling station No. 249 an elderly man said after voting that he had been sent to two polling stations and he had come to vote a second time “so no one would vote for him”. A League of Young Voters observer fixed the violation and drew up a report. The precinct commission signed the violation report, and then drew up a report on the cancellation of the second ballot of the voter[48].

June 5, West Kazakhstan region, Aksai city, polling station No. 92 of Burlinskiy district, observer Srazhanov Beknur, shot on video several ballots in the ballot box, while the polling station was not yet open. Srazhanov, an observer from the public association “Jaria”, said that he had filed a complaint to the Prosecutor’s Office[49].

June 5, Uralsk, Drozdov Roman, a correspondent of the newspaper “Nadezhda”, said that he was denied to provide information about the referendum at a number of polling stations in the city. In his words, at the polling stations located at schools № 7, 21, 24 they refused to give him any comments, referring to the fact that he has no accreditation[50].

5 June, Uralsk, polling station No. 478, school No. 45, Temresheva Galiya said that she has gone to vote in the referendum when the polling station was about to close. In her words, she found someone else’s signature in the box opposite her surname when she received the ballot and was about to sign for it on the form. The signatures, according to Temresheva, were also opposite the names of her son and grandson, although they did not go to vote[51].

June 5, West Kazakhstan Region, independent observers of “Zhariya” NGO, who monitored polling stations in the West Kazakhstan Region, have not been given access to two polling stations in Burlinskiy district. Voter turnout, judging by their observations, amounted to 30-35%, which is different from the official data that was announced for WKO – almost 60%[52].

June 5, West Kazakhstan region, “in the Burlinskiy district observers have noticed that it was impossible to track the voting of workers from the Karachaganak deposit. People from the Karachaganak deposit come, take 500 ballots, saying that this is for the workers who are on the project, but we are not able to check whether 500 people really voted or not” – said observer Srazhanov Beknur[53].

June 5, West-Kazakhstan oblast, Aksay city, data on polling station No. 91: voter turnout is 28.3%, total number of voters – 2435 people[54].

June 5, West-Kazakhstan region, in regions with the largest number of protest-minded electors (after Almaty, Mangistau and Aktobe regions) 24,16% of voters who came to the referendum voted against the amendments to the Constitution[55].

5 June, Kostanai, the police provided the organization “Non-party observation” with the list of persons, who, according to the police, are allegedly involved in the DCK movement. The police have demanded to withdraw the mandates of the referendum observers from Ryspaeva Gulzhan, Ketebayeva Zhumabike. In addition, they demanded that the organization for voting observation “Mukalmas”
not to provide certificates of observers to persons associated with the DCK movement[56].

June 5, Nur-Sultan, polling station No.1 at the Eurasian University. Observer Serik Beisembaev noticed that there were agitation leaflets on the tables of election commission members and demanded to remove them. One of the observers started shouting that he was disturbing the voting process. When the police officers arrived, the report of violation was drawn up and Beisembaev was removed[57].

On June 5, Nur-Sultan, Serik Beisembayev was at the polling station No. 2. There around 4 p.m. one of the voters could not find his name in the lists, but the members of the commission started recording him somewhere. The observer’s attempt to come closer to the table and find out what was going on also resulted in the decision of the Commission to remove the observer from the polling station[58].

On June 5, Nur-Sultan city, the coordinator of the monitoring group of the PF “Erkindik Kanaty”, Malikov Akzhol, was attacked at polling station No. 155 in school-gymnasium No. 65. The incident took place after Malikov had recorded the illegal inclusion of a voter in the additional list, but the chairman of the commission had refused to sign a report on the violation. After that an unidentified person attacked the coordinator and tried to remove him from the polling station[59].

June 5, Nur-Sultan, the non-governmental organization “Erkindik Kanaty” stated that during the referendum there had been 16 cases of removal of its observers by the members of the commissions from the polling stations. The Executive Director Shvetsova Elena reported that five observers had been removed from the polling stations during the vote counting process[60].

June 5, Nur-Sultan, Orazymbet Galymzhan, an observer of the PF “Erkindik Kanaty” reported the below violations made during the referendum: stuffing of extra ballots, provocation and calling the police on spurious grounds to neutralize independent observers, giving priority to some observers over others, failure to provide the final referendum protocol with a stamp[61].

On 8 June, Nur-Sultan, “At all polling stations where the PF “Erkindik Kanaty” had been working, there were 5-6 observers and they rather pretended to work. And some of them were engaged in provocations in relation to real observers. They were identifying the one who really observed the voting and tried to provoke him by talking, or openly attacked him. The woman, who attacked me, showed up half an hour before the incident and disappeared from the polling station when they signed the report on my removal”- says observer Beisembaev Serik[62] .

