Freedom of expression
The authorities intensified restrictions on media freedom and peaceful dissent through politically motivated prosecutions and legislative proposals that could be used to silence critical voices.
According to human rights NGO Kylym Shamy, prosecutors filed in courts at least 71 criminal cases against journalists, activists and bloggers and social media commentators between January and October. The charges ranged from inciting ethnic or religious hatred to calling for mass disturbances and the overthrow of the constitutional order, and aimed to punish critical reporting on politically sensitive issues, allegations of corruption and human rights violations.
In January, police arrested 11 current and former media workers associated with the Ayt Ayt Dese and Temirov Live investigative journalism projects on baseless charges of “calling for mass unrest”. On 10 October, after a trial held behind closed doors, a court sentenced Makhabat Tazhibek-kyzy, head of Temirov Live, and Azamat Ishenbekov to six and five years’ imprisonment respectively. Two defendants were sentenced to three years’ probation and seven were acquitted.1 On 18 December an appeal court upheld the verdicts. This decision was in turn appealed to the Supreme Court at the end of December.
In July, police arrested Zhoomart Karabaev, an employee of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), after he claimed that the State Committee for National Security had pressured NAS members to fabricate their reports to support the prosecution of government critics. Zhoomart Karabaev was charged with inciting mass disturbances for his social media posts and public statements. His trial started in October and was ongoing at the end of December.
In July the Supreme Court upheld an order to close the investigative media outlet Kloop Media Public Foundation. The ruling stemmed from a lawsuit by the Bishkek City Prosecutor’s Office alleging, among other things, that Kloop had failed to register as a mass media outlet, had engaged in media activity not listed in its charter and was encouraging readers to join anti-government protests.2
In August the government proposed legislation to make slander and insult online or in mass media administrative offences. The Council of Europe’s Venice Commission had previously reviewed the draft law and concluded that it needed significant changes to meet international human rights standards. Nevertheless, in December parliament approved the bill.
In September the government submitted for public consultation further draft legislation to reinstate criminal liability for possession of vaguely defined “extremist” materials. The draft also proposed a new offence of using the internet or mass media to publicly incite “extremist” activities or the “violent seizure of power”, raising fears that it could be used to crack down on critical voices.
Freedom of association
In April, President Sadyr Japarov signed a restrictive law requiring all NGOs receiving foreign funding and engaging in vaguely defined “political activity” to register as “foreign representatives”. Under this legislation, the authorities could suspend the activities of an NGO without a court decision or deregister the organization if it failed to register as a “foreign representative”. In October the Venice Commission concluded that the law contradicted Kyrgyzstan’s constitution and international treaties and that its implementation posed a ‘’real risk of stigmatizing, silencing and eventually eliminating’’ NGOs that received foreign funding.
By the end of December few organizations had registered as foreign representatives, but many had either reduced their activities or ceased to operate as an NGO.
Unfair trials
On 14 June, a court acquitted all 22 defendants in the so-called Kempir Abad case of politically motivated charges of plotting mass riots and, in some cases, of attempting to violently seize power. In a case marred by inconsistencies and procedural violations, the defendants had been detained solely for peacefully exercising their human rights, including expressing concerns about ceding control of the Kempir Abad (Andijan) freshwater reservoir in 2022. The prosecution, which had requested 20 years’ imprisonment for all 22 defendants, appealed and proceedings were pending at the end of December.3
LGBTI people’s rights
The work of LGBTI NGOs was negatively impacted by a 2023 law banning LGBTI “propaganda”. Many NGOs had to curtail public awareness raising and education activities, and restrict their support for those at risk of human rights abuses.
In January the new Law on the Protection of the Health of Citizens introduced discriminatory restrictions on the right to health and bodily autonomy of transgender persons by raising the age at which gender-affirming care could be accessed to 25 years. The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) urged the government to revise the new law to guarantee non-discriminatory access to sexual and reproductive health services and gender-affirming medical care for transgender persons. It also expressed concern about delays in the adoption of comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation and recommended repealing all legislation discriminating against LGBTI persons, in particular the law on propaganda of “non-traditional sexual relations”.
Gender-based violence
Domestic violence and violence against women and girls continued to be widespread and under-reported, and impunity for perpetrators prevailed. The police recorded 14,293 cases of domestic violence between January and October, an increase of 37% on 2023.
In August the president signed a law that removed the option of reconciliation in cases of rape and sexual assault. However, domestic violence, including marital rape, remained an administrative offence, punishable only by fines or administrative detention of up to seven days.
In October the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities noted that women and girls with disabilities who were victims of sexual and gender-based violence faced specific and almost unsurmountable barriers to seeking help and protection.
Right to food
In October the CESCR expressed concern that almost half the population, especially those living in poverty, could not meet daily nutritional requirements, and that three out of four households could not afford an adequate diet. Approximately one in three people in Kyrgyzstan lived in poverty. Children, people with disabilities, migrant workers, families and rural communities were disproportionately affected.
Right to a healthy environment
Kyrgyzstan failed to adopt a regulatory framework with legal obligations to exercise human rights due diligence, despite what the CESCR called “the detrimental impact of extractive activities and development projects on the environment and livelihoods of local communities”.
In June the president repealed a 2019 law that prohibited the development of rare mineral deposits without an effective consultation with the affected communities.
In September the government started mining thorium in the Kyzyl-Ompol area without conducting prior human rights due diligence and a comprehensive environmental assessment.
