Wife Of Jailed Suspect In Zhanaozen Unrest Sentenced

By RFE/RL's Kazakh Service
May 21, 2012
ZHANAOZEN, Kazakhstan -- The wife of an oil worker charged in connection with the deadly unrest in the Kazakh town of Zhanaozen has been given a suspended prison sentence of two years for illegally distributing leaflets and obstruction of justice.
 
The judge also barred Tamara Erghazeva from taking part in public gatherings and from talking to journalists.
 
Erghazeva’s husband, Zhanbyr Erghazev, was detained during the crackdown on an oil workers' strike in Zhanaozen in mid-December in which 16 people were killed by security forces.
 
Forty-nine civilians accused of inciting the unrest in Zhanaozen and nearby Shetpe are currently on trial.
 
Erghazeva distributed leaflets demanding the release of her husband and delivered a note to the house of a witness who testified against her spouse, accusing the witness of lying.