June 5, Zhambyl region, Bestobe village, at polling station No. 162 several voters simultaneously entered the booth. They stood in an orderly way in line to vote, and while some of them were voting, others entered the booth in pairs, which constituted a violation. A correspondent of Orda.kz captured everything on video[63].

June 5, Shymkent city, Adilbayev Meldebek, chairman of the polling station commission, demanded the “original” editorial assignment from Azattyk reporter Dilara Isa in order to be admitted to polling station No. 77, but the law on elections does not provide for that. The reporter presented to the commission members the electronic copy of the editorial assignment and the journalist accreditation certificate, and after a short delay she was admitted[64].

June 5, participants of the referendum in Kazakhstan damaged a large number of ballots. Official figures show that in Almaty, 4.6% of ballots were reported as invalid. The photos of the damaged ballots show that it was a kind of protest action, when people rather than vote were writing on the ballots their demands for a fair investigation of the January events and the publication of a list of the dead[65].

June 5, Monitoring of human rights violations in Kazakhstan provided by the human rights movement Kaharman.kz[66].

June 5, Nur-Sultan, “As for the list of the dead, it will be certainly published, it will become known to our public. As I have already said, there were many dead, who represented, so to speak, the terrorist side”, said President of Kazakhstan Tokayev on the day of the referendum[67].

On June 5, in Nur-Sultan, at the referendum, the President of Kazakhstan Tokayev, answering the journalists’ question, said that the figure of “20 thousand terrorists” was provided by the former heads of the law enforcement bodies. Many people in the country interpreted this statement as a Tokayev’s renunciation of his previous statements[68].

June 6, Ust-Kamenogorsk, Baisagatov Aidar, Article 380, Part 1 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the trial began in the City Court No. 2. On January 3, 2022 Baisagatov was in the central square of the city and was broadcasting online on Facebook. He is accused of using violence against a representative of the authorities[69].

June 6, Kostanay, Nurmagambetov Diaz, Article 272, Part 2, Article 255, Part 4, Article 380, Part 3, p. 4, 8, Article 380-1, Part 2, p. 1, 6 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. A court session was held in the City Court No. 2 against the activist who is accused of spreading false information through his Telegram-channel that “the police officers took the side of the people”. Nurmagambetov gave evidence that the police officers tortured him in the pre-trial detention center[70].

June 6, Shymkent, Sadibekov Moldabay, Article 272, Part 3, Article 293, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of the RK; the Al-Farabi district court found the activist guilty of “organization of mass disorders” and sentenced him to three years of imprisonment to be served in a medium security facility[71].

June 7, Shymkent, 19-year-old Nurbolat Alpamys, who died during the January events in Shymkent, was named by prosecutors as a “suspect” in a case under Article 272 of the Criminal Code of the RK. The Office of Special Prosecutors of the City Prosecutor’s Office issued a ruling about Nurbolat’s participation in the unrest[72].

June 7, Nur-Sultan. Bakzhanova Kamila called to bring to trial ex-President Nazarbayev and his successor Tokayev in connection with the January events in Kazakhstan. For about half an hour, the woman had been standing near the U.S. Embassy in Kazakhstan with a poster that said in Kazakh and English, “Nazarbayev will be brought to trial”[73].

June 7, Almaty, Human rights activist Yevgeniy Zhovtis describes the referendum held on June 5 as follows: January events at the beginning of the year, which killed at least 238 people, made it easier for the successor of the ex-president of Kazakhstan to switch to a one-man rule – the President Tokayev officially records the end of the Nazarbayev era by the means of the referendum[74].

June 7, Stepnogorsk, Sochnev Artyom, Article 174 of the Criminal Code of the RK, the pre-trial investigation into the eco-activist has been closed. The expert examination confirmed that he did not stir up discord and did not call for any illegal actions. The law-enforcement agencies needed 3 months for doing this, and two more months were needed to ensure that the ruling reached the object of the investigation[75].

June 7, Aktobe, the judge of the specialist court dismissed the claim of human rights activist Abdirova to the akimat of Aktobe regarding the unlawfulness of refusals to hold an anti-war picket. The judge while reading the decision stated that “26 refusals of the akimat to hold a single peaceful picket were lawful”[76].

June 7, West Kazakhstan Region, Numerous violations were detected by independent observers during the referendum voting and were recorded on photos and video. “The most serious violations will be a reason for a lawsuit”,” says the founder of the “Jaria” Public Association, Srazhanov Beknur[77].

June 7, Nur-Sultan, Galiya Tamabayeva was sentenced to 10 days of arrest under article 488, Part 7 of the Administrative Offences Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The city court dismissed the activist’s complaint against the decision of the lower court to put her under arrest. The reason for her arrest was the posting of an image on Facebook with a message that read: “On March 6 at 12:00 a.m., a rally will be held in front of all the city akimats across Kazakhstan. “No to War!”[78].

