MONITORING OF POLITICAL PERSECUTION IN THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN from 1 to January 31, 2025

January 3, Astana, two Turkish citizens, Tastan Ebubakir and Tuncay Yalym, have been detained in Kazakhstan for several years on suspicion of gold smuggling. Both have experienced the full range of our “law and justice”: investigation without the participation of those under investigation, trial without questions to the accused, extortion, torture[1].

January 5, Almaty, on the third anniversary of the events of January 2022, the relatives of the deceased gathered in front of the Akimat and demanded a meeting with the Akim of the city. With a representative of the Akimat they discussed the status of the victims of the Qantar events and their relatives[2].

January 5, Almaty, “Oyan, Kazakhstan” Movement demands to conduct an international investigation into the events of January 2022. The movement has issued an appeal to the authorities of Kazakhstan and the international community with the demand to conduct an independent international investigation into the bloodshed of January 2022[3].

January 6, Almaty, various methods are used in sociology; one of them is frequency analysis of the text. For example, analyzing the text of the interview with Tokayev K., it is possible to see the priorities of the head of state, which are reflected in the use of words; especially the word “democracy” was on one of the last positions[4].

January 6, Almaty, extrajudicial executions took place in Kazakhstan during the events of January 2022. This will be reported to the UN Special Rapporteur on this issue, said at a press conference the human rights activists of the International Legal Initiative PF[5].

January 6, Ust-Kamenogorsk, Yerkanat Zhenisuly, a 26-year-old resident of Ust-Kamenogorsk, was wounded during the events of January 2022. He can now see with only one eye, but makes a living as a private driver. The man says he still cannot get help from the Kazakhstan Khalkyna Foundation[6].

January 7, Astana, activist E. Bekzadina and her children laid flowers at the monument to the victims of the Holodomor in memory of the victims of the events of January 2022. After the ceremony of laying flowers in the presence of her children, a policeman started to attack E. Bekzadina and grabbed her hand[7].

January 8, the Turkestan region, policemen stopped the car of activist Zh.Ashtaev. They fined Zh. Ashtaev 80000 tenge without explaining the reason for the stop, allegedly for not having a driver’s license. Despite the fact that the activist had a driver’s license, the car was impounded[8].

January 8, Akmola region, Institution No. 7: Activists A. Abishev and R. Nurkanov came to the “Granitny” colony to visit A. Syzdykov (he was sentenced under Article 297, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of the RK, 5 years’ imprisonment). The staff of the colony did not allow the activists to visit Syzdykov, referring to the fact that Aidar had allegedly given a voluntary statement and refused to meet with the activists, despite the fact that the activists had spoken to Aidar by phone at the end of December and had coordinated their visit to him in the colony[9].

January 8, Aktobe, the regional court considered a private appeal of M. Dauylov against the decision of the first instance administrative court dated December 25, 2024. Previously, the activist filed a lawsuit against the decision of the Akim of Aktobe on the state of emergency of March 29, 2024. The court decided: to leave the private appeal without satisfaction[10][11].

January 8, Uralsk, the drivers of route buses of “Aly Parus” LLP did not go on the line because of problems at the enterprise. They went on strike, demanding that their superiors address their numerous problems. The workers are not able to go to hospitals, as there have been no contributions to medical insurance for almost six months. They also cannot take out loans because there are no contributions to the pension fund[12].

January 9, Almaty, Overview of the situation in Kazakhstan with the right to freedom of expression, receiving and disseminating information from December 24, 2024 to January 9, 2025. The monitoring is prepared by the Adil Soz Foundation[13][14].

January 9, Astana, Center “Paper Lab” shared with Masamedia the results of the survey dedicated to the January events. The researcher of the center A.Tlegenova presented the opinions of eyewitnesses of the tragic events[15].

January 9, Astana, results of the survey dedicated to the January events were shared with Masamedia by the “Paper Lab” Center. The researcher of the center A.Tlegenova presented the opinions of eyewitnesses of the tragic events[16].

January 10, Kyzylorda, Institution No. 60: There was published brief actual information for 10.01.2025 about the political prisoner D. Muhammedkarim, Articles 258, 405 of the Criminal Code of the RK, 7 years of imprisonment[17].

