Kazakhstan: CFWIJ Alarmed Regarding The Repression Of Press Underway
Location: Kazakhstan, Nur-Sultan
Date: January 7, 2022
Authorities have shut down several news platforms and detained journalists in order to curb the ongoing protests in the country. Aizhan Auelbekova was among those detained. The crackdown on the press has resulted in economic and physical harm for several journalists and reporters who were on the field covering the demonstrations.
The protests emerged after a sharp hike in the prices of liquefied gas in the country. However, have since turned into a sustained anti-government movement. The country has been in a state of emergency since. The government has authorised the use of force against those protesting, while simultaneously forbidding journalists from reporting on the matter. In cases where news outlets have reported on state overreach, they have been shut down and their journalists have been arrested. In a press release issued by the Ministry of Information, the state warned journalists of imprisonment for three to seven years if they knowingly spread "false information".
On January 4, police in the city of Taraz, detained several journalists including Aizhan Auelbekova, a correspondent with independent newspaper Vremya. According to a post on her Facebook page, the journalist was kept in custody for three hours before eventually being released. No formal charges were brought against her.
The government has also restricted online access to several platforms for not abiding by their "guidelines". News outlets like Orda and KazTAG became inaccessible once they published the demands of the protestors as well as the use of police force against demonstrators. The crackdown is currently underway across several cities. Journalists have been arrested with their property confiscated and damaged by armed officers. Elsewhere, journalists incurred injury when they were targeted by rubber bullets.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is extremely alarmed at the rapidly deteriorating state of press freedom in the country. Protests and free press are democratic rights afforded to the people of Kazakhstan and cannot be infringed upon by the state. To clamp down on freedom of expression in such a violent manner is a grievous indication of abuse of state power.
The CFWIJ strongly condemns the police brutality against journalists. We demand the immediate return of the press cards seized from the security forces. Policies to intimidate journalists should be abandoned, and journalism should be practiced under the criteria of freedom of the press.
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