Kyrgyzstan Archives - Committee to Protect Journalists

Russia and former Soviet states emboldened by declining press freedom in US, Europe

October 4, 2017 3:30 PM EDT

Receding media freedom in established European democracies and in the United States has emboldened authoritarian governments in Russia and other former Soviet countries to crack down on independent voices at home. I am sharing this information today with the U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe-known as the Helsinki Commission-and the House Freedom of…

Supporters of detained opposition politician Omurbek Tekebayev protest in the Kyrgyzstan's capital Bishkek, in February. A media group that reported on comments by Tekebayev is facing five separate charges of insulting the president. (AFP/Vyacheslav Oseledko)

Kyrgyzstan holds three trials in one day against independent outlet

June 29, 2017 5:56 PM EDT

New York, June 29, 2017–Kyrgyzstan should drop all charges against the independent media organization ProMedia and its co-founder, Naryn Idinov, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. A Bishkek district court held three separate hearings today into charges of insult made against ProMedia, which runs the independent online news agency Zanoza, and Idinov who edits…

Kyrgyzstan investigates journalist for incitement after he criticizes ethnic slurs

June 9, 2017 2:35 PM EDT

New York, June 9, 2017–Kyrgyz authorities should drop a criminal investigation into independent journalist Ulugbek Babakulov, allow him to work freely, and cease blocking access to a news website that published his writing, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Security officials are investigating Babakulov on suspicion of “inciting inter-ethnic hatred,” Kyrgyz and regional media…

Kyrgyz journalist receives death threats

June 1, 2017 4:57 PM EDT

New York, June 1, 2017–Authorities in Kyrgyzstan should ensure the safety of independent journalist Ulugbek Babakulov, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Babakulov, who has been the target of intense criticism from lawmakers and pro-government media since he criticized nationalist social media posts in an article last week, has received death threats on social…

President Almazbek Atambayev, pictured at a press conference in 2013. In recent weeks, the Kyrgyz leader verbally assaulted several critical journalists during a speech to foreign ambassadors. (AFP/Vyacheslav Oseldko)

In pivotal election year Kyrgyz media face verbal assaults from president and legal action

March 28, 2017 1:57 PM EDT

In Kyrgyzstan, once Central Asia’s most liberal country, President Almazbek Atambayev is tightening his grip on critical voices, including independent journalists and foreign media.

Journalist and human rights activist Azimjon Askarov looks through bars at his retrial near Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, October 11, 2016. (AP/VladimirVoronin)

Court upholds life sentence for Kyrgyz journalist and activist Azimjon Askarov

January 24, 2017 11:10 AM EST

New York, January 24, 2017–Kyrgyz authorities should immediately release journalist and human rights activist Azimjon Askarov and drop all charges against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Kyrgyzstan’s Chui Regional Court today upheld a September 2010 life sentence against Askarov on charges of complicity in murder and inciting hatred for reporting on fatal…

CPJ calls on World Bank to advocate for release of Kyrgyzstan journalist

January 5, 2017 9:30 AM EST

CPJ calls on Jim Yong Kim, President of the World Bank Group, to engage with Kyrgyz authorities and call for the release of Azimjon Askarov, an independent journalist jailed for life on retaliatory charges in 2010.