H.E. Nursultan A. Nazarbayev
President of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Office of the President
473000 Astana
Kazakhstan

Vienna, 27 May 2002

Your Excellency,

The International Press Institute (IPI), the global network of editors, media executives and leading journalists, strongly condemns the recent petrol bomb attack on the opposition newspaper Respublika.

According to international reports, attackers threw Molotov cocktails into the office windows of Respublika in the commercial capital of Almaty on 22 May. No one was injured in the attack, but the resulting fire destroyed much of the office, including the newspaper’s technical equipment.

The firebombing incident is the latest in a series of attacks on Respublika, which is known for its critical coverage of Your Excellency’s government, and other independent media. On 8 March, Irina Petrushova, the newspaper’s editor-in-chief, was sent a funeral wreath. On 19 May, the newspaper’s staff found the corpse of a decapitated dog hanging from one of the office windows with a note that threatened, “There won’t be a next time.”

In another incident, attackers broke into the offices of the opposition newspaper SolDat on 21 May, severely beating two staff members, Bakhytgul Makinbai and Kenzhe Aitpakiyev, and stealing expensive technical equipment.

On 29 March, the main feeder cable of TAN was destroyed after the independent television channel reported on the arrest of opposition leader Galymzhan Zhakiyanov. A few days later, a cameraman and driver working for TAN were beaten by a group of unidentified people.

Although Almaty deputy police chief Rakhimzhan Toizhanov has called these incidents “sheer hooliganism” and “nothing to do with politics”, IPI fears that the attacks may have been politically motivated and part of a campaign to stifle the critical reporting of the independent and opposition press. We therefore urge Your Excellency to ensure that there is an immediate and thorough investigation into these crimes and that those responsible are brought to justice. Furthermore, we urge you to do everything in your power to ensure that journalists in Kazakhstan are allowed to exercise their profession without fear of harassment and intimidation.

We thank you for your attention.

Yours sincerely,

Johann P. Fritz
Director