June 7, Almaty, facility LA-155/18, Mamay Zhanbolat. Two new charges were brought against the activist by the authorities, namely “mass disorders” under Article 272, Part 1, and “dissemination of deliberately false information’ during the January riots under Article 274, Part 4 of the Criminal Code of the RK[79].

June 7, Monitoring of human rights violations in Kazakhstan provided by the human rights movement Kaharman.kz [80].

June 7, Almaty, the International Foundation for the Protection of Freedom of Speech “Adil Söz” has carried out a study of the situation concerning the right to freedom of expression and the right to receive and impart information in Kazakhstan from June 1 to 7, 2022[81].

June 8, Nur-Sultan, the Mazhilis of the Parliament of Kazakhstan approved in the second reading amendments that increase accountability for disobedience to a representative of authority, use of violence against him/her, infringement on the life of an officer during mass disorder in a state of emergency and in the anti-terrorist operation zone[82].

June 8, Nur-Sultan, the Minister of Information and Social Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan Askar Umarov reported that only national media reporters have been admitted to the polling station, where President Tokayev was voting during the referendum. According to him, Azattyk reporters have not been allowed in because they “represent a foreign media outlet”[83].

June 8, Nur-Sultan, “Immediate family members of ex-President Nazarbayev have lost their immunity from prosecution following the entry into force of the constitutional amendments”, said Vice-Minister of Justice Alma Mukanova. She said that the referendum had abolished the law “On the First President-Elbasy”[84].

June 8, Nur-Sultan, Vice-Minister of Justice Mukanova has explained that bringing Nazarbayev to criminal responsibility is impossible because the law “On the President” includes a rule that ex-presidents cannot be prosecuted for acts that were committed during their presidency. “Since he is a political person and makes decisions that are important for the state”[85].

June 8, Almaty region, Zarechny village, facility LA-155/14, Rakhimzhanov Noyan, Article 405, Part 1/2 of the Criminal Code of the RK, who was sentenced in October 2021 to a 5-year prison term on charges of participating in the activities of banned movements, was released upon the court decision to replace the unserved part of his prison term with restriction of liberty[86].

On June 8, Nur-Sultan, a group of 6 people came to the building of the embassy of China to hold a protest, with the hope of bringing their demands to the attention of the foreign ministers of Kazakhstan and China, given that at this time the official visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was taking place[87].

June 8, Almaty, Daulet Zhumabekov, a lawyer, held a picket of the city court because the judges of this institution have violated the Code of Civil Procedure. The picket did not receive attention of servants of the Themis, who got used to regular claims of Kazakhstani people to the quality and justice of legal proceedings[88].

June 8, Taraz city, court No. 2 read out the sentence on the criminal case under Article 291 Part 1, Article 287 Part 2, 3, 4, Article 188 Part 3 of the Criminal Code of the RK in connection with the January events against 13 defendants who were charged with theft of ammunition and firearms, the covert theft of property, illegal intrusion. The court sentenced two of the defendants to 4 years suspended sentence, while the others were sentenced to 3 years and 6 months suspended sentence[89].

June 8, Shymkent, Radio Azattyk established the identities of those killed in January. They were Nurislam Agatay, Abylay Ergesh, Zhusipbayev Samandar Kopzhanov Askar, Oral Kali, Bekzhan Tolenbek and Baglan Sharipbai. The oldest of them was 37 years old and the youngest 18. Their details are listed in the document of the investigative body and the prosecutor’s office concerning the termination of the pre-trial investigation into the deaths of people[90].

June 8, Monitoring of human rights violations in Kazakhstan provided by the human rights movement Kaharman.kz [91].

June 9, Almaty, Meldekhan Aidos, father of murdered 4-year-old Aikorkem, alleges that he was visited and threatened several times by NSC officers. They did not like his proactive position, media interviews and speeches. He informed us that he had been forced to take his family abroad, but he refused to say to which country for security considerations[92].

June 9, Zhanaozen, two unemployed Zhanaozen residents, who were in the city center among dozens of people who were demanding employment, made cuts to themselves today in front of the “Ozenmunaigas” company building and were hospitalized. [93].

June 10, Almaty, Mamay Zhanbolat, Article 274 Part 4, Article 378, Article 272, Part 1 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the court extended the activist’s detention until 9 July. The investigator applied to the court with a request to extend the measure of restraint[94].

June 10, Nur-Sultan, Bakytkhan Akylbay, a 66-year-old resident of Kerbulak village, said that he has been on hunger strike in front of the residence of the president of Kazakhstan since May 31. He says that he comes to the Akorda building hoping to get an appointment with the President of Kazakhstan Tokayev. Akylbay demands that land be distributed among the citizens, but without the right to sell or lease it[95].

