Voice of Democracy
Published by Kazakhstan 21st Century Foundation · Washington, D.C. Mar. 14, 2003

FOREGONE CONCLUSION -- In a country where the president declared the defendant guilty weeks before his trial, it should come as no surprise that he was quickly convicted, and now his appeal has been rejected. The case of investigative journalist Sergei Duvanov has drawn international attention and condemnation. The U.S. State Department said the appeals court decision provoked "concern about the lack of due process" in Kazakhstan. Duvanov's lawyers said they intend to appeal to the country's highest court. International observers who had been told they could attend the appeals court hearing were locked out at the last minute. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) called the trial "flawed," and quite possibly "politically motivated," citing procedural irregularities and the apparent lack of evidence. "His trial followed a wave of violent assaults against [Duvanov and other]independent journalists in Kazakhstan and the firebombing of a newspaper office," reported Agence France-Presse. "Reporters linked the incidents to investigations [by Duvanov] into allegations that Nazarbayev and his entourage funneled money into secret Swiss bank accounts." http://www.nytimes.com/, http://www.ap.org, http://www.afp.com/english/home/

FRAMED -- A Dutch diplomat has indicated the sexual assault charges against crusading Kazakh journalist Sergei Duvanov were "fabricated at the behest of the country's authoritarian leadership," reports the New York Times. Duvanov and his supporters have long maintained he was framed, a view shared by many independent observers. The formal charges were rape of an under-aged girl but his real crime was writing about international corruption investigations targeting President Nazarbayev and his inner circle. "There can be little doubt that Duvanov was the victim of a politically motivated secret operation of the security organs to discredit him," said the confidential report by the Dutch diplomat who sat through the trial as an official observer. "Especially worrying is the extent to which the security organs are apparently able and prepared to abuse their powers to subvert the judicial process, raising serious concerns about the rule of law in Kazakhstan." The Nazarbayev regime has come under growing international attack for "tolerating and sanctioning harassment of opposition journalists," reported the Times. "In the last two years, newspapers and television outlets have been firebombed and closed by court orders. Reporters and editors have been imprisoned, threatened and, in Mr. Duvanov's case, beaten and stabbed." The Dutch diplomat said the trial was "fatally flawed" by what the Times called " a welter of conflicting statements, tainted evidence and apparent fabrications." He said it became clear the charges were politically motivated when he witnessed a "pattern of subversion and manipulation of the judicial process" by state security officials. Duvanov was charged with raping a 14-year-old girl, but the Dutch diplomat reported evidence suggested she was older than 14, not a virgin as she had claimed, and might have given birth shortly before Duvanov was arrested, may have been paid off for her testimony, and police may have planted evidence in Mr. Duvanov's home. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/13/international/europe/13RUSS.html?tntemail0

ASYLUM -- The decision to grant political asylum in the United States to the daughter of independent newsman Sergei Duvanov is further evidence that Washington is convinced that Kazakhstan has become a dangerous place not only for journalists but for their families as well. Dinisa Duvanova’s father is a human rights activist and investigative reporter who wrote about corruption investigations that reached all the way up to President Nazarbayev, who, reported the Wall Street Journal, " has become increasingly authoritarian and impatient with dissent." Ms. Duvanova is currently working on her Ph. D. in political science at Ohio State University. She said she will not seek permanent residence in the United States and hopes to return to Kazakhstan to work to build a democratic society, according to Voice of America. http://www.voa.gov/, http://public.wsj.com/home.html

GETTING THE NEWS BEFORE IT HAPPENS -- The state-run newspaper, Kazakhstanskaya Pravda, in keeping with the tradition of its boss, President Nazarbayev who declared Duvanov guilty weeks before his trial even opened, said it was such an open and shut case that international observers didn't both waiting for the verdict. "Convinced that Duvanov was obviously guilty of rape, many representatives [from international organizations] left the courtroom and did not wait for the court proceedings to end," reported Kazakhstanskaya Pravda. The board of appeal of the Almaty Regional Court not only upheld his conviction but upgraded the level of his crime to a greater offense.http://www.kazpravda.Kazakhstan, http://news.bbc.co.uk/

For the full stories, see the web citations above or contact us at News@Kazakhstan21.org. The Kazakhstan 21st Century Foundation promotes democracy and human rights in Kazakhstan through public affairs and educational programs in the United States and Europe. This material is distributed by Kazakhstan 21st Century Foundation.