Karakalpak Activists Detained in Kazakhstan Convicted in Absentia at Home

The trials took place in early September 2023 after it became clear that Kazakhstan would not extradite the activists. As Memorial learned, all five Karakalpak activists detained in Kazakhstan in the fall of 2022 at Tashkent's request and released a year later were convicted in absentia, the Turkmen Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights reports. 

Zhangeldi Dzhaksymbetov was sentenced to ten years and one month in a general regime colony, Tleubike Yuldasheva to eight and a half years, and Ziuar Mirmanbetova to eight years. The court sentenced Koshkarbay Toremuratov to five years and one month in a high-security colony and Raisa Khudaybergenov to three years in a penal colony.

Dzhaksymbetov has been found guilty of conspiracy to seize power, public calls for mass riots, inciting discord, and distributing materials threatening public safety via the Internet.

Yuldasheva has also been accused of conspiracy, organizing mass riots, publicly insulting the President of Uzbekistan, publicly calling for altering the state system, and distributing materials threatening public safety via the Internet.

Mirmanbetova is accused of conspiracy, public calls for mass riots, inciting discord, and distributing materials threatening public safety via the Internet.

Toremuratov - public calls for altering the state system, distributing materials through the Internet threatening public safety.

Khudaibergenova - public calls for altering the state system.

Human rights organizations consider these charges to be fabricated and the trials themselves to be formal and violations of civil rights. The accused were represented by a state-appointed lawyer who had no contact with them. The activists were not questioned on the charges, although their whereabouts had been known.

Since 2019, at least 132 people have been convicted in Karakalpakstan on political charges. Meanwhile, 63 have faced charges over the unrest in Karakalpakstan in July 2022. At least 48 remain in custody, in most of the remaining cases, the courts have ruled on the restriction of freedom under regular monitoring by law enforcement agencies along with travel and Internet use bans.

Original Author: Ksenia Polyanitsa

DISCLAIMER: This is a translated piece. The text has been modified, the content is the same. Please refer to the original piece in Russian for accuracy.