June 10, Ust-Kamenogorsk, City Court No. 2, Baisagatov Aidar, Article 380, Part 1 of the Criminal Code of the RK, lawyer Tolymkhanov filed a petition to change the preventive measure to house arrest, since the article refers to medium gravity crimes, and Baisagatov has not been previously convicted. The court upheld the petition and Baisagatov was released in the courtroom[96].

June 10, Almaty, mother of Kozhaev Azamat, Article 272, Part 2, Article 126, Part 3 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kozhayeva Gulnar addresses the European Parliament, the U.S. Department of State, and international human rights organizations requesting that an international investigation be carried out into the January events and that assistance be provided to set free her son, who is illegally prosecuted under criminal articles [97].

June 10, Almaty, Tashimova Saltanat, Article 73-1, Part 1 of the Administrative Offences Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, was fined in the amount of 45,945 tenge. The reason for the fine was that Tashimova inflicted light injury to Nurseitova A.Z. on May 7, 2022, in the course of a verbal conflict.

June 10, Freedom House expresses its concern that new charges have been brought against Zhanbolat Mamay, which calls into question the Kazakh government’s commitment to a “new Kazakhstan” in which fundamental rights are respected in the country. We urge that Mamay be released and that the charges against him be dropped”, reads a Freedom House statement[98].

June 11, Nur-Sultan, the akimat of the capital has authorized a rally in support of Ukraine to be held on June 25 in the square at 14-00 hours in front of the circus. Local authorities have approved the notification of civil activist Shadeyeva Aigerim[99].

June 12, East Kazakhstan region, Ushtobe city, there were elections of a new akim, and a voter recorded a violation: he filmed on video how the ink of the pen was being erased with a lighter. The prosecutor’s office launched a criminal case on this incident[100].

On June 13, in Nur-Sultan, a group of unemployed oil workers gathered in front of the Akorda building. Having met with officials from the Presidential Administration, they met with Chief Labor Inspector of Kazakhstan Ospankulov and representatives of the Ministry of Labor. They complained that the akim of Zhanaozen Kosukov “does not care enough” about their problems and that they do not understand the plan for employment[101].

On June 13, “Kazakhstani authorities should stop persecuting Mamay Zhanbolat for his peaceful political activities”, stated the International Partnership for Human Rights, the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law, the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, and the Norwegian Helsinki Committee. These organizations have urged that a number of criminal charges against Mamay be dropped and that he be released immediately[102].

On June 13, the international human rights organization Human Rights Watch, in its statement, called on Nur-Sultan to stop the criminal case against Mamay Zhanbolat and release him from custody[103].

June 13, Atyrau, “Police officers have repeatedly broken down the door and forced their way into my parents’ apartment building. My family members were told that while they were absent, police officers penetrated the yard of the apartment building for unknown purposes. Before that, they questioned neighbors and pressured relatives with their visits. This time we had video surveillance and recorded the intrusion of unidentified police officers and district police officer”, said activist Shutov Sergey[104].

June 14, Zarechnyi village, facility LA-155/14, Narymbaev Yermek, Article 174 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, he described the conditions of his detention. “Narymbaev was not the only of my clients who were serving their sentences in this penal colony. However, this is the first time I have ever been told that such conditions exist nowadays”, said Zhanara Balgabaeva, a lawyer[105].

June 13, Almaty, Imanbekov Alibek, Article 291, Part 3, p.4 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The trial on the case related to the January events has started. He is being accused of “theft or extortion of weapons” (from 3 to 8 years), allegedly, on January 5 he robbed an arms store and took two working guns from there[106].

June 14, Aktau, activist Zhenis Bisengaziev reports that a NSC/police officer by the name of Bekzat got in his car, ignored Zhenis’ request to introduce himself, and started threatening Zhenis that he would post videos/pictures related to Zhenis personal (intimate) life in social networks unless he start to cooperate with the NSC (namely, to inform the NSC about the activists’ activities)[107].

June 15, Akmola oblast, Stepnogorsk, Katchiev Nikolay, Article 174 of the Criminal Code of the RK, during the online trial of environmental activists from Bestobe, Katchiev felt ill and fainted. A judge suspended the trial[108].

June 15, Strasbourg, the Council of Europe’s ad hoc body, the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO), in its first assessment report on Kazakhstan, highlights the pervasive corruption in the country and the need for radical reforms. It also states that “a state system that is founded on the principle of separation of powers and the appropriate checks and balances” plays a crucial role in preventing and combating corruption^[109].

June 15, Strasbourg, GRECO has sent 27 recommendations to Kazakhstan in its report and asks the authorities to report on the implementation of the recommendations within the next 15 months, until the end of September 2023. The majority of these recommendations include such issues as the training and specialized training of prosecutors and judges on corruption-related crimes[110].

