Representatives of the civil society of Kyrgyzstan addressed the peoples of Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, the UN Secretary-General António Guterres, the member countries of the UN, the OSCE and the European Union, the President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov, the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the public and presidents of the CSTO member countries: Armenia, Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, as well as human rights organizations and the world community.
The address concerns the events in Kazakhstan that began on January 2 this year. It says that the civil society of Kyrgyzstan is concerned about the current situation in the neighboring country, the facts of violation of laws, international obligations, mass violations of human rights and, in particular, discrimination and violation of the rights of citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic.
«At the moment, we are aware of the facts of detention of young men by employees of the Kazakh border service — on the basis of citizenship of the Kyrgyz Republic when they legally cross the border between Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. At the same time, according to information, citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic are being beaten right at the place of detention. These actions are carried out with the aim of fabricating «evidence» of the participation of so-called foreign terrorists in the riots in the cities of Kazakhstan. Kazakh security forces are raiding markets and places of residence of «foreigners», namely citizens of neighboring Central Asian countries,» the statement says.
We, representatives of the public of Kyrgyzstan, express our protest against the ongoing lawlessness on the part of the authorities and special services of Kazakhstan in relation to citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic and other countries of Central Asia.
From the address of activists of Kyrgyzstan to the UN, OSCE, EU
The activists noted that they were outraged by the obvious facts of torture against a citizen of the Kyrgyz Republic Vikram Ruzakhunov, a well-known jazz pianist, whom law enforcement agencies of Kazakhstan tried to pass off as a «terrorist mercenary». The address notes that there is reason to believe that such cases are widespread, judging by the number of arrests and statements by the Kazakh President Tokayev.
Representatives of the civil society of the Kyrgyz Republic are asking UN Secretary-General António Guterres and the UN Special Procedures to consider the issues of mass violations of human rights in Kazakhstan during and after the protest meetings in January 2022, in particular, the use of the military not only of Kazakhstan, but also of the CSTO countries against the civilian population. They also demanded an independent international investigation into the events on January 2-12, 2022 in Kazakhstan.
The activists clarified that they believe that the CSTO should not interfere in the internal political processes of the Republic of Kazakhstan and any other state.
Mass protests in Kazakhstan began on January 2, 2022. Residents of Zhanaozen and Aktau in Mangistau region opposed the increase in prices for liquefied gas, then the protests spread to other regions. The situation is slowly stabilizing; the anti-terrorist operation continues. Internet access has been restored.
President of the republic Kassym-Jomart Tokayev introduced a state of emergency in the republic, dismissed the government and became the head of the Security Council. At his request, the CSTO countries sent peacekeeping forces to Kazakhstan. Scorpion special unit was sent to the republic from Kyrgyzstan.
The CSTO mission in Kazakhstan has been successfully completed.
