New York, May 15, 2008—The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev to veto a bill that would reverse efforts to reform Kyrgyzstan’s state television and radio company (KTR) into a public broadcaster. Kyrgyzstan’s parliament passed the bill on April 24. It gives the president the right to appoint KTR’s chief…
New York, April 10, 2008—The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about the Kyrgyzstan authorities’ closure of the investigation into the October murder of Alisher Saipov, editor of the independent Uzbek-language weekly Siyosat (Politics). This is the second time authorities have officially closed the investigation in as many months.
New York, April 10, 2008—The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about the Kyrgyzstan authorities’ closure of the investigation into the October murder of Alisher Saipov, editor of the independent Uzbek-language weekly Siyosat (Politics). This is the second time authorities have officially closed the investigation in as many months.
Dear Mr. President, The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned about the lack of progress in the investigation into the October assassination of Alisher Saipov, editor of the independent Uzbek-language weekly Siyosat (Politics). Four months after this brazen crime, Kyrgyz officials in charge of the probe announced–amid conflicting press reports–that the investigation was suspended. The Saipov family was not informed of the suspension in time to seek reconsideration.
Rewriting the Law to Make Journalism a CrimeBy Nina OgnianovaIn its 17 years on the air, Moscow-based Ekho Moskvy Radio has enjoyed, by Russian standards, extraordinary editorial independence. Nearly alone among Russian broadcasters in its critical approach, the station employs some of the country’s most outspoken journalists, who produce in-depth reporting on the most sensitive…
KYRGYZSTAN One prominent editor was slain and other journalists faced escalating government harassment, violent attacks, and lawlessness amid intense political rivalry between President Kurmanbek Bakiyev and opposition parties in parliament. In the face of recurring protests, Bakiyev periodically made political concessions to the opposition, only to withdraw or undermine the agreements after demonstrators had gone…
Washington, November 1, 2007—A delegation from the Committee to Protect Journalists met with the Kyrgyz ambassador to the United States, Zamira Sydykova, today to express alarm at the murder of independent journalist Alisher Saipov in the southern city of Osh last week. “There are strong reasons to believe that Alisher Saipov was murdered because of…
Your Excellency, The Committee to Protect Journalists urges you to use all of the resources of your office to ensure that a thorough, timely, independent, and transparent investigation is undertaken into the slaying of prominent journalist Alisher Saipov, who was shot in southern Kyrgyzstan on Wednesday.