On March 27, 2023, the Institute for War & Peace Reporting (IWPR) and partner organization PF “Wings of Liberty” hosted a press lunch in Almaty to launch the “Kazakhstan Uncensored” project, which has received financial support from the European Union.
During the event, the Head of Cooperation for the EU Delegation to Kazakhstan, Johannes Baur, gave a speech emphasizing the importance of digital rights and freedom of expression for citizens of Kazakhstan. He noted that the implementation of this project will contribute to the development of freedom of expression, which is a priority for the EU in the Central Asian region.
The event was attended by about 30 individuals, including journalists, bloggers, activists, experts, and media representatives. The main purpose of the event was to present the “Kazakhstan Uncensored” project and to obtain recommendations for conducting research within its framework.
The event was opened by the regional director of IWPR in Central Asia, Abakhon Sultonnazarov, who delivered a welcoming speech and spoke about the activities of IWPR, as well as the launch of a new project.
During the project presentation, Aziza Mukhametova, the project coordinator for IWPR in Kazakhstan, stated that the main goal of the project is to promote and protect the fundamental freedom of expression in Kazakhstan. In the next two years, there are plans to conduct research on digital rights and freedom of expression, as well as provide trainings and workshops for journalists and civil society representatives. Additionally, roundtables, Open Space events, and information campaigns are also planned.
It is planned that training in the field of digital rights, freedom of expression, and digital security will help to increase capacity and resilience of media and civil society professionals. The participants of the trainings and workshops will, in turn, disseminate knowledge among the wider public through information campaigns, media, and analytical products. The citizens of Kazakhstan who are covered by the content of the project and campaigns will have a better understanding of their rights and improved access to information, which will contribute to greater resilience among vulnerable groups of the population, namely women, rural populations, and ethnic minorities.
Co-founder of PF “Wings of Liberty”, Roman Reimer, spoke about the research goals, which include analyzing current legislation and the situation with digital rights and freedom of expression in Kazakhstan. The research will involve online surveys among media workers and in-depth interviews with experts.
Before a lively discussion, two speakers warmed up the audience. The CABAR.asia editor for Kazakhstan, Tatiana Trubacheva, and fact-checker journalist Shyngys Ualikhan. In his speech Shyngys emphasized the importance of access to information for Kazakhstanis journalists.
Tatyana talked about the current state of freedom of expression in Kazakhstan and highlighted a new draft law on “mass media” that has raised many questions and discussions among media representatives and activists.
“We are not fighting for freedom of expression now, but for the last voices of free media not to be silenced” – Trubacheva noted. “Such projects are important so that we continue to talk about the observance of journalists’ rights and the right of any citizen to receive information” – she added.
Under the careful moderation of project manager Dana Buralkiyeva from PF “Wings of Liberty”, the discussion was very active, set the tone, and developed recommendations for further research within the project.
“It is necessary to explain to everyone why this is important. For example, if social media is blocked, it will affect everyone. The “mass media” law is the same thing! Somehow people think it only concerns journalists, but it concerns all Kazakhstanis” – said journalist Duman Smakov.
Among the recommendations, participants also mentioned the need to involve not only journalists and activists but also representatives of government agencies in the research process.
Participants also emphasized the importance of pooling resources from independent organizations, media outlets, and bloggers, thereby creating and expanding a network for shaping messages, hashtags, and further promoting the topic of freedom of expression.
“It is important to understand how to ‘break down’ a complex human rights issue for everyone else” – said human rights expert Rustam Kypshakbayev.
It is worth noting that brainstorming sessions will be held during the workshops, during which it will be necessary to develop a plan and strategy for effectively and clearly conveying information about digital rights and digital security to the population.
This publication was funded by the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of IWPR and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.