Kyrgyzstan Remains On Human Rights Watchlist As ‘Foreign Agent’ Law Comes Into Force And Media Crackdown Widens

Kyrgyzstan remains on a watchlist of countries that have seen a rapid decline in civic freedoms, following the enactment of a repressive “foreign agent” law.

The new watchlist is released by the CIVICUS Monitor, an online platform that tracks the latest developments to civic freedoms, including the freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly, across 198 countries and territories. Other countries included on the list are El Salvador, Mali, Palestine and Thailand.

After Kyrgyzstan was first placed on the watchlist in March, the Kyrgyz parliament passed a controversial“foreign agent” lawtargeting non-governmental organisations (NGOs).

Despite widespread criticism from civil society, human rights groups and the international community, President Sadyr Japarov gave his final approval to the law on 2 April. He defended his decision with the unfounded claims that NGOs currently operate without supervision and misuse grants. Although the law has been argued to ensure transparency, its true intent appears to be to suppress scrutiny and criticism of those in power.

Under the new law, all NGOs that receive funding from abroad and engage in so-called “political activities” must now register as “foreign representatives” by 16 July. All those who do not comply risk suspension of their activities or liquidation. Some organisations have already announced they would shut down their operations rather than risk the law’s potential consequences.

After alengthy trial, more than 20 journalists, activists, human rights defenders and opposition activists who had been arrested in the so-called Kempir Abad case were acquitted by the court on 14 June. However, the public prosecutor’s office hasappealedagainst this verdict and the authorities continue to detain critics on trumped-up charges and threaten them with heavy prison sentences.

Also in June, 11 journalists from the investigative group Temirov Live, arrested in January 2024 went on trial on charges of calling for “disobedience” and riots. If convicted, they could face up to eight years in prison in retaliation for their reporting. Four of them remained in pre-trial detention at the start of the trial, including Makhabat Tajibek kyzy, the director of Temirov Live and wife of its chief editor, Bolot Temirov, who was expelled from the country in 2022. She reported having been beaten by a prison officer in April, with her injuries confirmed by the Ombudsperson’s office. However, in June, the prosecutor’s office closed the investigation into her allegations, accusing her of staging her own injuries.

The space for free expression in Kyrgyzstan continues to shrink. In May 2024, the court decision to shut down the investigative portal Kloop was upheld on appeal. A widely criticised draft media law remains under consideration and the government is advancing legislation allowing the Ministry of Culture to fine individuals and organisations for “slander” and “insults” disseminated via media and online without a court hearing. Additionally, an increasing number of blogger-activists have faced criminal charges for their social media posts and civic engagement. For example, writer-activist Olzhobay Shakir was recently sentenced to five years in prison, poet-musician Askat Zhetigen to three years in prison, and human rights activist Ondurush Toktonasyrov fined the equivalent of around 1000 EUR because of social media posts.

Kyrgyzstan’s civic space is currently rated “repressed,” the second-worst rating a country can receive. Following its downgrade from “obstructed” in December 2023, all Central Asian countries are now rated either “repressed” or “closed.”