January 10, Stepnogorsk, Institution No. 4, M. Zhylanbaev, Article 405, Part 2, Article 258, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of the RK, 7 years’ imprisonment. “Since December 30 we are on hunger strike again! Today we have received a letter from the Prosecutor’s Office of the Akmola region, informing us that Marat is once again protesting against the verdict of the court” — said the human rights defender B. Toregozhina[18].

January 10, Aktobe, M. Dauylov registered in the city Akimat notifications on conducting peaceful solitary pickets on January 20,21,22,23,24, 2025 in Aktobe[19].

January 10, Astana, new accreditation rules will toughen requirements for foreign journalists. The amendments provide more than ten grounds for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to withdraw the accreditation of a journalist[20].

January 10, Astana, a law was published that allows legal advisors to participate in administrative court proceedings. Now human rights defenders — legal advisors can represent your interests in the administrative court[21].

January 13, Astana, President K. Tokayev signed the law “On Amendments and Supplements to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Access to Information, Public Participation, State Awards and the Elimination of Excessive Legislative Regulation”. The Adil Soz Foundation is confident that these changes will contribute to the strengthening of journalism in Kazakhstan[22].

January 13, Almaty, Makset Kanatbaev, an ethnic Kazakh from Uzbekistan, went missing three years ago. He was detained during the January events, accused of participating in mass riots and put in a detention center. After that, all traces of the Uzbek citizen disappeared. Human rights activists do not believe the police claim that he has been released[23].

January 14, Astana, D. Okremova, director of the “Legal Media Center”, made a post in which she described the “work” of the Akimat of Astana within the framework of implementation of the Law on Peaceful Assemblies. As it became clear, every day Astana officials have planned 4 rallies — 120 rallies per month[24].

January 15, Almaty, lawyer Zh. Urazbakhova was charged under Article 423 of the Criminal Code of the RK for allegedly revealing the secrets of the investigation. At the press conference she said that she had not signed any documents warning her about the responsibility of disclosure and that she considered the charges unfounded[25].

January 15, Almaty, the Akimat denied women’s activists a permit to hold a rally on March 8. The officials cited a “threat to public order”, but did not clarify what kind of threat they were referring to. The organizers said they planned to appeal the Akimat’s decision. According to them, this is the 15th futile attempt to hold a rally and march[26].

January 16, Almaty, the military court of the Almaty garrison read out a decision to hold the trial on the death of E. Zhagiparov and A. Kapsalanov, killed during the events of January 2022, in camera. The petition to hold the trial in camera was filed by a polygraph examiner who was called as a witness[27].

January 16, Almaty, Overview of the situation in Kazakhstan with the right to freedom of expression, receiving and disseminating information from January 9 to January 16, 2025. The monitoring is prepared by the Adil Soz Foundation; information has been taken from public sources[28][29].

January 16, Almaty, lawyer Kobzhanova S.: “I received a summons from the investigator of the Department of Internal Affairs of Almaty to appear as a witness in the case of my client Zh.Urazbakhova. As it turned out, the investigator in the case of Zh. Urazbakhova refused to allow me to act as her defense counsel. The investigator’s powers suddenly turned out to be higher than the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as higher than the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan and our specialized legislation”[30].

January 16, Stepnogorsk: “We were informed that M. Zhylanbaev’s blood pressure has dropped sharply. We sent an urgent letter to the ombudsman A. Lastaev, asking him to go to Stepnogorsk immediately and see Marat. This is the 6th hunger strike! Marat is 62 years old! He is really in danger! We demand his immediate release”, said human rights defender B. Toregozhina[31].

January 16, Berlin, the artist Raushan Tolganbaeva, our compatriot, held an action in support of M. Zhylanbaev “FREE MARAT”. Raushan handed over a letter to the Foreign Minister of Germany[32].

January 16, Almaty City Court dismissed the private appeal of activist Anara Akkozina against the decision of the judge of the Specialized Interdistrict Administrative Court refusing to recognize as illegal the decision of the Akimat to ban a rally against the construction of nuclear power plants in Kazakhstan[33].

