Kazakhstan: Attacks on dissent bode ill for free
elections
(New York, October 12, 2005)—By imposing new restrictions on freedom
of assembly and harassing the political opposition and independent media, the Kazakh
government has cast doubt on the prospect of free and fair presidential elections on
December 4, Human Rights Watch said today in an open letter to Kazakh President Nursultan
Nazarbaev.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is visiting Kazakhstan
today, should raise concern about the new rights restrictions and call on the Kazakh
leadership to undertake immediate measures to correct them.
“Condoleezza Rice should tell the Kazakh authorities that the
international community is watching closely and expects a political climate conducive to a
free and fair vote,” said Holly Cartner, Europe and Central Asia director of Human
Rights Watch. “President Nazarbaev needs to hear that harassing the opposition and
suppressing civil society will carry consequences like downgrading of diplomatic and trade
relations.”
In its letter to the Kazakh president, Human Rights Watch expressed
concern about government persecution of opposition political parties and the new legal
limitations imposed on public assemblies during polling periods. The letter also detailed
abusive government measures targeting independent media and civil society groups,
including new restrictive laws on freedom of assembly and politically motivated actions by
administrative authorities and the judiciary.
In early January, the government disbanded the leading opposition
party, Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan (DVK). The DVK unsuccessfully appealed the January
decision. The government intensified harassment of the party as a result. Later in the
month, police arrested several DVK members attempting to hold a peaceful assembly to
protest the dissolution of the party. In February, police illegally seized 7,000 copies of
the DVK newsletter from its office. Police also detained a DVK worker and threatened him
with criminal charges if he did not leave the party.
In April and again in May, unknown assailants attacked Zharmahan
Tuyakbai, the leading opposition candidate for president and the leader of the only
legally registered opposition movement: For a Fair Kazakhstan (ZSK).
“The government’s crackdown on the political opposition bodes ill
for a free and fair election,” said Cartner.
Freedom of assembly in Kazakhstan has also come under serious threat.
Recent amendments to the country’s electoral law ban demonstrations from the beginning
of the voting period until the state electoral commission publicly announces official
election results, which could be up to 10 days after voting ends. This measure appears to
be designed to prevent the kinds of mass demonstrations that took place following flawed
elections and triggered a change of government in Georgia, Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan. The
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has concluded that the
amendment is inconsistent with Kazakhstan’s OSCE commitments and violates the right to
free assembly.
Nongovernmental organizations are also suffering from the
government’s crackdown on dissent. Since March, at least 33 domestic and foreign NGOs
have been subject to investigations by the public prosecutor’s office and the tax police
on allegations that they passed Western aid money to political opposition parties. The
government has also attempted to discredit the leading Kazakh human rights group, the
International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law, by accusing it in the national
media of publishing biased and distorted information, and refused to register two youth
organizations.
The government has taken drastic measures to stifle free expression by
harassing the independent media. Deliberately vague language in recently enacted media
legislation leaves the laws open to abuse for political purposes and gives the courts new
power to interfere with freedom of expression. Authorities have pressured printing houses
not to print independent newspapers. In addition, the government has initiated dozens of
lawsuits against independent newspapers and has blocked numerous Internet websites after
they published material critical of government officials.
“The government must reverse this pattern of repression in order to
establish the level playing field necessary for a fair vote,” said Cartner. “This
election will serve as an important test of Kazakhstan’s commitment to democracy and the
fundamental freedoms required to secure the country’s place in the community of
rights-respecting nations.”
Kazakhstan has a history of marred elections. The OSCE concluded that
the polling in the September 2004 parliamentary elections fell far short of international
standards. Lack of transparency in the election commission, media bias, pressure on
voters, and apparently politically-motivated prosecutions of two key opposition figures
all contributed to a deeply flawed election.
Human Rights Watch urged President Nazarbaev to take immediate steps to
bring Kazakh laws and government practices into line with its own constitution and human
rights standards to secure the integrity of the December elections. Recommendations
included putting an end to harassment of political opposition, NGOs and the media, and
instituting cooperation with international experts to ensure that the election process
would be consistent with international standards.
The spotlight will be on Kazakhstan again on tomorrow and Friday as it
hosts a conference by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe focusing on media pluralism in Central Asian countries, to be held in Almaty.
Human Rights Watch called on the OSCE Representative on Media Freedoms, Miklós Haraszti,
to use the opportunity of the meeting to highlight the ongoing rights abuses and call on
the Kazakh authorities to end them.
To read the letter, please see
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/10/12/kazakh11853.htm
Human Rights Watch, October 12, 2005 |
