Skip to main content

Roza I. Otunbaeva

Head of Interim Government

Republic of Kyrgyzstan

Dear Roza Isakovna,  

We are writing to follow up on our discussion and share further recommendations on the measures that should be taken to ensure that the next government in Kyrgyzstan is one that fully respects and adheres to human rights obligations and the rule of law.  

In the past several years Human Rights Watch has expressed concern about the deteriorating respect for human rights under Kurmanbek Bakiev. We sought to engage the government and its international partners to reverse negative developments with respect to human rights guarantees. To this end, we submitted information and recommendations to institutions such as the human rights dialogue between Kyrgyzstan and the European Union and the United Nations Universal Periodic Review. We also sought a dialogue with the government under President Bakiev and regularly notified that government of our growing concerns. For example, in summer 2008, we called on President Bakiev to veto the draft law on public assemblies. Last year in March, we urged President Bakiev to make sure that draft amendments to the NGO law did not unreasonably restrict freedom of expression and freedom of association.  

We look forward to a productive dialogue with the interim government and appreciate your attention to key areas of concern outlined below. The concerns and recommendations are based on several years of research regarding issues fundamental to the development of civil society, and on our recent research in Kyrgyzstan to assess the state of human rights in the aftermath of the April 6-7 events. 

Elections

As you are well aware, many in Kyrgyzstan have lost faith in the electoral process and regarded last years’ presidential elections and the December 2007 parliamentary elections as deeply flawed. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s (OSCE) Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights concluded that the presidential elections “failed to meet key OSCE commitments” and noted many problems with the conduct of the vote, including fraud. Local NGOs reported pressure on election observers and voters during the local elections on October 5, 2008. In September 2008 the head of the Central Election Commission fled the country after accusing the president’s son of threatening her. 

Against this background, we look to you to guarantee the people of Kyrgyzstan the right to choose their leaders in a process that is free and fair. We welcome the decision to hold presidential and parliamentary elections on October 10. It is essential that the conditions for free and fair elections be created as quickly as possible in advance of that date.  

Human Rights Watch urges you to make every effort to implement recommendations made by the OSCE in 2009 “to improve the electoral process and to conduct elections in line with OSCE commitments and other international standards for democratic elections”. We ask that you also take the following steps to guarantee that future elections are free and fair:  

  • Issue a public statement instructing the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) not to interfere in the elections process on behalf of any particular party or candidate, but to fulfill its responsibility to guarantee a fair vote and vote count and to allow monitors to exercise their duties unimpeded. Such a statement should charge the CEC with issuing instructions to this effect to all electoral commission representatives. The CEC should also provide election monitors with lists of eligible voters for each district.
  • Ensure that the composition of electoral commissions at all levels represents a reasonable balance of representation by the government, NGOs, and political parties. Civil society groups should be allowed access to information regarding the composition of such commissions.
  • Register local independent election monitors and issue invitations to the OSCE and other foreign election observation missions.
  • Make public new, complete, and up-to-date voter lists, ensuring in particular that election monitoring groups are given full access to such lists. Voter lists should be prepared enough in advance to allow for scrutiny by election monitors.
  • Support legislation reversing the unreasonable restriction that in the previous election prevented diplomats who worked abroad from running for office.

In order to guarantee free and fair elections, it is essential that the government allow the mass media and judiciary to function without interference. Assurances of people’s personal security and the right to free and peaceful assembly are also vital to the exercise of a fair vote.  

Freedom of the Media

During the Bakiev period, government harassment of critical media and journalists increased and eroded the rights to freedom of expression and information. In 2009 alone, at least seven Kyrgyz journalists were physically attacked and one was murdered in neighboring Kazakhstan. You now have the opportunity to exercise leadership in guaranteeing freedom of expression and freedom of information in Kyrgyzstan.  

We welcome the interim government’s decision to relax media restrictions for broadcasters including to allow RFE/RL to resume its broadcasting. We are concerned, however, about recent reports that media outlets seem to have come under pressure by various actors. For example, on April 15, eighteen officers, apparently from the State Committee on National Security, arrived at the office of the private news-agency 24.kg. The officers forced the company’s staff to vacate the premises. Shortly thereafter, several representatives of local and international organizations arrived on the scene. The officers eventually left when a member of the interim government arrived and ordered them to discontinue the operation.  Also on April 15, court bailiffs arrived on the premises of Piramida, a private television station, and informed the owners that a court had awarded a creditor ownership over the station’s property because of outstanding debt. According to media reports, the creditor is a member of the interim government. Media and local organizations also reported that there had been attempts to forcibly gain control over the television station Channel 5. On April 16, Omurbek Tekebaev, deputy head of the interim government announced that the interim government would take control over both stations because they allegedly belong to President Bakiev’s son Maxim. On April 17, Mr. Tekebaev appointed a new head to Piramida. 