January 17, Almaty, T.Yensebek, Article 174 of the Criminal Code of the RK, the author of the satirical public “Qaznews24” was taken to a temporary detention center after a search. Investigation is underway on the criminal case of «incitement to interethnic hatred by means of publication in social networks”[34].

January 17, “Kazakhstan’s authorities routinely violate the rights to peaceful assembly, freedom of expression, and freedom of association, and misuse criminal charges in counter-extremism legislation to target government critics and others,” according to a new annual report by the international human rights organization Human Rights Watch[35].

January 17, Almaty region, Karasai district court announced the verdict on the case of torture in the special detention center in the village of Koshmambet during the events of January 2022. The victims are citizens of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. The court found B. Sopakov, A. Shoibekov, B. Abilbekov (ex-deputy chief of police of Almaty), O. Aidarkhanov, S. Turpanov and N. Khamitov guilty under Articles 146, 362 of the Criminal Code of the RK and sentenced them to 3 years of imprisonment each[36].

January 17, Almaty, V. Boreyko, journalist: “After I recorded another interview on ZOOM at eight o’clock in the evening, I began to receive links from colleagues and acquaintances to publications on Facebook on the pages of Alzhan Ismagulov and Roman Ulanov”. V.Boreyko has written a statement to the police about the spreading of false information about him[37].

January 17, Karaganda, former employees of Kazchrome who sued the company were denied their claims for compensation for work in hazardous conditions and for pension contributions. The plaintiffs worked as drivers of BelAZ trucks in a manganese ore quarry in the Karaganda region. They transported the rock[38].

January 18, Almaty, with the criminal case of T. Yensebek, arrested for two months under Article 174 of the Criminal Code of the RK, the authorities want to aggravate the national issue, said lawyer Zh. Balgabaeva[39].

January 19, Almaty, it became known about the extradition of R. Utambetov, one of three Karakalpak activists detained last year in Kazakhstan in connection with the fact that he was wanted by the Uzbek authorities in a criminal case of “separatism”. He was detained in April 2024 and has since been held in the Almaty pre-trial detention center[40].

January 19, Almaty, R.Biketov, Article 488, Part 6, Code of Administrative Offenses of the RK, 15 days of arrest for a solitary picket in support of T.Yensebek, who was arrested earlier for two months[41].

January 20, Astana, the Constitutional Court of Kazakhstan ruled on the appeal of human rights defenders in the protection of freedom of peaceful assembly in Kazakhstan. Local authorities will no longer have the right to refuse to approve notifications for holding peaceful assemblies on the grounds that the venue indicated in the notification is occupied by another activity. This decision was the result of an appeal by human rights defenders in Kazakhstan to the Constitutional Court[42].

January 20, Almaty, A. Zhapisheva, Article 488, Part 7 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the RK, 15 days of arrest for holding a picket in support of arrested T. Yensebek[43].

January 20, Astana, the Akimat did not give permission to T.Kusainov to hold a solitary picket on January 27, 2025 in front of the Embassy of the Russian Federation. The theme of the picket: condemnation of Russia’s aggression against independent Ukraine. Provision of incomplete information was the reason for the refusal[44].

January 20, Astana, “only on the basis of official legal statistics for 2024 the amount of imposed administrative fines for the first time in history has exceeded 300 billion tenge”, — said Didar Smagul[45].

January 20, Almaty, T. Chernobil: “The case of T. Yensebek is not about ‘law and order’. It is about law without order. There is a law (an article in the Criminal Code on inciting discord). But there is no order at all in the application of this article. In Almaty Akimat they use such words ‘as practice shows’ to persecute citizens who are not convenient for the authorities”[46].

January 21, Almaty, A. Dzhakibayeva, an activist from “Oyan, Kazakhstan”, and S. Zinchenko, an activist from Kostanay, were both sentenced by the courts to a fine of 196,600 tenge ($371 at the exchange rate) under Article 488, Part 7 of the Code of Administrative Offences of the RK for holding unauthorized solitary pickets in their cities in support of T. Yensebek[47].

