Kyrgyzstan: CFWIJ Condemns The Detentions Of Journalists Covering The Elections

Location: Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek
Date: April 15, 2021

PHOTO CREDIT: AP/VLADIMIR VORONIN

Four journalists, including two women journalists, were detained by the police on three separate occasions during their coverage of the national elections. At least one of these reporters was also attacked in the field by a civilian.

Bekmyrza Isakov and Aliyma Alymova, journalists for the independent news website Kloop, were attacked and detained in the city of Osh. The civilians present at the scene called them “traitors'' among several accusations of a similar nature. One woman even physically attacked Bekmyrza and got a hold of his cell phone. When Bekmyrza took out a second device to film, a man stole that as well, along with the phone of a volunteer election monitor who was helping the Kloop team. The police only intervened when the woman refused to return the phone. The authorities then took the woman, the two journalists, and the election monitor to the police station, where the woman filed a complaint of hooliganism against the journalists. The two journalists were kept in detention for three hours before being released without charge.

Later, in Osh, the police also detained Ayarbek Joldoshbayev, a reporter with the independent news website Eldik.media. They took him into custody for filming at a polling station and then released him an hour later after he registered a statement.

In Bishkek, another correspondent for Kloop, Aijan Avazbekova, was also detained while filming at a polling booth. The journalist remained in custody for two hours, after which she recorded a statement and was released.

In both cases, Ayarbek and Aijan, the police claimed that the reporters did not have permission to film at the voting site. However, Kyrgyz laws on elections and referenda allow members of the media to film within polling stations.

The Coalition For Women In Journalism condemns the authorities’ detention of the journalists instead of ensuring their safety from hostile citizens. Deeming journalists as traitors is a repressive tactic that civilians should consider in their interactions with the press. Political disagreement is not a license to physically assault someone doing their job. The police interference with press coverage at polling stations also casts a shadow of doubt on the transparency of the electoral process. The authorities must ensure that journalists in the country are safe and can operate freely to guarantee the public’s faith in the elections.

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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