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KYRGYZ
REPUBLIC
The law provides for certain freedoms of speech and of
the press; however, the Government at times infringed on
these rights.
The 1992 law
on the mass media provides for freedom of speech and the
mass media, and outlines registration procedures.
It identifies prohibited material: Government and
commercial secrets; material advocating war, violence or
intolerance toward ethnic or religious groups;
desecration of national norms, ethics, and symbols, such
as the national seal, flag, or anthem; pornography; and
encroachment on the honor and dignity of a person.
Two new laws, “On Guarantees and Free Access to
Information” and “On the Protection of the
Professional Activities of Journalists,” were
adopted in December 1997. One newspaper was closed
by the Government during the year, but no electronic
media were closed. No journalists were arrested or
imprisoned as a direct result of journalistic activities,
although several faced civil “honor and
dignity” charges in court cases brought by
parliamentarians or other public figures.
Libel is a
criminal, not a civil action. The Government
attempted at the end of 1997 and early this year to amend
the Criminal Code to remove libel; however, its efforts
were defeated in Parliament by an overwhelming
majority. As a result of the October 17 referendum,
the Constitution now includes language that precludes
Parliament from passing laws that infringe on free
speech. However, it remains unclear whether there
will be implementing legislation for this amendment.
There are
approximately 40 to 50 independent newspapers and
magazines, including some with local, not national,
standing. There are also several hours daily of
independent television and radio broadcasting.
However, state television, radio, and government
newspapers receive government subsidies, which permit the
Government to influence media coverage.
Additionally, the State’s printing house, Uchlan, is
the only newspaper publisher in the country. Thus,
the Government could be in a position to control or
pressure the independent newspapers, although there were
no reports of such pressure during the year.
Yrysbek
Omursakov, a journalist for Res Publica, who had been
sentenced in 1996 for libeling President Akayev, was
sentenced for libel again in May 1997, after writing a
series of articles on privatization. He was
released on bail in June 1997, but the charges remained
in force. He was sentenced in September 1997 to 6
months in a prison colony; he appealed the verdict but
was found guilty in November 1997. He was then
released under a presidential amnesty. The Supreme
Court found him guilty on January 20, according to the
Civil Code, not the Criminal Code and sentenced him to
pay a fine equal to 100 times the minimum monthly salary
(about $600), but the provision of amnesty exempted him
from having to pay. Omursakov returned to work at
Res Publica during the year.
In March 1997,
the newspaper Kriminal was closed as the result of a
trial initiated by the then Prime Minister: The
newspaper was sued after publishing an article that
accused the Prime Minister of constructing a huge house
for himself. In May 1997, Zamira Sadykova,
Aleksandr Alyanchikov, Bektash Shamshiyev, and Marina
Sivasheva of Res Publica were convicted of libel against
Dastan Sarygulov, the head of the gold mining concern,
Kyrgyzaltyn. Sadykova and Alyanchikov received
18-month sentences; Shamshiev and Sivasheva were fined
and barred from working as journalists for 18
months. After an appeal, the court suspended
Alyanchikov’s sentence, although his 18-month ban on
journalistic activity remained in effect and overturned
Shamshiyev’s and Sivasheva’s sentences.
The court did not overturn Sadykova’s sentence but
had her moved to a more lenient place of detention.
All media must
register with the Ministry of Justice and wait for
ministry approval before beginning to operate. The
media law states that the registration process will take
1 month. During the year, there was one report
concerning a media organization that could not register
in a timely manner. The owners of Asaba, having
filed documents in June to register another newspaper in
Russian, were unable to do so until December.
During the
first half of the year, all television and radio stations
were to be registered (licensed) with the newly
established National Agency for Communications (NAC) or
reregistered if they had a registration with the
NAC’s predecessor, the Committee on Frequencies
under the Prime Minister. The NAC requires
extensive paperwork for registration, including copies of
documents on education and training received by the
staff, and specifications of the equipment used.
Many
independent television and radio stations have received
licenses. Among them were Pyramid, Independent
Bishkek Television (NBT), Vostochnaya Strana (VOSST),
Asia Center, Open Channel, and Europa Plus. The
registration fee ranges from approximately $500 to $1,000
(10,000 to 20,000 som). Licenses issued are valid
for 3 to 7 years (the duration of validity was determined
by the NAC based on its evaluation of a company’s
viability). Other independent television and radio
companies are in the process of reregistration, including
Osh Television, Mezon Television, Radio Almaz stations in
Bishkek and Osh, and several others.