January 21, Almaty, the press service of the police department issued a press release in which it said there is a need to clarify the situation in connection with the incoming requests to initiate a pre-trial investigation. The criminal case against the activist T. Yensebek has nothing to do with satire, according to the police[48].

January 21, Aktobe, the court sentenced E. Orynbasarov, a resident of Atyrau, who advertised the sale of his own kidney, to a year of restriction of freedom. He was charged with Article 24 of the Criminal Code of the RK “preparation for a crime and attempted crime” and Article 113 of the Criminal Code of the RK “committing illegal transactions in respect of organs and tissues of a living person”[49].

January 21, Zhetysu region, the police reported the detention of the local blogger of the Instagram-public “Ushtobeqz” D. Perlov in the town of Ushtobe. He is suspected of extorting KZT 10 mln from a construction entrepreneur for removing from the blogger’s page an earlier video about allegedly low-quality construction work[50].

January 21, Aktobe, M. Dauylov held a solitary picket near the Drama Theater named after T. Akhtanov with the following inscription: “I am not amused”. This action was held in support of the activist T. Yensebek. The activist commented that blind, disabled people of group 1 are not imprisoned[51].

January 21, Almaty, at the press conference organizers of the March 8 Feminist March urged to write to the Akim of the city E. Dosaev and explain to him the importance of the March 8 rally and march. For the second year in a row, the Akimat does not give permission to hold these events. Since last year, feminists have received 40 refusals to hold events in all venues of the city[52].

January 21, Almaty, The investigation is currently establishing who are the authors of the song that activist T. Yensebek posted on his Instagram channel, said Almaty police. “He posted material that contains obvious signs of incitement to interethnic discord, expressed by insulting representatives of an entire ethnicity” [53].

January 21, Astana, Provisions of the Kazakh law “On the procedure for organizing and holding peaceful assemblies” do not contradict the Constitution, according to the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Kazakhstan[54].

January 22, Astana, “Legal Media Center” says that journalists who show solidarity and support their colleagues are being persecuted. Since last year, we have seen acts of harassment, with journalists being fined and arrested mainly for expressing disagreement with violations of the professional rights of their colleagues[55].

January 22, Almaty, A. Zhapisheva has written an appeal from the special detention facility: “The parliament has never been independent, the police has always been used as an instrument of repression, and the courts have been used for political persecution. But now the people of Kazakhstan have been deprived of the fourth power — the media. We can’t form parties, we can’t investigate, we can’t even make jokes. We are sheared like sheep, our money goes abroad, we become impoverished and keep silent about it. Social networks are the last remaining ISLANDS of freedom. But even there, the bloggers’ mouths are silenced, some of them with money, others with fear”[56].

January 22, Aktobe, Court No. 3 accepted the claim of M. Dauylov on the recognition of the illegality of the decision of Aktobe Akim A. Beket from March 29, 2024 No. 2 “On the declaration of a natural emergency of local scale” as violating and restricting the rights, freedoms and legitimate interests[57].

Astana, January 22, There is a sense of impunity for human rights violations in Kazakhstan, according to a report to the United Nations (UN) General Assembly prepared by a working group of the UN Human Rights Council[58].

January 22, New York (USA), the United Nations (UN) recommended that Kazakhstan ratify the Rome Statute[59].

January 22, Astana, M. Musabayev held a solitary picket in support of the arrested T. Yensebek. Marat held a jacket with the words “Satire — kylmys emes” (Satire is not a crime) written on it[60].

January 22, Almaty, Institution No. 72, E. Yensebek, Article 174 of the Criminal Code of the RK, 2 months of imprisonment. The activist wrote a letter from prison saying that he is not a criminal, but realizes his right guaranteed by Article 20 of the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan. He asked the guarantor of the Constitution to protect his rights. He also asked the Commissioner for Human Rights, “Why am I in prison?”[61].

January 23, Geneva, Palace of Nations, session of the Human Rights Council. Representatives of Western countries have paid attention to the situation with torture in places of detention in Kazakhstan and noted that they are impunity[62].

