Ombudsman of Kazakhstan reported about torture in prisons

In prisons and in penitentiary institutions in Kazakhstan, torture is practiced. This was stated by the Kazakh Ombudsman, Elvira Azimova, in lobby of the first Eurasian Human Rights Forum in Nur-Sultan.

According to Azimova, who took this post on September 2, 2019, for incomplete four months of her work as a human rights Ombudsman, she received 91 complaints from citizens about violations, primarily about the use of torture in prisons and penitentiary institutions.

At the same time, the Ombudsman recalled that in 2014 a national preventive mechanism was launched in Kazakhstan.

“Since April 1 of this year, a number of laws have been amended. In this regard, institutions providing special social services, including children’s institutions, have also been added to the institutions of the criminal executive system, pre-trial detention centers, temporary detention centers, and also adaptation centers. Due to the adopted amendments, members of civil society can now visit 3296 institutions. They visit institutions if they receive appeals from citizens about torture and other derogatory administration’s actions,” Azimova said.