By imposing new restrictions on freedom of assembly and harassing the political opposition and independent media, the Kazakh government has cast doubt on the prospect of free and fair presidential elections on December 4, Human Rights Watch said today in an open letter to Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is visiting Kazakhstan today, should raise concern about the new rights restrictions and call on the Kazakh leadership to undertake immediate measures to correct them.
“Condoleezza Rice should tell the Kazakh authorities that the international community is watching closely and expects a political climate conducive to a free and fair vote,” said Holly Cartner, Europe and Central Asia director of Human Rights Watch. “President Nazarbaev needs to hear that harassing the opposition and suppressing civil society will carry consequences like downgrading of diplomatic and trade relations.”
In its letter to the Kazakh president, Human Rights Watch expressed concern about government persecution of opposition political parties and the new legal limitations imposed on public assemblies during polling periods. The letter also detailed abusive government measures targeting independent media and civil society groups, including new restrictive laws on freedom of assembly and politically motivated actions by administrative authorities and the judiciary.
In early January, the government disbanded the leading opposition party, Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan (DVK). The DVK unsuccessfully appealed the January decision. The government intensified harassment of the party as a result. Later in the month, police arrested several DVK members attempting to hold a peaceful assembly to protest the dissolution of the party. In February, police illegally seized 7,000 copies of the DVK newsletter from its office. Police also detained a DVK worker and threatened him with criminal charges if he did not leave the party.
In April and again in May, unknown assailants attacked Zharmahan Tuyakbai, the leading opposition candidate for president and the leader of the only legally registered opposition movement: For a Fair Kazakhstan (ZSK).
“The government’s crackdown on the political opposition bodes ill for a free and fair election,” said Cartner.
Freedom of assembly in Kazakhstan has also come under serious threat. Recent amendments to the country’s electoral law ban demonstrations from the beginning of the voting period until the state electoral commission publicly announces official election results, which could be up to 10 days after voting ends. This measure appears to be designed to prevent the kinds of mass demonstrations that took place following flawed elections and triggered a change of government in Georgia, Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has concluded that the amendment is inconsistent with Kazakhstan’s OSCE commitments and violates the right to free assembly.
Nongovernmental organizations are also suffering from the government’s crackdown on dissent. Since March, at least 33 domestic and foreign NGOs have been subject to investigations by the public prosecutor’s office and the tax police on allegations that they passed Western aid money to political opposition parties. The government has also attempted to discredit the leading Kazakh human rights group, the International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law, by accusing it in the national media of publishing biased and distorted information, and refused to register two youth organizations.
The government has taken drastic measures to stifle free expression by harassing the independent media. Deliberately vague language in recently enacted media legislation leaves the laws open to abuse for political purposes and gives the courts new power to interfere with freedom of expression. Authorities have pressured printing houses not to print independent newspapers. In addition, the government has initiated dozens of lawsuits against independent newspapers and has blocked numerous Internet websites after they published material critical of government officials.
“The government must reverse this pattern of repression in order to establish the level playing field necessary for a fair vote,” said Cartner. “This election will serve as an important test of Kazakhstan’s commitment to democracy and the fundamental freedoms required to secure the country’s place in the community of rights-respecting nations.”
Kazakhstan has a history of marred elections. The OSCE concluded that the polling in the September 2004 parliamentary elections fell far short of international standards. Lack of transparency in the election commission, media bias, pressure on voters, and apparently politically-motivated prosecutions of two key opposition figures all contributed to a deeply flawed election.
Human Rights Watch urged President Nazarbaev to take immediate steps to bring Kazakh laws and government practices into line with its own constitution and human rights standards to secure the integrity of the December elections. Recommendations included putting an end to harassment of political opposition, NGOs and the media, and instituting cooperation with international experts to ensure that the election process would be consistent with international standards.
The spotlight will be on Kazakhstan again on tomorrow and Friday as it hosts a conference by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe focusing on media pluralism in Central Asian countries, to be held in Almaty. Human Rights Watch called on the OSCE Representative on Media Freedoms, Miklós Haraszti, to use the opportunity of the meeting to highlight the ongoing rights abuses and call on the Kazakh authorities to end them.