June 15, Zhanaozen, workers from 6 oilfield service companies held a protest in front of the Zhanaozen akimat, they demanded that their working conditions and the deterioration of their equipment be paid attention to. A tragedy that happened in Zhanaozen last night – a 43-year-old hoist operator, who worked at Kezbi LLP, was burned alive – became the reason for the rally[111].

June 16, Almaty, Tashimova Saltanat, Article 488, Part 6 of the Administrative Offences Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan was sentenced to 15 days of arrest for taking part in an illegal meeting on April 9 in Almaty in the “Minin” Square together with the residents of residential complexes Mechta, Prestige, Tengiz Towers[112].

June 16, Almaty, the daughter of the famous poet and dissident Aron Atabek – Nutusheva Alma said that she had no right to pursue the rehabilitation of her father. “It has been found that the convicted person’s application requesting your admission as a defender to the body of the pre-trial investigation was not received by the court. The agency that carries out the criminal proceedings (the investigator or the court) did not make a decision to recognize you as a defender”, reads the response of the General Prosecutor’s Office[113].

June 16, Nur-Sultan, “According to the Constitution, the president of Kazakhstan is prosecuted only for high treason, but not for other crimes”, said Minister of Justice Musin Kanat [114].

June 16, Almaty, the International Foundation for the Protection of Freedom of Speech “Adil Soz” has carried out a study of the situation concerning the right to freedom of expression and the right to receive and impart information in Kazakhstan from June 7 to 16, 2022[115].

On June 17, Nur-Sultan, two oil workers of the “Ozenmunaigas” company filed a letter to the Presidential Administration, urging the President of Kazakhstan Tokayev to initiate a new investigation of the 2011 Zhanaozen events. Oil workers from Zhanaozen address the president of the country for the 3rd time[116].

June 17, Zhanaozen, ongoing protests by the unemployed and workers dissatisfied with working conditions. The unemployed are demanding jobs in the oil and gas sector, and employees in this sector are demanding an increase in wages and improved working conditions. Over 50 people stay overnight in front of the akimat[117].

June 17, Almaty, Makhanbaev Kosai, Article 272, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of the RK, the victim of torture of the January protests, upon the expiration of his administrative arrest of 15 days, was once again placed in the facility LA-155/18 for 2 months for no reason at all. The measure of restraint was changed from a written pledge not to leave the country to detention on the criminal case under Article 272 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan[118].

On June 17, Almaty, in response to a notification submitted by members of the group for the creation of the opposition party “Alga, Kazakhstan”,t he city’s akimat did not give authorization to hold a peaceful meeting on June 25 in support of Ukraine The refusal was explained by the fact that “there is a threat of disruption of public order in connection with the stated topic of the peaceful meeting»[119].

June 17, Almaty, “The examining court granted the petition of the prosecutor’s office to extend the period of detention of the deputy of the Maslikhat Kudaibergen Kairat for 3 months until July 21”, the press service of the city court reported[120].

June 17, Monitoring of human rights violations in Kazakhstan provided by the human rights movement Kaharman.kz [121].

19 June, Kyzylorda, Bedenbayev Adilkhan, Article 272, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Court № 2 sentenced the lawyer who was charged with “participation in mass disorders” during the January events to one and a half years of restriction of liberty. During the investigation Bedenbayev signed a procedural agreement with the prosecutor[122].

June 20, Taldykorgan, Batyrbayev Azamat, who was detained in January on suspicion of “participation in mass disorders”, has pleaded guilty and signed a procedural agreement. Under the terms of the procedural agreement, it is expected that the prosecutor will request a suspended sentence for him during the hearing, said his lawyer Bauyrzhan Azanov[123].

June 20, Nur-Sultan, “The Prosecutor General’s Office identifies 27 people in different regions of the country as organizers of the January events, and 40 people are suspected of kidnapping and beating people. According to the data of the Prosecutor General’s Office, more than five thousand criminal cases related to the January events are currently being investigated”, a representative of the Prosecutor General’s Office, Shalabaev Serik, says. [124].

June 20, Nur-Sultan, «During the investigation into the January events in the Almaty region, 25 people were found to be victims of torture using a hot steam iron”, says a representative of the General Prosecutor’s Office, Shalabaev Serik[125].

June 20, Nur-Sultan, “Special prosecutors found out the involvement of 5 police officers in torture. Three of them pleaded guilty. 15 officers of special and law enforcement agencies were found suspects in eight of the most high profile cases. Nine of them are being held in custody. Investigative actions against two officers of the Department of the National Security Committee of the Almaty region have been completed; they are suspected of beating a detainee, which resulted in his death”, says a representative of the General Prosecutor’s Office, Shalabaev Serik[126].

June 20, “We managed to confirm that Kazakhstan is a likely current customer of RCS Lab S.p.A. and Tykelab Srl, an Italian company that produces Hermit spyware. Spyware vendor clientele is not often identified”, said Justin Albrecht, a Threat Intelligence researcher at Lookout[127].

