The IPI global network today condemns the decision by a court in Bishkek to ban three major independent outlets in Kyrgyzstan and designate them as “extremist” just weeks before snap parliamentary elections are due to be held in the country.
The decision to ban the content produced by the outlets was made on October 27 by the Oktyabr District Court of Bishkek, after a criminal case was opened by Kyrgyzstan’s State Committee for State Security. This was the first time Kyrgyz authorities weaponized legislation on “extremism” to legally ban a media outlet’s content in the country. Subscribing, sharing and liking content produced by “extremists” is illegal in Kyrgyzstan, although it remains unclear how authorities will now apply the decision.
The proceedings targeted Kloop, Temirov Live and Ayt Ayt Dese, which are all popular independent media outlets critical of the government in Kyrgyzstan. The founders of the media outlets, Rinat Tukhvatshin and Bolot Temirov, were also designated as “extremists”.
A highly influential media outlet and IPI member, Kloop was awarded the 2024 IPI-IMS Media Pioneer Award, for its “fearless accountability journalism and dedication to fostering quality media and democratic ideals in Kyrgyzstan”. In 2023, Kyrgyz authorities had already disbanded the legal entity of Kloop in Kyrgyzstan, following an earlier decision to block the outlet’s website.
In January 2024, authorities in Bishkek had also jailed 11 media workers linked to Temirov Live.
In its decision, a copy of which was shared with IPI, the Oktyabr District Court claimed that the three media outlets had conducted “psychological terrorism” and “informational extremism”. According to the court, the “terrorism” and “extremism” of the outlets amounted to publishing news which created a “negative attitude” towards the government of Kyrgyzstan. The court did not cite any specific materials published by the outlets which would have amounted to “extremism”.
Reacting to the decision, the founders of Kloop, Temirov Live and Ayt Ayt Dese claimed that authorities had not informed them of the ongoing court case targeting their outlets. Rinat Tukhvatshin, the co-founder of Kloop, as well as Bolot Temirov, the founder of Temirov Live and Ayt Ayt Dese, said that their outlets would appeal the court decision.
“The decision to ban three leading Kyrgyz independent media outlets as ‘extremist’ is yet another escalation of the fight against critical media that authorities have engaged in since the election of President Sadyr Japarov in 2020,” said IPI Eastern Europe Advocacy Lead Karol Łuczka. “It is clear for all to see that the Oktyabr District Court of Bishkek has used absurd and arbitrary arguments to justify its illegal move to ban watchdog media ahead of crucial parliamentary elections. IPI condemns this ban and demands its immediate reversal on appeal in court.”
The situation of independent media in Kyrgyzstan has notably worsened since 2020 and the election of Sadyr Japarov as the country’s president. Once a beacon of freedom in Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan has become increasingly repressive against the country’s independent media: over the past few years, outlets such as Temirov Live and Kloop were blocked, while Temirov Live founder Bolot Temirov was forced into exile.
In 2024, 11 journalists linked to Temirov were detained in a wave of arrests. Two of these were eventually sentenced to prison terms, including the journalist’s wife, Mahabat Tajibek Kyzy. In September 2025, two camera operators who previously worked for Kloop, Joomart Duulatov and Alexander Alexandrov, were sentenced to five years in prison.