NUR-SULTAN — Human rights activists in Kazakhstan have slammed a authorities record of women and men killed throughout and after anti-government protests in January, calling it “inadequate.”
The unregistered Qaharman (Hero) human rights group mentioned in a assertion on August 17 that the record, launched by the federal government a day earlier, confirmed solely final names and initials of the victims.
The group demanded that detailed info on every sufferer be made public, together with first and patronymic names, ages, precise occasions of loss of life, causes and precise locations of loss of life, and the circumstances when the deaths occurred.
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The group additionally known as on Kazakh residents who misplaced folks within the unrest however didn’t see these victims on the record to contact it instantly.
Bakhytzhan Toreghozhina, a number one member of the Almaty-based human rights group Ar, Rukh, Khaq (Dignity, Spirit, Reality), mentioned the record supplied by the Prosecutor-Basic’s Workplace was incomplete.
“For instance, in the course of the unrest in Almaty, a 22-year-old citizen of Israel, Levon Kogeashvili, who resided in Kazakhstan for a number of years, was killed. However his identify just isn’t within the record. Why? We now have our personal record with all essential particulars, similar to names, ages, and cities the place they have been killed. We’ll make our record public within the coming days,” Toreghozhina mentioned.
On August 16, Kazakh authorities raised the loss of life toll from the unrest to 238, including six extra individuals who died in police custody to the unique tally.
Hundreds have been detained throughout and after the protests, which erupted when a peaceable demonstration in a western district over a fuel-price hike led to nationwide anti-government protests that have been violently dispersed by legislation enforcement and the navy.
President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev blamed the unrest on “20,000 terrorists” from overseas, a declare for which authorities supplied no proof. Russia briefly despatched troops to assist defend key authorities services.
In June, prosecutors mentioned the general loss of life toll stood at 232. Deputy Prosecutor-Basic Aset Shyndaliev additionally mentioned on the time that six folks had been tortured to loss of life after being arrested for participating within the January protests.
He additionally mentioned that an unspecified variety of safety officers had been arrested in reference to the alleged torture.
Eldos Qilymzhanov, a prime official with the Prosecutor-Basic’s Workplace, mentioned on August 16 that six people who have been detained in the course of the riots had died because of “unlawful strategies of interrogation by legislation enforcement buildings,” including that 15 legislation enforcement officers have been beneath investigation.
The Prosecutor-Basic’s Workplace mentioned earlier that 25 folks have been formally thought-about victims of torture and had been subjected to sizzling irons utilized by investigators throughout interrogations.
Human rights teams have mentioned the variety of killed demonstrators was a lot greater than any of the varied figures supplied by officers. The teams have supplied proof that peaceable demonstrators and individuals who had nothing to do with the protests have been amongst these killed by legislation enforcement and navy personnel.
The unrest led to the removing of former President Nursultan Nazarbaev and his family members from Kazakh politics. Some family members have been stripped of their posts, misplaced influential positions at firms, and even been arrested on corruption prices.
Kazakh authorities have rejected calls by Kazakh and world human rights teams for a global probe.