There are two
television stations in Osh that broadcast in Uzbek:
Osh Television (some programs) and Mezon Television (all
programs). The latter was founded by the Mezon
Uzbek Ethnic Center to serve the needs of the large Uzbek
population of Osh.
Licensing has
been complicated for nongovernment broadcasters. In
August the NAC notified licensees of a new government
provision. Entitled “Provisions on Licensing
Activities in the Area of Communications in the Kyrgyz
Republic, Article 33,” it provides that those
holding licenses pay for all expenses connected with
carrying out supervisory functions under the license
agreements. Additionally, since mid-August the
nongovernment electronic media began receiving standard
notices from the NAC, signed by its director Orozaly
Kaiykov, stating that the obligation to broadcast in the
state language was not being fulfilled and that
broadcasters were relying mainly on foreign music and
programming. Despite an extended series of meetings
since September between the NAC and media officials,
these issues, which the media view as a form of
censorship, were not resolved by year’s end.
On August 15,
with only 1 month’s notice, the independent Kyrgyz
language newspaper Asaba was evicted from its offices
after renting space there for 32 years. The
building now belongs to the MVD. According to
reports in other independent newspapers, Res Publica and
Vecherniy Bishkek, the primary reason for the eviction
was that Asaba (an opposition newspaper) had published
articles critical of the Government. The staff and
supporters of Asaba organized a peaceful demonstration on
August 15 to protest the Government’s action, but
the MVD did not change its decision to evict Asaba.
The newspaper continued to publish from the editor’s
home until moving into new offices at the end of
September. Asaba also reported ongoing problems
with the tax authorities that were not resolved by
year’s end.
On September
21, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Parliament,
Ishenbay Kadyrbekov, brought suit in the Laninsky
regional court in Bishkek against a journalist, Kalen
Sydykova. Sydykova was charged under Article 18 of
the Civil Code for her publication of an article entitled
“Crime in Parliament or Ventures of Presumptuous
Members of Parliament” in the newspaper Kylmysh Jana
Jaza (Crime and Punishment) on June 11. She was
accused of harming the dignity and honor of a Member of
Parliament (M.P.) and the statements in her publication
were considered to include “rude insinuations and
defamation.” The M.P. claimed $50,000 (1
million soms) in compensation. At year’s end,
the rayon court found Sydykova not guilty, but the case
was being appealed to a higher court.
In September
Bermet Bukasheva, the chief editor of the newspaper
Litsa, was charged with defaming Minister of Finance,
Talaibek Koichumanov. Bukasheva was found guilty in
September, fined $500 (10,000 soms), and ordered to print
a retraction. She intended to appeal this decision
to the city court; however, Koichumanov (who is no longer
Finance Minister) agreed not to press for the fine and
retraction, if Bukasheva did not appeal the case.
On October 19,
the Minister of Justice suspended three newspapers:
Kartama-Digest (the successor to Kattama); Limon; and
Pajshamba (a supplement to Asaba) for pornography as a
result of pressure from an M.P. and from the
public. Kartama-Digest had published only one issue
and was closed before the case was filed. A
recently established Morals Commission accurately charged
that these newspapers contained material that was
pornographic or offensive to the public taste.
However, other equally pornographic publications were
left alone, suggesting that the case against Limon
(linked to Akipress) and Pajshamba (linked to Asaba) may
have been politically motivated. Both Limon and
Pajshamba have reached an accommodation with the Ministry
of Justice. Limon will continue to publish,
although it will eliminate its pornographic
content. Pajshamba published one more issue before
going out of business at the end of the year. Asaba
attempted to revise Pajshamba and intended to establish a
new journal (Juuchu) in 1999.
The Morals
Commission, a presidentially appointed body of newspaper
editors, university rectors, religious leaders, and
public figures, was tasked with reviewing the print and
broadcast media as well as videos and other activity to
determine whether the content is pornographic or violent
in nature. Upon finding that an item was
pornographic, the Commission was charged with requesting
legal action be taken against organizations and
individuals violating its “decency
precepts.” The Morals Commission was closed by
presidential decree in January 1999.