January 23, Astana, The City Court considered the appeal of journalists Astakhov I., Baimanov D., T. Vaal, Zholdasbay S., Zhulmukhametova Zh., A. Koskina, A. Oribayev, A. Prilepskaya, Zh. Urankaeva against the decision of the Civil Court. Order of the court: “To leave the decision of the Court of civil cases of Astana from 11.11.2024 without change, to leave the appeal complaint against the Ministry of Information without satisfaction”[63][64].

January 23, Astana, Adil Soz Foundation expresses its disappointment with the court’s decision and will continue to support journalists in their efforts to protect the rights to free flow of information and journalistic independence[65][66].

January 23, Almaty, bloggers D. Kusheev and R. Karimov were arrested on charges of extortion. The city police department is conducting a pre-trial investigation under Article 194, Part 4, Paragraph 2 of the Criminal Code of the RK (“Extortion committed on a particularly large scale”)[67].

January 23, Almaty, R.Biketov, Article 488, Part 6 of the Code of Administrative Offences of the RK, 15 days of detention. The city court considered the appeal against the arrest of the journalist. It was decided by the court: to leave the decision of the specialized interdistrict court on administrative offences unchanged, to leave the appeal without satisfaction[68].

January 23, Almaty, Aktorgyn Kairatova, Article 488, Part 7 of the Code of Administrative Violations of the RK: The court found A. Kairatova guilty and sentenced her to a fine of 196,600 tenge. Reason: for holding a solitary picket with a poster “Satire — kylmes emes!” in support of the arrested T. Yensebek[69].

January 23, Astana, MP E.Bapi commented on the recent arrests of journalists and activists in cities of Kazakhstan who supported the arrested T.Yensebek. E.Bapi also urged for the release of journalist A.Zhapisheva[70].

January 23, Semey, in support of the arrested T. Yensebek, the activist E. Dosanov held a solitary picket with a banner “Satire — kylmys emes”[71].

January 23, Stepnogorsk, Institution No. 4, M. Zhylanbaev, Articles 258, 405 of the Criminal Code of the RK, 7 years’ imprisonment. M. Zhylanbaev stopped the hunger strike he had started in November. He had started a hunger strike in prison on November 13 in protest against the verdict convicting him on the so-called «extremist» articles. This was not the first time he had gone on hunger strike in prison[72].

January 23, Kokshetau, activists M. Zhanuzakov, B. Baltashev and U. Negmetov demanded the release of political prisoners and supported the slogan “Satire is not a crime” to support the arrested T. Yensebek[73].

January 23, Astana, activist E. Bekzadina picketed with the slogan “Satira kylmys emes”, demanding the release of detained T. Yensebek[74].

23 January, Geneva, the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the UN Human Rights Council reviewed the human rights situation in Kazakhstan at the Palace of Nations[75].

January 24, Almaty, Overview of the situation in Kazakhstan with the right to freedom of expression, receiving and disseminating information from January 15 to January 24, 2025. The monitoring is prepared by the Adil Soz Foundation; information has been taken from public sources[76].

January 23, Atyrau, the City Court No. 2 passed a sentence on the chairwoman of the NGO “Analarga komek koldau” S. Kukenova, who was accused of beating the deputy of the Atyrau regional maslikhat S. Sarsembayev under Article 109-1 of the Criminal Code of the RK ( battery) and was sentenced to a fine of 100 MCI[77].

January 24, Almaty region, Zhaugashty settlement, Institution No. 10, lawyer A. Aidarkhanova visited journalist A. Tleuzhanova, Article 272, Part 1 of the Criminal Code of the RK, 4 years of imprisonment. The lawyer informed that Aigerim is doing well and asked to write letters to her[78].

January 24, Taraz, a resident of the city committed self-immolation near the school №53, where the Akim of the city B.Orynbekov met with the population of the regional center[79].

January 17, Almaty, B. Toregozhina: “ Since there was no news about M. Zhylanbaev’s hunger strike, I wrote an appeal to the Committee of Criminal Executive System on the basis of Article 32, Part 3 of the Criminal Executive Code of the RK asking permission to visit Marat with a group of journalists. The reply of the Deputy Head of the Department of the Criminal Executive System, Lieutenant — Colonel of Justice Argumbayev M.: “Taking into account that penitentiary institutions are not places of free visit, we consider it inappropriate for civilians to visit penitentiary institutions, conduct interviews, shootings, etc.”[80].

