Kazakhstan: Journalist Yevgenia Baltatarova Detained And Charged With Two Criminal Cases
Location: Kazakhstan, Almaty
Date: November 2, 2022
Yevgenia Baltatarova, an independent journalist from Buryatia, was detained at Almaty International Airport and restricted from leaving the country. Baltatarova, a Russian native, is charged in her homeland with two criminal cases for allegedly spreading misinformation and propaganda against the Russian army. The Coalition For Women In Journalism condemns the detention of Baltatarova and urges Kazakh authorities to free the journalist.
On Wednesday, November 2, Yevgenia Baltatarova was scheduled to fly from Almaty, Kazakhstan to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan for a work meeting when she was detained in passport control by National Security Committee (KNB) employees. “I have a restriction on leaving Kazakhstan. It’s just not clear on what basis. I’m arrested, they’ll take me to a temporary detention center. One case is connected with Maxim Katz,” Baltatarova said during her detention at the airport. She is charged for reposting a tweet by Russian politician and co-founder of the Urban Projects Foundation Maxim Katz which read: “What a horror. They dropped an aerial bomb on the drama theater in Mariupol, and children were hiding there.” In addition, the journalist is accused of reporting a massacre of civilians in the Ukrainian city of Bucha.
Later, Baltatarova said she had been arrested on charges of distributing military "fakes" under article 207.3 and was being transported to a detention centre in Almaty. It is still unclear whether she will be extradited to Russia.
Yevgenia Baltatarova was forced to flee to Kazakhstan after being targeted by Putin’s government for reporting against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 15 government officers searched her home, confiscating her possessions and those of her parents and nephew. The journalist published a copy of the decision from the Buryat department of the Investigative Committee to search her apartment as well as the decision of the Ulan-Ude court of her arrest in absentia.
The journalist was first detained in Astana on September 30, 2022, as part of an international wanted list in the case of "fakes" about the Russian army. She was later released. Baltatarova left Russia in March 2022, right after her apartment was searched. She characterized the search as a tactic law enforcement agencies were using in order to try to find proof that could lead to a criminal case. On October 7, the Russian Ministry of Justice labeled Baltatarova as a "foreign agent" and registered her into the list of wanted individuals. Kazakh authorities had announced earlier that they would extradite to Russia those citizens who were put on the international wanted list in criminal cases. If Yevgenia Baltatarova is extradited, she faces up to 15 years in prison.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is indignant that such abhorrent actions are taken against Yevgenia Baltatarova for simply doing her work. Democracy is in peril when journalists and free press face censorship and threats due to their reporting and keeping the public informed. We demand the release of Yevgenia Baltatarova and call on the Kazakhstan government to prevent her extradition to Russia.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
If you have been harassed or abused in any way, and please report the incident by using the following form.