Human rights activists accuse Institute of Ombudsman of double standards
Human rights activists are outraged by the conclusion presented by experts of the Ombudsman’s Institute who visited their colleague Azimzhan Askarov sentenced to life in prison.
According to representatives of the human rights organization Bir Duino Kyrgyzstan, Azimzhan Askarov is seriously ill, he refuses food, but these facts are not reflected in the report. It also does not indicate that the convict has symptoms of community-acquired pneumonia. Human rights activists remind that Azimzhan Askarov is 70 years old and is at risk, he must be released immediately.
It is noted that prisoners will not be tested for coronavirus. The Ministry of Health does not plan to allocate reagents.
The Supreme Court of Kyrgyzstan did not send the case of the sentenced to life in prison Azimzhan Askarov for review due to newly discovered evidence. Thus, the appeal of Askarov’s lawyers was denied on May 13.
On December 2, 2019, the Supreme Court decriminalized a number of counts and commuted the punishment of the human rights defender under certain articles. However, the main article of the charge «Complicity in Murder» of the Criminal Code, under which Azimzhan Askarov received the life sentence, remained.
Azimzhan Askarov is accused of inciting ethnic hatred and murder of a policeman during the June events in the south of the republic in 2010.
