Since January 7, Kazakh authorities have sentenced at least three journalists to periods of detention ranging from 10 to 15 days, and summoned at least six journalists for questioning in connection with their coverage of nationwide protests that broke out on January 4, according to multiple news reports, a preliminary report on violations of journalists’ rights during and after the protests by independent local free speech organization Adil Soz, an unpublished document from the Kazakh Ministry of Information on incidents involving journalists shared with CPJ, and CPJ interviews with local journalists.

“It is unacceptable that Kazakh authorities should jail journalists for reporting and commenting on events of huge public importance, and outrageous that journalists should be questioned about links to so-called ‘extremist’ organizations simply for doing their jobs,” said Gulnoza Said, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator, in New York. “Investigations into the protests must not be used as a pretext to settle scores with critical journalists. Authorities should quash the convictions of journalists Daryn Nursapar, Nurzhan Baimuldin, and Lukpan Akhmedyarov, and cease summoning members of the press over their presence at the demonstrations.” On January 7, law enforcement officers in the eastern city of Ust-Kamenogorsk arrested Daryn Nursapar, editor of state-owned local news website Altaynews.kz, and charged him with participating in an illegal demonstration, Adil Soz reported, and on January 9, a city court sentenced the journalist to 15 days’ detention. Management from the news site’s parent company had forbidden its journalists from attending the protests, but Nursapar felt it was his professional obligation to cover the protest, and posted videos in Ust-Kamenogorsk on his Facebook page on January 5, according to Adil Soz. On January 17, an East Kazakhstan regional court reduced the journalist’s sentence to seven days, at the prosecutor’s request, and freed him, according to a report by Adil Soz.

In a separate incident, on January 6 police in the northern city of Kokshetau arrested Baqyt Smaghul, chief editor of independent local newspaper Bukpa, and later that day a court sentenced him to five days’ detention on charges of organizing a peaceful gathering during a state of emergency, according to a January 13 Adil Soz report and Smaghul, who spoke to CPJ by phone. Smaghul had been appointed by local authorities to a committee formed to prevent youth from violently protesting, he told CPJ. On January 6, the journalist saw a crowd of youth gathered in the city and approached them, both as a journalist and a committee member, and tried to calm them, when police arrested him alongside the protestors.

Smaghul said he believes the police and court ignored his rationale of acting as a committee member because Bukpa covers topics that state-owned newspapers avoid, such as corruption. CPJ did not include this case in the total number of journalists detained for their protest coverage, as CPJ was unable to confirm that Smaghul was detained in direct connection with his journalism.

CPJ emailed the Interior Ministry and the office of the prosecutor-general of Kazakhstan for comment on the detentions and questioning of journalists, and requesting details about the charges against Abzhan, but did not immediately receive a reply.