Human Rights Watch is concerned about these developments because if sustained or repeated with regard to yet more media outlets, such actions would seriously weaken independent media outlets. We call on you to instruct your government to abstain from any action that would compromise the independence of media outlets. We look to you to ensure that citizens have access to a diversity of opinion via all media and that critics do not risk retaliation for their views.  

Obligation to protect

Areas of the country remain unstable, and violence continues. For example, on April 19, five people died and many more were injured when several hundred looters tried to seize the land and homes of ethnic Russians and of Meskhetian Turks in the village of Mayevka, near Bishkek. The violence took place against a backdrop of spontaneous looting in other parts of Kyrgyzstan that affected ethnic Kyrgyz among others.    

We call on you to condemn unequivocally all manifestations of inter-ethnic intolerance, hate motivated crimes and damage to private property. We encourage you to meet with representatives of ethnic minority groups at the earliest possible date to establish dialogue and to assure these groups that they will be afforded all necessary protection and guaranteed equal treatment. We also urge you to take all measures to ensure that law enforcement agencies protect all individuals, including ethnic minorities, from violence. This is especially needed as groups of individuals have exploited the turbulent times to seize businesses, property, and land. Kyrgyz human rights groups have also criticized the lack of transparency in appointing individuals to administrative and business posts and report that various persons, including criminal groups, have unlawfully claimed such posts. This has put additional constraints on the activities of legal authorities and civil society. It is imperative that your government ensure public order so that all people can exercise their rights. All individuals living in Kyrgyzstan need to be assured that their rights and physical integrity are protected. This will be especially important during the politically sensitive period leading up to elections, and will be essential for the provision of a free and fair vote. In particular, we urge you to take action in accordance with the law and in keeping with international standards to make certain that no one uses violence or other means to intimidate voters or candidates and their supporters. 

Due Process Rights

In addition, we continue to receive reports about the detention of former members of Kurmanbek Bakiev’s administration, as well as of his relatives and those supposedly connected to him. For example on April 16 more than one hundred people protested the arrest of former defense minister Bakyt Kalyev, on charges of mass killings in relation to the April 6-7 events. On April 22 relatives of President Bakiev reported that one of Bakiev’s brothers, Akhmat Bakiev, disappeared after he had met with representatives of the interim government in the afternoon of April 21. Human Rights Watch understands that his whereabouts is still unknown, and we would urge you immediately to provide any information you have regarding his whereabouts and safety. We would recall that when someone is being deprived of their liberty and there is a failure to provide information about their whereabouts or fate, and they cannot avail of the legal protections to which they are entitled, this constitutes an enforced disappearance, a serious crime. 

In at least one case, that of Vugar Khalilov who was arrested on April 12, due process rights, specifically the right to counsel have already been compromised. Khalilov is a UK citizen and head of a public relations firm whose clients included MGN Group, a holding company headed by Maksim Bakiev’s business partner. Khalilov stands accused of money laundering for having received a bank loan of $350,000. Khalilov was arrested on April 12, but was allowed to meet his lawyer only on April 14, in the presence of guards. Finally on April 21, Khalilov was allowed to meet with his lawyer in private and have access to his consul; meanwhile, he was interrogated without benefit of counsel. Khalilov suffers from a herniated disc, which we understand requires medical treatment, which we would ask you ensure he is able to receive.

We remind your government of the importance of strictly adhering to national and international standards regarding the conduct of detentions, arrests, and trials. This includes the rights embraced in articles 9, 10 and 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) related to rights in detention and due process. We further recall that the government must not usurp the criminal justice system to settle political scores with the previous government. In addition, we urge that evidence regarding Bakyt Kalyev’s case be shared with any international organization that may independently investigate the events of April 6-7.  

