The Civil Control Committee believes that Kamchybek Tashiev as Chairman of the State Committee for National Security threatens the national security of Kyrgyzstan, exceeds his official powers, usurps judicial powers and intimidates Parliament. Appeal of the organization to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges says.
Activists remind Kamchybek Tashiev that arrest as a measure of restraint is chosen not by the head of the State Committee for National Security, but by the court. Article 94 of the Constitution states that «a judge has the right to immunity and could not be detained or arrested, subjected to search or personal search, unless he or she was caught at the scene of a crime.»
The Civil Control Committee stresses that the judiciary is an independent branch of government and that the independence, impartiality and efficiency of the judiciary must be maintained and strengthened, rather than interfering and threatening judges.
Human rights activists urge the Council of Judges to send an emergency message to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges.
At his press conference on December 24, Kamchybek Tashiev said that a criminal case had been opened against the Chairwoman of the Supreme Court, Gulbara Kalieva.
The Council of Judges and the Supreme Court reacted sharply to this, stressing that such statements undermine the authority and stability of not only the judicial branch of government, but also the foundations of state power in general. The State Committee for National Security, in turn, called the position of the Council of Judges and the Supreme Court biased.
