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UN Special Rapporteurs get interested in Azimzhan Askarov’s case

The UN got interested in the case against a well-known human rights activist Azimzhan Askarov, who is serving a life sentence. Lawyer Valeryan Vakhitov told 24.kg news agency.

According to him, he handed over the documents to the Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues. The Supreme Court sent a cassation appeal of Azimzhan Askarov to the court of Bazar-Korgon district.

«As I was informed, the court’s office is now collecting all the necessary documents. I think that hearings on review of the case due to newly discovered circumstances will be held in the Supreme Court at the end of January. Documents on alienation of the only housing in accordance with the seizure order and that the Kyrgyz Government ignored the recommendations of the UN Human Rights Committee were also handed over to the Special Rapporteurs,» Valeryan Vakhitov said.

On December 2, the Supreme Court decriminalized a number of counts and commuted the punishment of the human rights defender under certain articles. However, the main article of the charge «Complicity in Murder» of the Criminal Code, under which Azimzhan Askarov received the life sentence, remained.

Azimzhan Askarov is accused of inciting ethnic hatred and murder of a policeman during the June events in the south of the republic in 2010.

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