January 24, Almaty, activists N. Kusainova, N. Zhumaniyazova, K. Kulmanova join the demands for the release of political prisoners under the slogan “Satire is not a crime”[81].

January 24, Almaty, The activities of a coalition of NGOs, which in one way or another are related to the fight against discrimination, are expanding in Kazakhstan. Meanwhile, the deadline for the creation of an anti-discrimination structure in the country, outlined in the decree of the President of Kazakhstan, has long passed[82].

January 27, Almaty, “Immediately after the announcement of the verdict of A. Dzhumageldiev, K. Kudaibergen, B. Beketov and other 37 of our defendants they were transferred to other institutions of the Committee of the Criminal Executive System in different regions, thus depriving them of the right to protection, to a fair trial and flagrantly violating the constitutional rights of citizens”, — said the lawyer E. Zhigalyonok[83].

27 January, Almaty, lawyer Zh. Balgabaeva stated that on January 24, during the investigation activities of the Almaty police, the property of the arrested T. Yensebek, seized during the detention, was examined. According to the lawyer Zh. Balgabaeva, during the inspection it was found out that the phone and the computer had been previously tried to be opened[84].

January 27, Brussels (Belgium), the detention and placement under arrest of T. Yensebek “raises serious concerns about the misuse of vague criminal provisions to stifle free expression and punish government critics”, says the International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR)[85].

January 27, Almaty, Akmeir Kusheeva, a mother of many children, claimed that she had been denied access to her personal bank account following the arrest of her husband, blogger D. Kusheev. The blogger was detained on January 23 under Article 194, Part 4, p.2 of the Criminal Code of the RK (“Extortion on a particularly large scale”)[86].

January 27, Almaty, G. Otebaeva, Article 488, Part 7 of the Code of Administrative Offences of the RK, fine 275240 tenge for picketing in front of the Academy of Sciences in support of the arrested T. Yensebek. She held a poster with the words “Urpakka zhol ashpaghan” (The road to the future is closed)[87].

January 27, Astana, Legal Media Center highlighted significant gaps in the law on peaceful assembly. While the court found the law to be in compliance with the Constitution, it ordered Akimats to provide all Kazakh citizens with alternative locations and times for those wishing to protest, as well as detailed information about planned protests[88].

January 27, Almaty, in Institution No. 72, the verdict of the group in the case of the January events was pronounced. The court found 44 defendants guilty and sentenced them to various terms of imprisonment from 1 to 20 years[89].

January 27, Astana, a preliminary hearing was held in the Administrative Court in the interests of B. Sturua, who was sentenced to 11 years. The plaintiff O. Syzdykov, human rights defender, member of the Public Supervisory Commission for the Akmola region. He filed a lawsuit against the General Prosecutor’s Office and the Prosecutor’s Office of Akmola region[90].

January 28, Almaty, journalist of “Kursiv” R.Biketov, Article 488, Part 6 of the Code of Administrative Offences of the RK is currently serving 15 days in the TDF of the Almaty police department. The lawyer Zh. Balgabaeva is of the opinion that he should be in a special detention facility for people who have been arrested in administrative cases[91].

January 28, Almaty, activist G. Otebayeva was fined 275240 tenge (about $530) by a court for holding a solitary picket on January 27 in support of detainee T. Yensebek[92].

January 28, Astana, President K. Tokayev at an expanded meeting of the government spoke about misinformation and spreading of false stories by the media. While speaking on this issue, he also used such phrases as «discrediting the authorities» and «incitement», but did not give any concrete examples[93].

January 28, Kostanay, Zinchenko S., Article 488, Part 7 of the Code of Administrative Offences of the RK, fine of 196600 tenge. The court upheld the appeal without satisfaction[94].

January 29, Astana, journalist Dana Ormanbaeva is wanted by Interpol, she was prosecuted under Article 174 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan and put on the wanted list[95].

