Tag Archives: law

Kazakhstan to start chemical castrations

SEPT. 24 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kazakhstan’s ministry of health said that it would start chemically castrating men convicted of paedophilia in accordance with a law passed earlier this year. Other countries that already chemically castrate paedophiles include Indonesia, Poland, South Korea and some states in the US. Media quoted Lyazat Aktayeva, the deputy health minister, as saying that up to 2,000 chemical castrations could be carried out.
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>>This story was published in issue 387 of The Conway Bulletin on Oct. 1 2018

Kyrgyz President drops libel case

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FEB. 5 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kyrgyz president Sooronbai Jeenbekov dropped a $73,500 libel suit against the 24.kg news agency for publishing a story which said that he and his brother had ties to “radical Arab organisations”. Although he wants damages, Mr Jeenbekov’s decision to drop the libel suit will play well to free speech activists who have accused Kyrgyzstan of adopting some its neighbours’ autocratic leanings. Mr Jeenbekov’s predecessor, Almazbek Atambayev, was notoriously litigious and wouldn’t baulk at bankrupting media outlets.
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>>This story was first published in issue 360 of The Conway Bulletin

Georigan government wants tougher sentences for gang members

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FEB. 3 (The Conway Bulletin) – The Georgian government wants to bring in legislation that will increase the punishments for being a so-called Thieves-in-Law, media reported. This is the phrase used to describe the bosses of various criminal gangs. Membership of a criminal gang was only made a crime in 2005. Since then organised crime, which used to be a major industry in Georgia, has been on the decline. Currently, members of a criminal gang can be sent to prison for five to eight years and leaders for up to 10 years. The proposals will increase this to 10 and 15 years.

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>>This story was first published in issue 360 of The Conway Bulletin

Three prosecutors sacked in Kazakhstan

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JAN. 31 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kazakhstan appears to be having a clear out within the ranks of its legal system after the sacking of three senior prosecutors. Almaty city prosecutor, Gabit Mirazov, and the deputy prosecutors of the Aktyubinsk region, Daniyar Syzdykov, and South-Kazakhstan oblast, Abil Kozhakhmetov, were sacked for various misdemeanours.

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>>This story was first published in issue 360 of The Conway Bulletin

Kazakhstan agrees prison officer training deal with UK

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AUG. 31 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — On a trip to Kazakhstan aimed at persuading Kazakh companies to list their stocks on the London Stock Exchange, Alan Duncan, the British minister for Europe and the Americas said that he had agreed a deal to help train up Kazakh prison officers. Prison reform is high on the list of changes demanded by human rights activists of Kazakhstan. The country has spent millions on improving conditions but lobby groups say that it still has a long way to go.

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(News report from Issue No. 342, published on Sept. 7 2017)

Uzbekistan repeals exit visas

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AUG. 16 2017 (The Bulletin) — Uzbek president Shavkat Mirziyoyev has signed into law a decree that will scrap exit visas from Jan. 2019, state media reported. Repealing the exit visas is one of the most high-profiles decisions taken by Mr Mirziyoyev who has crafted himself as a moderniser and a reformer since taking over the presidency after the death of Islam Karimov in September 2016.

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(News report from Issue No. 340, published on Aug. 20 2017)

Uzbekistan says to scrap exit visas

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TASHKENT, AUG. 8 2017 (The Bulletin) — Uzbekistan will lift exit-visa requirements, media reported by quoting officials, potentially making it easier for millions of Uzbeks to travel abroad to find work.

Exit-visas are a hated hangover from the Soviet Union and, even if they were not difficult to obtain for most ordinary Uzbeks, were a reminder of the authoritarian nature of the regime. Scrapping them is another indication of the liberal reforms ushered in by Shavkat Mirziyoyev, president since September 2016 when Islam Karimov died. He has also promised to change foreign currency controls and also to encourage more foreign investment, as well as relax social controls, such as laws stipulating when bars and restaurants have to close.

Uzbekistan, like the rest of Central Asia, is reliant on remittances sent back from Uzbeks working abroad to bolster its economy. Most of these remittance payments are sent back to Uzbekistan from Russia.

Uzbekistan’s foreign ministry said a presidential decree on relaxing exit visas had already been drafted and government agencies were considering various pieces of legislation.

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(News report from Issue No. 339, published on Aug. 13 2017)

Uzbek officials consider easing cafe curfew

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TASHKENT, JULY 20 2017 (The Bulletin) — Uzbek officials said they would consider softening restrictions on cafe and restaurant opening times, a curfew blamed for stunting the development of Uzbekistan’s nightlife.

Although officials didn’t give any details, cafe owners and staff welcomed the news as another step towards opening up Uzbekistan since the death last year of President Islam Karimov. A waitress who works at a small summer cafe in Tashkent told a Bulletin correspondent that she currently closes the cafe when it is still full of customers.

“We have to close at a very time when we have a good flow of clients,” she said.

Local bars and restaurants in Tashkent are, officially at least, only allowed to open until 11pm, cutting the evenings short. In neighbouring Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, restaurants and cafes stay open late.

Not that the rules are applied evenly, an employee at another Tashkent restaurant explained.

“If you have money and powerful contacts you can freely serve the clients at any time of the day. All you have to do is to please the police and other officials,” he said.

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(News report from Issue No. 337, published on July 27 2017)

Tajikistan sets up fashion commission

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JULY 21 2017 (The Bulletin) — Concerned about so-called ‘Alien’ clothing, the Tajik government has set up a special commission to persuade ordinary Tajiks to dress in traditional clothes, media reported. Officials in Tajikistan are worried about the spread of extremist Islam and have waged various campaigns against beards that they consider to be too long and also against women’s clothes considered to be too conservative, such as the hijab.

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(News report from Issue No. 337, published on July 27 2017)

Uzbekistan to reform tax collection system

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JULY 19 2017 (The Bulletin) — The authorities in Uzbekistan have said that they intend to reform the country’s tax system in line with a swathe of liberalisations across the country. It is unclear what officials meant by this but media reported that the government wanted to increase the amount of tax collected and cut down on corruption.

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(News report from Issue No. 337, published on July 27 2017)