Hamid Ismailov was appointed a Regional Director of Azattyk radio. As a Kazakhstani journalist Asem Tokayeva posted on Facebook, from now on, civil activists in Kazakhstan and abroad, who are actively monitoring the Kazakh editorial office of the RFE / RL, will have someone to ask to start reform in the crisis editorial office, put an end to nepotism and betrayal of the mission, to get rid of propagandists and hire professionals based on an open competition.
Hamid Ismailov previously headed the Central Asian editorial offices at BBC.
He will oversee five Central Asian editorial offices of RFE / RL.
An internal conflict also occurred in the Kyrgyz editorial office of Azattyk. A well-known journalist Bermet Bukasheva reported that her program was closed without any explanation. Her labor contract was not renewed without explanation, too. «I was driven out of Azattyk,» she admitted. Another journalist, Elnura Alkanova, also complained about biased attitude. Both left Azattyk.
Asem Tokaeva believes that the new regional director Hamid Ismailov will need time, because he will have to put things in order at all five Central Asian editorial offices. According to her, it took the current president of Radio Liberty, Jamie Fly, five months to appoint a new regional director for Central Asia, following a difficult competition.
