Kazakhstan's human rights violations and "shooting without warning" must be internationally investigated

Written declaration No. 734 | Doc. 15452 | 08 February 2022

Signatories:

Mr Frank SCHWABE, Germany, SOC ; Ms Petra BAYR, Austria, SOC ; Ms Margreet De BOER, Netherlands, SOC ; Ms Laura CASTEL, Spain, UEL ; Mr Jeremy CORBYN, United Kingdom, SOC ; Ms Heike ENGELHARDT, Germany, SOC ; Ms Christiana EROTOKRITOU, Cyprus, SOC ; Mr Pierre-Alain FRIDEZ, Switzerland, SOC ; Ms Latifa GAHOUCHI, Belgium, SOC ; Ms Kamila GASIUK-PIHOWICZ, Poland, EPP/CD ; Mr Gerardo GIOVAGNOLI, San Marino, SOC ; Sir Tony LLOYD, United Kingdom, SOC ; Mr Max LUCKS, Germany, SOC ; Mr Gianni MARILOTTI, Italy, SOC ; Ms Barbara NOWACKA, Poland, NR ; Ms Filiz POLAT, Germany, SOC ; Mr Roberto RAMPI, Italy, SOC ; Ms Tabea RÖSSNER, Germany, SOC ; Mr Krzysztof ŚMISZEK, Poland, SOC ; Ms Derya TÜRK-NACHBAUR, Germany, SOC ; Mr Miroslav ŽIAK, Slovak Republic, EC/DA

This written declaration commits only those who have signed it.

We, the undersigned, declare the following:

We condemn the Kazakh Government-sponsored disinformation campaign about 20 000 unidentified terrorists who are allegedly responsible for inciting unrest to justify the internet and telecommunications blackouts, the massive persecution, torture of activists Berik Abishov, Yerbol Borlibay and human rights defenders, Raigul Sadyrbayeva and Aliya Isenova.

President Tokayev's order to "shoot people without warning", among them very peaceful protesters and citizens described as international terrorists, violates Kazakhstan's international obligations and should be revoked immediately.

The deployment of troops from the Collective Security Treaty Organisation, a military bloc led by the Russian Federation, to Kazakhstan on official request based on wrong information to assist the Kazakh Government against protesters is unacceptable and should be investigated internationally. The 10 000 arbitrarily detained protesters and political prisoners, such as Bekizhan Mendygaziev, Yerulan Amirov, Kairat Klyshev, Saltanat Kusmankyzy, must be released unconditionally.

Kazakhstan uses extra-judicial methods of persecution abroad and abuses mechanisms of legal co-operation against individuals associated with the opposition movement Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan and its leader Mukhtar Ablyazov, such as Zamanbek Tleuliyev, Yeldos Nasipbekov, Tatiana Paraskevich, Bota Jardemali.

We stand by the recommendations of the European Parliament in its resolution on the situation in Kazakhstan, adopted on 20 January 2022, and call for an international investigation and reviewing sanctions on high-level Kazakh officials.