Kyrgyzstan: Authorities Conduct Raid on News Agency Headquarters
Updated Piece:
Agents from Kyrgyzstan's security services stormed the headquarters of leading local news agency 24.kg on January 15, grilling higher-ups over allegations that the outlet has been spreading war propaganda.
The scene unfolded on January 15, with a raiding party from the State Committee for National Security (GKNB) descending upon 24.kg's offices at 11 a.m. Computers and mobile devices were confiscated during the search, and senior staffers, including General Director Asel Otorbayeva, editor Anton Lymar, and Makhinur Niyazova, were hauled away for questioning.
Little information has been disclosed as to what specific content has garnered the GKNB's attention. In the heat of the moment, Niyazova conjectured that the articles may have related to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. However, she failed to single out any specific pieces.
Subsequently, the 24.kg representatives claimed they had been registered as witnesses in an ongoing criminal investigation. They admitted to having signed a nondisclosure agreement, restraining them from discussing the situation further.
In response to this turn of events, the International Press Institute (IPI), an advocacy group headquartered in Vienna, denounced the raid on Twitter, stating, "Searches at 24.kg are clear violations of privacy and media's right to protect sources. Otorbayeva, Lymar, and Niyazova must be immediately released, and politically motivated charges against the outlet must be dropped."
Established in 2006 by Otorbayeva, a veteran editor at the Vecherny Bishkek (Evening Bishkek) newspaper, 24.kg has since emerged as one of Kyrgyzstan's most prominent news sources. However, the outlet has encountered some roadblocks of late.
In September, the Russian media regulator Roskomnadzor, acting as an enforcer for Kremlin edicts, ordered that access to the site be blocked over its coverage of the invasion of Ukraine. This move appears to have been triggered by coverage perceived as anti-Russian in tone. One article published in June featured political analysts labeling Moscow as pursuing "imperial ambitions" in Central Asia, while another piece, published in April, focused on the mechanics of Russian propaganda.
More recently, 24.kg has found itself under the spotlight due to its reporting on the questionable introduction of a new national flag, approved by parliament and the president late last year. On January 24, the website reported, accurately, that a flag hoisted on Bishkek's central square on the 24th bore an incorrect design, seemingly the result of human error. Despite the factual nature of the reporting, the head of the presidential administration pointed fingers at 24.kg for spreading false information, threatening prosecution for anyone circulating such information.
Independent media outlets have been faced with increased scrutiny from authorities since President Sadyr Japarov assumed office in October 2020. One notable instance occurred in September, when a Culture Ministry edict to block access to the Kloop news website went into effect, due to an article published at the beginning of the month. The article detailed allegations concerning the mistreatment of a jailed opposition politician, Ravshan Jeenbekov, at his pre-detention facility.
In October 2022, the government ordered a two-month block on the website of Radio Azattyk, the local service of RFE/RL, after determining that the broadcaster had breached the false information law by quoting Tajik officials on a border conflict that had transpired the previous month. The ban was later extended and lifted only in July, following RFE/RL's decision to yield to government pressures and remove the offending content from their site.
The raiding party from the State Committee for National Security (GKNB) questioning the senior staffers at 24.kg's offices might have been prompted, not just by war propaganda allegations, but also by articles discussing politics, culture, general-news, and crime-and-justice, given the outlet's broad reporting spectrum. The International Press Institute's condemnation of the raid on 24.kg, labeling it a violation of privacy and media's rights, highlights the importance of freedom of the press in reporting on various topics, including politics, culture, news, general-news, and crime-and-justice.
