Reporters Without Borders (RSF) urged the Kyrgyz authorities on Friday to release two cameramen who worked for Kloop, one of Kyrgyzstan’s last independent investigative news sources.
RSF condemned what it called the Sadyr Japarov regime’s deliberate targeting of Kloop’s personnel. The two media professionals, Alexander Alexandrov and Zhoomart Duulatov, are still detained, and charged with inciting mass riots. Jeanne Cavelier, the head of RSF’s Eastern Europe and Central Asia desk, said, “Procedural violations, unjustified seizures, forced confessions, defamation and smear campaigns—all these shameful methods are used by the Kyrgyz authorities to silence Kloop’s journalists, and they must come to an end.”
Kloop’s founder, Rinat Tukhvatshin, confirmed that on May 28, seven people related to Kloop, including two journalists, were detained by the State Committee for National Security (GKNB). Tukhvatshin described the arrests as abductions, claiming these actions constituted a gross violation of the Criminal Procedure Code and human rights. The two cameramen will be under pre-trial detention until July 21 under vague charges of involvement in calls for mass unrest.
Kyrgyz authorities declared that several of the detained journalists were financed by deported investigative journalist Bolot Temirov. RSF had condemned the exile of Temirov back in 2022 following unfair trial proceedings. Tukhvatshin rejected these allegations.
Kloop argued that none of the individuals detained were granted their right to a lawyer during interrogations. Lawyer Bakyt Avtandil also commented on the lawlessness of the detentions, as neither the relatives nor the accused were given information on the court’s sanctions nor the search protocols. The right to a lawyer is protected under the right to a fair trial in Article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
Amnesty International also commented on the detention of Kloop’s personnel. Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, stated, “The detention of Kloop journalists is yet another stark example of how Kyrgyzstan’s security apparatus is being used to crush dissent and dismantle independent journalism.”
This is not the first time the Kyrgyz government has targeted this news source. In September 2024, the Kyrgyzstan Supreme Court upheld the decision to liquidate Kloop. Kyrgyz authorities were also recently condemned for the arrest of human rights defender, Rita Karasartova. Rights groups say these instances point to a general attack against civil society and human rights in Kyrgyzstan.
