(CPJ/IFEX) – In a 22 August 2001 letter to Kyrgyz President Askar Akayev, CPJ expressed deep concern over the government’s recent harassment of several new independent media outlets. CPJ also objected to a recent presidential decree that will make it easier to imprison journalists who criticize the government. Throughout April and May, the Justice Ministry […]
(CPJ/IFEX) – In a 22 August 2001 letter to Kyrgyz President Askar Akayev, CPJ expressed deep concern over the government’s recent harassment of several new independent media outlets. CPJ also objected to a recent presidential decree that will make it easier to imprison journalists who criticize the government.
Throughout April and May, the Justice Ministry granted certificates of registration to 16 new media outlets, local and international sources reported. They included the independent newspaper “Moya Stolitsa”, staffed by journalists from the formerly independent Bishkek-based “Vecherniy Bishkek”, which was taken over by one of the president’s close associates at the end of 1999.
The ministry also registered the independent newspapers “Agym”, “Techeniye”, and “Joltiken”, composed of former staff from the Bishkek daily “Asaba”, which declared bankruptcy in April after it lost a battle over loan repayments and could not pay an unprecedented US$100,000 in damages for allegedly libeling a parliamentary deputy.
After initially approving the 16 new media registrations, the Justice Ministry rescinded the registrations on 20 June, citing a previously unknown decision, which the ministry claimed to have issued on 5 April. The decision halted the registration of new media outlets until already registered media outlets had reregistered.
On 26 June, “Moya Stolitsa” editor-in-chief Aleksandr Kim filed a lawsuit against the Justice Ministry challenging the validity of both the 5 April decision and the ministry’s subsequent decision to cancel the 16 registrations.
Six days later, Bakyt Jamalidinov, the publisher of “Agym”, “Techeniye”, and “Joltiken”, filed a separate lawsuit against the ministry on the same grounds. During the following weeks, the Bishkek City Arbitration Court postponed hearings for both cases several times.
On 30 July, the court declined to review the “Moya Stolitsa” case and transferred the suit to a civil court. While the newspapers were preparing their cases, the ministry announced that it was extending the re-registration deadline for currently registered media outlets to 1 October.
President Akayev’s administration’s previous harassment of “Asaba” and the takeover of “Vecherniy Bishkek” leads CPJ to believe that the 5 April decision may have been adopted to prevent the former staff of these publications from establishing new independent newspapers.
CPJ is also disturbed by proposed legislation that will give government officials greater latitude to intimidate and imprison journalists who dare to criticize government policies. On 18 July, the Presidential Administration of the Kyrgyz Republic adopted a decree that revises Article 297 of the Criminal Code.
The revised Article 297 states that activities intended to change or weaken the established constitutional order by force are punishable by up to three years’ imprisonment. If such activities are funded by foreign organizations, they are punishable by three to five years in prison.
Meanwhile, the new Article 297-1 prescribes up to three years in prison and allows for confiscation of any property owned by persons who produce or distribute information intended to overthrow or undermine the constitutional order of the Kyrgyz Republic.
CPJ is profoundly troubled by these broad and redundant statutes, which will strengthen the government’s ability to stifle independent criticism of government policies. The organisation also deplores the government’s recent efforts to restrict and delay the development of new independent media outlets in Kyrgyzstan.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to the president:
– calling on the Kyrgyz government to withdraw the proposed legislation
– requesting that he grant any outstanding media licenses with all possible speed
– asking him to ensure that independent journalists are allowed to work without bureaucratic obstruction
Appeals To
His Excellency Askar Akayev
President of Kyrgyzstan
Kirov St. 205
Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Fax: +996 312 218 627
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