June 20, Hermit spyware exploits vulnerabilities in Android operating systems and makes it possible on a hacked device to record audio, make and redirect phone calls, and collect data such as calls, contacts, photos, locations and SMS messages. According to Lookout Inc. the spyware has been used by the Kazakh government to spy on active citizens [128].

June 20, CIVICUS Monitor (a research collaboration tool that rates and tracks respect for fundamental freedoms in 197 countries and territories) today downgraded Kazakhstan from “obstructed” to “repressed”. With the participation of the International Partnership for Human Rights (Belgium) and the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights[129].

June 20, Almaty, Akmaral Baiseitova addresses the European Union, the United States and human rights organizations with an appeal to hold an international investigation and help her son, Ontay Bakyt, who was sentenced to 5 years of imprisonment under Article 291, Part 3, paragraph 4, of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Akmaral Baiseitova states that he was forced to sign some papers under torture[130].

June 20, Almaty, the daughter of Aron Atabek – Nutusheva Alma demanded to reconsider the case of Shanyrak events and to rehabilitate her father posthumously. She addressed a letter to the Presidential Administration, from where it was forwarded to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the General Prosecutor’s Office, and later to the Committee on the Penal and Correctional System. However, there was nothing about the posthumous rehabilitation of Aron Atabek as a political prisoner in the long-expected reply[131].

June 20, Stepnogorsk, Sadvakasova Aya, Article 274, Part 4 and Article 405, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Police investigator, Captain M.S. Shakenov dismissed the petition of the human rights defender’s lawyer to close the criminal case, referring to the ruling of the Yessil court of the city of Astana on the prohibition of the activities of the DCK movement and June 20, Stepnogorsk, Aya Sadvakasova, Article 274, Part 4 and Article 405, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Police Investigator, Captain Shakenov M.S. refused to satisfy the petition of the lawyer of the human rights activist to close the criminal case, referring to the decision of the Esilsky court of the city of Astana to ban the activities of the DCK movement and Koshe Partiisy[132].

June 20, Almaty, the association “Independent Observers”, which filed complaints to the court against the polling stations where there have been “violations” during the referendum, received rejections. Now they are preparing to appeal against the court decision[133].

21 June, Almaty, Tashimova Saltanat, Article 488, Part 6 of the Administrative Offences Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan was sentenced to 15 days of arrest. “The court granted the appeal and reduced the term of arrest to 5 days”, reports the lawyer of activist Kozhakhmet Ruslan [134].

On 21 June, Shymkent city, in response to two notifications submitted by civil activists. akimat did not give its authorization to hold a peaceful meeting on 25 June in support of Ukraine. The reason for the refusal was the lack of regulations of the peaceful meeting and the inadequacy of the documents and information that are required to hold a peaceful meeting[135].

June 21, Talgar city, Almaty region, Khasanova Klara has written a letter to the head of the state and ex-akim of the Almaty region Bozumbayev, with a complaint against the head of the district Abdikhanov Kaidar. The akim took this appeal as an insult and brought a lawsuit. He demanded a refutation of the information mentioned in the letter. Abdykhanov claimed that the damage caused by this complaint amounted to half a million tenge[136].

June 21, Mangistau region, Munaylinsky district, the workers of the “Fiberglass Pipe Plant” who had been on strike since May 23 were joined by their wives. Some women held their babies in their arms. For a month, the factory workers have been demanding to reconsider the terms of the contract, to introduce requirements for wages and social payments into the contract[137].

21 June, Aktobe, Shakhkozov Nuraly, Madi Zhumabek, Kosybaev Elkhat, Article 269, Part 1 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan; The court has started hearing a criminal case, they are charged with “seizure of the airport” during the January events[138].

June 21, Aktau, near the building of the Mangistau Regional Akimat the protest action has begun. Representatives of the Aktau Fiberglass Pipe Plant, Aktau Oil Service Company, as well as Zhanaozen enterprises of BatysGeofizService LLP and TengeOilGas LLP took part in the action. They demanded higher wages and improvement of working conditions, return of the dismissed workers, return of enterprises to state ownership[139].

June 21, Taraz, Auelbekova Aizhan, a journalist from the newspaper “Vremya”, was doing a story about trading on the Arbat, which is located on the territory of the historical and ethnic-cultural complex “Drevniy Taraz” (Ancient Taraz). The traders did not like it and tried to take away the journalist’s phone. They started accusing and insulting her and then locked her up in one of the sales outlets. Aizhan was released as soon as she called the police and reported the attack and unlawful retention[140].

22 June, Uralsk, Amangeldy Orazbayev, Marua Eskendirova, Article 405, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan; the examining court extended the term of house arrest of the activists for one more month. The investigator requested the court to extend the measure of restraint. The investigation has justified the extension of the term by the need of additional time for the investigation [141].

