Kazakhstan's Democratic Forces Forum |
| Appeal to the participants of the
Eurasian Media Forum II Dear colleagues, We, the journalists and editors of independent mass media of Kazakhstan, would like to draw your attention to the critical situation of freedom of speech in this country. As journalists, you should know that the Nazarbaev regime has been harshly criticized of late by the OSCE, Europarliament, the US Congress and international journalist associations for violations of human rights, freedom of speech and repressions against independent media. This criticism has been inspired by the politically motivated criminal prosecution of Kazakhstan opposition leaders and independent journalists. By putting a muzzle on the media, the Kazakhstan government has created an information blockade around its own crimes. As estimated by the Adyl Soz International Foundation for protection of freedom of speech in Kazakhstan, last year 278 charges were brought last year against Kazakhstan mass media and journalists, including about 100 charges of offending honor and dignity (mostly initiated by Kazakstan state officials). The total compensation for moral damage under suits filed last year against independent media amounts to KZT 478,270,000 (around USD 4,000,000). All the state and major private mass media are monopolized by Nazarbaev's family and officials from his inner circle. The majority of non-governmental journalist organizations in Kazakhstan are managed by Nazarbaev's daughter, Nazarbaev himself and people close to him. Mass media are harshly punished for criticizing those in power. As a result, their owners have developed a kind of phobia - self-censorship. Most of the 1,700 mass media registered in Kazakhstan either exist formally or have little potential, while others belong to the industrial and financial groups affiliated with the state authorities. The opposition press that is still "alive" is continuously persecuted by government bodies. It took the regime only one year to destroy all the independent TV channels: TAN, IRBIS, TV6+6, ERA. The editorial office of the newspaper Respublica and the printing house Ak Zhaiyk, which published opposition newspapers, have been burnt down. Staff of the newspaper SolDat have been beaten up. The Internet site NAVIGATOR has been closed by a court. Huge fines are being levied on the newspaper SolDat to make it go bankrupt. Judicial proceedings have been initiated against the newspapers SOZ, Kazakhstan, Economics. Finances. Markets, and Assandi-Times. Journalists working for independent media are subject to physical violence and criminal prosecution and made to leave the country. This is why you won't meet them at the forthcoming Almaty Forum and why you won’t be able to receive reliable information about the real media situation in the country. There is hardly anyone to discuss this situation, as the authorities have already done away with many independent journalists, including Sergey Duvanov (convicted under fabricated charges), Nuri Muphtakh (died under mysterious circumstances), Lira Baiseitova (seeking refuge in Switzerland), Bigeldy Gabdullin (a political refugee), Irina Petrushova (wanted by the financial police), Tatyana Deltsova (forced to leave Kazakhstan), Ermurat Bapi (on probation for criticizing the president), Gulzhan Ergalieva (her family have been brutally beaten up), Zhumabai Dospanov (prosecuted under 7 lawsuits filed against him by the local authorities), and so on. By holding a global-scale event and demonstrating its controlled media, the forum organizers are pursuing the goals that are important for them: gaining the image of a press-friendly country, smoothing over criticism from the international community and concealing the facts of harassment of independent media in Kazakhstan. A regime which represses freedom of speech in its own country has no moral right to organize and participate in forums held to support world media. SIGNATURES: Ermurat BAPI, Chief editor of "SolDat" Newspaper
KUB, April 21, 2003 |
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