January 29, Astana, D. Adilbekov, Article 419, Part 3, Article 274, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of the RK, 4,5 years’ imprisonment. The appellate court ruled: «The verdict of the criminal court of Astana dated 18.10.2024, leave unchanged[96][97].

January 29, the report of the UN Volunteer Program highlights some achievements of Kazakhstan in this field, as well as some obstacles. However, some ambiguous points have gone unnoticed[98].

January 29, Ust-Kamenogorsk, in spite of a regulatory decision of the Supreme Court, the prisoners are denied parole and commutation of their sentences, because they are faced with conditions that are impossible for them to fulfill[99].

January 29, Almaty, the court again extended the detention of activists N. Zhaulibayev, Zh. Kazakbay, F. Syzdykov, N. Temirgaliev and A. Mubarakov, who were detained on October 1, 2024. They are charged under Article 272 of the Criminal Code of the RK with “attempting to organize mass riots” before the referendum on the nuclear power plant. “They have been kept in custody for the fifth month because the expertise on the case is not yet ready” — said the lawyer T. Berlikozha[100].

January 29, Almaty, famous humorist D. Shaikhislamov said that his wife, D. Ormanbaeva, is illegally prosecuted under Article 174 of the Criminal Code of the RK, and the court order on her absent arrest has not entered into legal force[101].

January 30, Human Rights Watch urged Kazakhstan to implement the recommendations it received last week as part of the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR)[102].

January 30, Almaty, Human rights defender B. Toregozhina: “We are suing over the refusal to allow journalists to visit political prisoner M. Zhylanbaev. We want to document this selectivity of our authorities and present it as a fact of discrimination. In Kazakhstan, some people are allowed to visit even a life-sentence colony, while others are not allowed to enter even a medium-security colony”[103].

January 30, Astana, in the court hearing the case of the former head of the Department of Culture B. Mazhagulov, his wife claimed that the journalist has no right to take pictures even in the corridor. After receiving an answer that the rights to do so are provided by the law “On Mass Media”, the woman did not calm down and attacked the journalist A. Kutubaeva, a journalist of “Ulysmedia”[104].

January 30, Astana, the court in the case of the press conference took the side of the relatives of a high-ranking prosecutor — head of the prosecutor’s office of the Yesil district E. Tokbayev. The court refused to “satisfy the appeal of the defendant LLP ‘MIA ‘KazTAG’”[105].

January 31, Astana, Kazakhstan Minister of Culture and Information A. Balayeva addressed the administrators of online platforms with a call to “thoroughly monitor the news agenda, prevent the spread of unverified information” and “remove unlawful content”[106].

[1] https://bureau.kz/novosti/po-tureczki-govorili/

[2] https://rus.azattyq.org/a/rodstvenniki-zhertv-kantara-prishli-v-akimat-almaty-s-trebovaniyami-spetsialnyy-status-dlya-pogibshih-vstrecha-s-dosaevym/33264014.html

[3] https://rus.azattyq.org/a/33263903.html

[4]https://www.facebook.com/janar.jandosova/posts/pfbid0tCNFAkcWXP9SvFrxMsSCtH6VG9Y7S1QjVQj7s5n8K2KQF3bsXNthPmCQ9JHHvnVYl

[5] https://respublika.kz.media/archives/137143?fbclid=IwY2xjawHuhY9leHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHTc23z_Hn-LsKFMobvIEn9Wy6ZkUQK9CQ-0k8QAUr940l1MPmKQTq5I1Cg_aem_pJD7u9yycIODoe4Za7iAlQ

[6] https://rus.azattyq.org/a/vlasti-lishili-menya-zreniya-a-fond-otkazal-v-pomoschi-istoriya-erkanata-zhenisuly/33264548.html

[7] https://www.facebook.com/groups/2613737598955074/posts/3785498538445635/

[8] https://www.facebook.com/groups/2613737598955074/posts/3786975711631251/

[9] https://www.facebook.com/groups/2613737598955074/posts/3786785321650290/

[10] https://t.me/AdalSotKz/2150

[11] https://t.me/AdalSotKz/2151

[12] https://mgorod.kz/news/zabastovku-obyavili-voditeli-passazhirskih-avtobusov-v-uralske