Free expression is not a crime and the authorities must end their misuse of the criminal justice system and the charge of ‘discord’ to suppress dissent and silence critical voices. These baseless charges must be dropped and Temirlan Ensebek should be immediately released from detention

Ahead of the start of the trial in Kazakhstan of Temirlan Ensebek, a blogger who has been charged with “inciting interethnic discord” and faces up to seven years in jail for a year-old post on his Instagram page, Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, said:  

“This is not the first time that the Kazakh authorities have targeted Temirlan Ensebek for his free expression. 

This politically motivated prosecution is part of a wider crackdown on civil society

“This politically motivated prosecution, which relies on a vague and overly broad definition of ‘incitement’ within Kazakhstan’s Criminal Code, is part of a wider crackdown on civil society.  

“Free expression is not a crime and the authorities must end their misuse of the criminal justice system and the charge of ‘discord’ to suppress dissent and silence critical voices. These baseless charges must be dropped and Temirlan Ensebek should be immediately released from detention.” 

Background  

Temirlan Ensebek, manages the satirical Instagram account Qaznews24. He was arrested on 17 January and remanded in pretrial detention for two months. 

He has been charged under article 174 of Kazakhstan’s Criminal Code on vague charges of “inciting interethnic discord”. 

Ensebek’s post on the Qaznews24 Instagram account featured a Russian TV presenter, with a song conveying hostile feelings against Russians.