June 22, Nur-Sultan, “The trial of Karim Masimov, the former chairman of the National Security Committee (KNB), will most likely be closed. The case materials are classified, but after all, state secrets are a matter for the judiciary to decide”, says Amerkhanov, an official of the National Security Committee[142].

June 22, Almaty, about a hundred Almaty gas workers gathered to demand an increase in wages. Their demands have been accompanied by threats to stage a strike. Workers said that they were not provided with the required instruments and overalls, and had to buy everything at their own expense[143].

June 22, Shymkent, political prisoner Amirov Yerulan, Article 174, Article 405 of the Criminal Code of the RK, the court dismissed the appeal of the activist who was convicted to 7 years of imprisonment[144].

On June 22, in Almaty, a group of people demanding reunification with their families in Xinjiang once again gathered for a protest in front of the consulate of China. 500 rallies have been held since their first protest in Kazakhstan[145].

June 23, Almaty, Kazakhstan Press Club hosted a press conference of the Asset Recovery Fund of Kazakhstan, Elge Qaitaru. The subject of the meeting was “The need to investigate illegal privatization and the return of assets transferred from Kazakhstan”[146].

June 23, Aktau, in response to three notifications submitted by civic activists, the akimat of the city did not give its authorization to hold a peaceful meeting on 25 June in support of Ukraine. The reason for the refusal was that construction and installation works and cultural and sporting events were to begin on that day at the venue of the peaceful meeting[147].

June 23, Strasbourg (France), human rights activists Jardemalie Bota and Lyudmila Kozlovskaya held meetings with the deputies of the Council of Europe member states in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). The women delivered a new report on the human rights situation in Kazakhstan and presented a list of political prisoners, victims of torture and politically persecuted in criminal cases to the parliamentarians[148].

June 23, Taraz, facility ZHD-158/2, Ulasbek Akhmetov, Article 405, Part 1/2 of the Criminal Code of the RK, was released after completing 2 years and 2 months in prison[149].

June 23, Nur-Sultan, 19 residents of Zhanaozen, who spent almost two weeks outside the building of the Ministry of Labor and demanded employment in the oil industry, were detained and fined 15 thousand tenge, under Article 443 of the Administrative Offences Code of the RK[150].

June 23, Almaty, the International Foundation for the Protection of Freedom of Speech “Adil Soz” has carried out a study of the situation concerning the right to freedom of expression and the right to receive and impart information in Kazakhstan from June 16 to 23, 2022[151].

June 24, Kostanay, Nurmagambetov Dias, Article 274 Part 4, p.2 of the Criminal Code of the RK, city court No. 2 condemned the activist to one year of restriction of liberty for “spreading fakes” in the telegram channel “Protestnyi Kostanay” about the switch of SOBR to the side of the people[152].

June 24, Five ethnic Kazakhs who had fled to Kazakhstan because of harassment of Muslims in Xinjiang had not yet been granted citizenship. Four of them have refugee status for one year; one has an asylum-seeker certificate. They claim that no one employs them because they are stateless and, in addition, they are denied medical care[153].

June 24, Ust-Kamenogorsk, Baisagatov Aidar, Article 380, Part 1 of the Criminal Code of the RK, city court No. 2 convicted the activist for «Use of violence against a representative of authority” and sentenced him to one year and 4 months of imprisonment[154].

24 June, Almaty, the Coalition of NGOs of Kazakhstan against Torture in cooperation with “Freedom House” – Kazakhstan on the eve of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture held a meeting with the victims of atrocities of the police and the NSC. People, who were physically and morally destroyed, told about the horrible abuse, cried, and seemed to have already lost hope that the state will prosecute the perpetrators[155].

June 24, Nur-Sultan, police officers and the deputy head of the capital’s Department of Internal Policy came to the Zhanaozen citizens, who had been staying overnight in a rented apartment, and demanded that they leave the capital immediately. Zhanaozen residents complain about the incessant pressure from the authorities[156].

On 25 June, Nur-Sultan, the rally in support of Ukraine was not held. Public utilities staff were working at the place of the rally, there were metal fences along the perimeter of the square in front of the circus building on Kabanbai-batyr Avenue and police officers were on duty there[157].

June 25, Almaty, representatives of various media outlets and activists held a rally in support of freedom of speech in Gandi Park. The participants of the rally held posters saying “Soz bostandygy – oz bostandygyn” (Freedom of speech is your freedom), “Senzuraga jol joq” (No to censorship)[158].

June 26, Monitoring of human rights violations in Kazakhstan provided by the human rights movement Kaharman.kz[159].