In December
Parliament passed a new law on advertising which limits
the amount of advertising to 20 percent in the print
media and to 25 percent in the broadcast media.
This legislation will affect the revenue of the
independent media; therefore, a lawsuit is being prepared
to test its constitutionality.
Academic
freedom is respected.
Commentary
In general, we agree with the report’s conclusion
that laws in the Kyrgyz Republic guarantee freedoms of
speech and press, but that infringements on these rights
occur. The report presents an accurate assessment
of the type and severity of these infringements; however,
a few more instances should be noted. First of all,
a 1998 law “On Electronic and Postal
Communications” contradicts guarantees of press
freedom in the 1997 law on mass media. As yet, this
contradiction has not been challenged in court.
Secondly, the appearance of a quasi-independent
broadcaster has skewed the playing field for television
outlets. Finally, some additional cases of pressure
on media outlets should be noted.
“On
Electronic and Postal Communications.”
In 1998, parliament passed the law “On Electronic
and Postal Communications.” Among its
provisions, the law gives the National Communications
Agency (“NAS”) the right to close down a
broadcaster by revoking its license. This
contradicts the 1997 law on mass media, which says that
no mass media outlet can be closed without the decision
of a court. This contradiction has not been
challenged in court, and broadcasters believe it allows
NAS to exert strong pressure on their activities.
NAS maintains that it only considers technical issues,
but it has on occasion requested programming information
from independent broadcasters in addition to the
information demands listed in the report.
KOORT.
Although it first went on the air in 1997, the broadcast
outlet KOORT became increasingly prominent in 1998.
KOORT’s status as an independent broadcaster is not
clear. The business is registered in a free trade
zone, so information on its founders is not public.
It is not registered as a mass media outlet, which would
require disclosure of its founding documents. KOORT
uses a valuable VHF television frequency that is licensed
to a government agency, and the terms for its use have
not been disclosed. KOORT styles itself as
independent public television, but it is a for-profit
company. Officials have stated that the majority of
shares are owned independently, implying a government
role. KOORT’s VHF frequency is extremely
valuable, because Soviet-era televisions cannot receive
UHF broadcasts. KOORT also was granted rights to
sell local advertising on the Russian channels RTR and
ORT, which broadcast nationwide. This gives it a
large commercial advantage over other broadcasters.
KOORT is widely believed to be government-financed and is
tied to President Akaev.
Pressure
on Media. The report correctly states that
no independent broadcasters were closed during 1998;
however, this understates the pressure independent
broadcasters felt during the relicensing process.
In January 1998, NAS declared all permissions to
broadcast issued by its predecessor invalid and announced
that all television and radio stations in the country had
to apply for frequency licenses. Between January
and March, NAS ordered five out of nine existing radio
stations and ten out of fourteen television stations to
cease broadcasting for technical or administrative
reasons. However, NAS head Oruzbek Kaikov made it
clear that the stations had displeased him in one way or
another.
In response,
the Association of Independent Electronic Mass Media
wrote an open letter to President Akaev and appealed to
international organizations for support. Akaev then
ordered Kaikov resolve the issue immediately. At a
March 10 meeting with station owners and ANESMI, Kaikov
promised to issue new licenses by summer and permitted
all stations to begin broadcasting again until they
received a license. An ANESMI member was also
included on the licensing commission. The report
correctly states that a number of broadcasters did
receive licenses in 1998. The remaining
broadcasters received licenses in March 1999. A
dispute remains over the license issued to OshTV, which
grants the broadcaster a VHS frequency only until January
2000. OshTV broadcasts in Uzbek, Russian, and
Kyrgyz but is owned by an ethnic Uzbek. The owner
believes the decision to shift his channel to a UHF
frequency is politically motivated. NAS argues that
OshTV’s signal interferes with other broadcasters
and says the move is necessary to comply with
international guidelines for frequency use.
The report
also leaves out one additional case against journalists
in 1998. In December, parliamentary deputy
Tursunbai Bakir Uulu, chairman of the human rights
committee, called for the prosecutor general to bring
libel charges against journalists from four
newspapers: Asaba, Res Publica, Ordo, and Kyrgyz
Ruhu. The prosecutor has not made a formal decision
on whether to pursue the cases.
Bill Slakey
Internews Kyrgyz Republic
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