Nur-Sultan, 23 February 2022 – Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted a joint briefing on the progress of the investigation of the January events with the participation of Deputy Prosecutor General Bulat Dembayev and Deputy Minister of Interior Kairat Sunayev for representatives of the foreign diplomatic corps accredited in the country.
In their speech, the speakers informed the briefing participants in detail about the measures undertaken to ensure the objective investigation of criminal cases and respect for the rights of detainees. During the briefing, documentary footage of the January events was shown.
The diplomats’ attention was focused on the chronology of events and their unusual hybrid form, when a peaceful rally was hijacked for an attempt to seize power, with the involvement of criminal circles, extremists and terrorists. Current statistics on criminal cases under investigation were presented.
Special attention was given to the measures to protect the legal rights and freedoms of the detained citizens during the investigation. All reports of possible human rights violations, including those covered in the media, are checked by the state prosecutors.
“Each fact will be thoroughly investigated and given an appropriate legal assessment,” stressed Bulat Dembayev.
The close interaction on this issue with the Commissioner (Ombudsperson) for Human Rights of the Republic of Kazakhstan Elvira Azimova, participants of the National Preventive Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture, the National Council of Public Trust was highlighted. It was indicated “they have full access to places of detention of persons brought in and detained in order to independently verify possible cases of ill-treatment and failure to provide medical care.”
At the end of the event, representatives of the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Ministry of Interior answered questions from the participants of the briefing. Foreign diplomats thanked for the opportunity to get quality information about the investigative measures and expressed their support for the measures aimed at conducting an objective investigation of the January events.
The briefing was also attended by the heads of the Kazakh diplomatic missions via video link.