June 27, Almaty, “Authorities are spying on me through an expensive Italian spyware program. The anti-spyware program Lookout detected the Hermit virus on my phone. You must be pretty sure now that we’re not criminals, right? It’s not enough that we are being watched by five cars, you are watching my phone for 24 hours a day, just admit that we’re not criminals and let Zhanbolat go”, – Imanbay Inga said on her social network page. [160].

June 27, Almaty, the Judicial Chamber on Administrative Cases dismissed the appeal of the public association “Independent Observers” about violations at the polling stations during the referendum on the constitutional amendments proposed by the authorities, said Nazarova Araylym, the head of the organization[161].

June 27, Stepnogorsk, Katchiev Nikolay, Nazarenko Alexandra, Article 274 Part 2, p.1, 3 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the court convicted the eco-activists for “spreading deliberately false information” and sentenced them to one year of restriction of liberty for each. But due to the announced amnesty, the court ruled to free them from criminal sanctions[162].

June 28, Zarechniy village, facility LA-155/14, Narymbaev Yermek, Article 174 of the Criminal Code of the RK; he passed along a note with the following words: “On June 21, at 10 p.m. I was stopped by a group of officers inside barrack No.8 and searched, during which they planted a SIM card of a cell phone, and then I was punished with 7 days in disciplinary confinement and subjected to torture. Since June 23 I will go on a hunger strike”[163].

June 29, in Aktobe, family members of Abylaykhan Bekeyev, who was detained after the January events and accused of “participation in mass riots”, gathered in front of the regional prosecutor’s office to express their dissatisfaction with the progress of the investigation and their outrage that his detention was being extended each month. Bekeyev has been kept in custody for more than five months[164].

29 June, Mangistau region, about 30 unemployed people from Zhetybai and Munaishy villages have blocked the road with a demand to be employed in the oil sector^[165]^.

June 29, Almaty, the International Foundation for the Protection of Freedom of Speech “Adil Soz” has carried out a study of the situation concerning the right to freedom of expression and the right to receive and impart information in Kazakhstan from June 23 to 239 2022^[166]^.

June 29, Nur-Sultan, “232 people died in the January events, and another 6 from torture, the total number of the dead is 238. 15 people are under suspicion of torture. Nine officers are being held in custody: eight NSC officers and one representative of the Ministry of Internal Affairs”, says Deputy Prosecutor General of Kazakhstan, Chindaliev Aset[167].

June 29, Nur-Sultan, “We have established the identities of all 230 people who died as a result of the January riots, but they will be made public after the investigation is completed”, says Deputy Prosecutor General of Kazakhstan, Chindaliev Aset[168].

June 30, Nur-Sultan city, “58 criminal cases on ‘mass riots’ and 8 on ‘acts of terrorism’ are being investigated, 392 criminal cases on January events were sent to court, 445 people were convicted, 46 people who had committed grave crimes received actual prison terms, 514 people are being detained, 284 people were changed the preventive measure for written pledge not to leave”, a representative of the Prosecutor General’s Office Kilymzhanov Yeldos says[169].

June 30, Semey city, Serikkaliuly Aidos, Article 274 Part 3 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Guseinova Ophelia, Article 190 Part 1, Article 274 Part 3 of the Criminal Code of the RK, bloggers who have criticized the regional Akim Daniyal Akhmetov, city court No. 2 delivered its verdict for spreading deliberately false information and fraud: Serikkaliuly was sentenced to 1 year of restriction of liberty, Guseinova to 6 months of restriction of liberty[170].

June 30, Almaty, the International Foundation for the Protection of Freedom of Speech “Adil Soz” has published monitoring of violations of freedom of speech in June 2022[171].

[1] https://rus.azattyq.org/a/31878590.html

[2] https://rus.azattyq.org/a/31878590.html

[3] https://orda.kz/soobshhivshie-o-pytkah-vo-vremja-zaderzhanij-krovavogo-janvarja-zaderzhany-v-almaty/

[4] https://kaztag.kz/ru/news/514-chelovek-soderzhatsya-pod-strazhey-po-5-tys-delam-o-yanvarskikh-sobytiyakh-v-kazakhstane

[5] https://kaztag.kz/ru/news/za-uchastie-v-yanvarskikh-sobytiyakh-osudili-pyaterykh-chelovek-v-shymkente

[6] https://orda.kz/semi-19-sluchajnyh-zhertv-janvarskih-sobytij-poluchili-vyplaty-iz-fonda-aza-stan-hal-yna/

[7] https://rus.azattyq.org/a/azattyq-project-pogibshie-vremya-sobytii-yanvarya-2022/31878333.html

[8] https://www.facebook.com/groups/ActivistsNotExtremists/posts/3283192665333327/

[9] https://www.facebook.com/groups/ActivistsNotExtremists/posts/3282123115440282/

[10] https://rus.azattyq.org/a/31879655.html

[11] https://rus.azattyq.org/a/31880656.html

[12] https://rus.azattyq.org/a/31879705.html