Kazakhstan: independent media interceded for Lukpan Akhmedyarov

The editorial offices of seven independent media in Kazakhstan, as well as the International Foundation for the Defense of Freedom of Speech “Adil Soz”, issued the statement in support of the editor-in-chief of the newspaper “Uralsk week” Lukpan Akhmedyarov.

 “At the end of January it became known that the Prosecutor’s Office demands to prosecute Lukpan Akhmedyarov, editor-in-chief of the newspaper “Uralsk week”, under article 423 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan “Disclosure of data from pre-trial proceedings or a closed trial”. The reason was the publication about the illegal distribution of land plots in Uralsk, in which an employee of the Prosecutor’s Office was involved. After that, Lukpan was interrogated several times, and he was detained on February 3 on Uralsk-Atyrau highway. We are convinced that the persecution of Lukpan Akhmedyarov is politically motivated and connected with the desire of the law enforcement structures of Western Kazakhstan to drown out the voice of the journalist,” the statement notes.

It also notes that the article of Akhmedyarov, who, in fact, was doing his job, deals with the facts of corruption, with which, according to the declarations of the country’s top officials, Kazakhstan is fighting an irreconcilable struggle.

“This is not the first attempt to persecute Lukpan Akhmedyarov and Uralsk week – one of the rare independent media in Kazakhstan. We regard it as an attack on all independent media in the country and demand that the pressure on journalists be stopped immediately. Law enforcement agencies should not interfere with the work of the media, and journalists should be able to do their job – to investigate, report corruption, and doubt the actions of officials. The persecution of Lukpan Akhmedyarov is illegal and must be stopped immediately,” summed up in the statement signed by the editors of the online magazine “Vlast”, Mediazona Central Asia, masa.media, The Village Kazakhstan, Factcheck.kz, ProTenge, “They have already left for us”, The Qazaq Times, Orda.kz; editions “Intonatsiya” [“Intonation”], mgorod.kz, Adamdar/CA and the Foundation for the Defense of Freedom of Speech “Adil Soz”.