Freedom of Assembly

The significance of people’s right to peacefully assemble in public cannot be underestimated. In July 2008 the Constitutional Court ruled that any licensing regime for public assemblies is unconstitutional. The decision effectively voided the highly restrictive 2007 Bishkek City Council ordinance regulating assemblies in the capital. Nevertheless, on August 6 Bakiev signed amendments to the 2002 law on freedom of assembly that essentially establish a licensing regime and limit possibilities for timely and spontaneous protests: The amended law requires assembly organizers to notify local authorities 12 days in advance of any planned event, regardless of the size and allows provincial governors excessive powers to interfere with the planning of public assemblies. These provisions were used by the Bakiev administration to restrict peaceful assemblies and led to numerous administrative arrests and fines especially in the run up to the presidential elections in summer 2009 and the recent protest in March this year. 

We hope that your administration will make a fresh start and will initiate new legislation on freedom of assembly that reverses the licensing regime introduced during the Bakiev period and is in accordance with Kyrgyzstan’s constitution and international standards. We hope you will start this process by first consulting with civil society groups that have studied this issue in-depth and soliciting their advice and views in crafting specific provisions of a new law.  

In the interim, we recommend that you issue a presidential decree affirming the right to freedom of assembly as provided in Kyrgyzstan’s constitution and article 21 of the ICCPR.  

Support for Civil Society

The Bakiev government refused to take into account the input of civil society groups and the general population on matters of government policy. The interim government and future governments can avoid alienating the public by initiating a genuine exchange of ideas directly with citizens and with civil society groups that advocate on their behalf. Engaging in meaningful dialogue and productive partnership with civil society actors, including human rights groups, would contribute to a positive outcome in this regard. The interim government has already pledged to do this with regard to constitutional reform. We look to you to consult with such groups regarding other politically sensitive and important issues such as the timing of presidential and parliamentary elections, the possible establishment of a constitutional referendum in July, and new legislation in areas affecting human rights. 

In early 2009 Kyrgyzstan’s civil society was shaken by draft amendments to the 2000 law “On noncommercial organizations” and the 1996 law “On state registration of legal entities.” The proposed amendments outlined new, arbitrary bases for rejecting the registration applications of NGOs, imposed onerous reporting requirements and administrative and financial obstacles on local and foreign NGOs, forbade NGOs from engaging in “political” activities, and set out a new regime of government inspections and warnings. When viewed in the context of a worsening climate for human rights, the amendments appeared intended to stifle Kyrgyzstan's vibrant civil society. After an outcry from local civil society groups and the international community, the presidential administration recommended that parliament postpone consideration of the amendments but civil society groups remained concerned about the atmosphere that bred the amendments. We call on you to reverse this trend by publicly acknowledging the work of civil society groups that promote the rule of law and the human rights of the people of Kyrgyzstan. 

Constitutional and Judicial Reform

We understand that the interim government intends to overhaul the constitution, that it has suspended the constitutional court, and that it has reserved the right to fire judges who were in disciplinary or criminal proceedings as of April 6-7.We urge you to send the new draft constitution to the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and to the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission for review and comments and to include these comments in the review of the current legislation. We also hope you will ensure, as your government statements indicated, that all parts of society have the opportunity to provide input to the draft constitution and that their recommendations will be given due consideration.  

It is crucial that the courts function as an effective check on the powers of the executive and legislature to establish a genuine separation of powers and a system of checks and balances. In this regard, we hope that special care will be taken to protect the independence of the judiciary. In line with this, decisions about hiring and firing of judges should be postponed until constitutional reform has been implemented and the mechanisms for the appointment of judges have been elaborated.  

Accounting for Past Abuses

Reopening proceedings related to the “Nookat events” in October 2008 remains an urgent public priority. We welcome the April 18 statement by Almaz Atambaev in Osh to release all 32 Nookat defendants, but in the interest of justice and restoration of people’s faith in government, we urge you to establish a credible and thorough accountability process for this incident. To demonstrate your government’s commitment to rule of law it is important to investigate the torture allegations made by defendants in this case and ensure that anyone who may have been responsible for acts of ill-treatment are held accountable.  

***** 

Violations of people’s fundamental rights increased during the last years of the Bakiev government and had a corrosive effect on society. The previous government’s lack of transparency and failure to respect the rule of law drove a wedge between government and the general population, giving rise to sentiments of alienation, disenfranchisement, and distrust. In the days and weeks surrounding the events of April 6-7, people in Kyrgyzstan made clear that they expect more of their government. You now have the opportunity to act on their expectations, to establish a responsive government that restores public confidence. 

We welcome dialogue with your government and appreciate your attention to these vital issues. 

Sincerely, 

Rachel Denber

Deputy Director

Europe and Central Asia division

Your tax deductible gift can help stop human rights violations and save lives around the world.

Region / Country