Individuals who met with the Special Rapporteur

Cases
Location of case in SG report
2015-028-001
Relevant SG report
Year of the report
2015
Country Geolocation

Latitude: 48.019573

Longitude: 66.923684

Country Geolocation (linked Cases)
Kazakhstan
From Region
UN body that raised the case prior to the SG report
  • UN Special Procedures: Thematic
Dates of prior UN action
27 January 2015; 16 June 2015
Type of record
Unnamed individual/group/organization
Was the victim a foreign national?
No
Was the victim a minor?
No
Was the victim a civil servant or member of the security forces or of the judiciary?
No
Reported trigger of reprisal

meeting with SR on FoAA during country visit

Engagement with UN body
  • UN Special Procedures: thematic
Dates of engagement
23 January 2015
Type of attempted engagement
  • Meeting with UN officials during country visit / with locally present UN officials
Dates of mentioned reprisals
23 January 2015
Reprisal information

unidentified men took photographs of individuals leaving the building, in a manner commonly associated with secret police surveillance, where he had just held a meeting (A/HRC/29/25/Add.2, paras. 13-17).

Types of reprisals suffered
  • Surveillance
  • Threats/Intimidations (incl. "fear of reprisal")
Alleged/likely perpetrators
State actors
Was the reprisal based on new legislation?
No
Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?
No
Further case development

The Special Rapporteur subsequently affirmed that the incident had been calculated to instil fear and intimidation, and reiterated that the authorities had to guarantee that no one with whom he met would be subjected to reprisals. The Government responded that the allegations were groundless and based on a misunderstanding (A/HRC/29/25/Add.5, para. 6);

In his oral statement to the Human Rights Council at its twenty-ninth session, the Special Rapporteur reiterated his dissatisfaction with the incident, stated that the Government’s explanation was unconvincing, and urged it to ensure that there would be no reprisals in relation to his visit.

Government response dates
16 June 2015
Government response content

The Special Rapporteur submitted a formal complaint to the authorities and received reassurances that a full investigation would be conducted. The next day, the authorities informed the Special Rapporteur that they had apprehended an individual who confessed to have taken the photographs; the Special Rapporteur did not, however, identify the man as one of those he had seen;

The Government responded that the allegations were groundless and based on a misunderstanding (A/HRC/29/25/Add.5, para. 6);

Kazakhstan, in its oral reply to the Special Rapporteur’s statement, did not address the allegations of reprisals.

Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?
No
Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?
No
Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?
No
How many times has the case been followed up in subsequent SG reports?
0