Kyrgyzstan will release investigative journalist Azamat Ishenbekov on Wednesday after President Sadyr Japarov granted him a pardon, according to OCCRP’s member center Kloop. Ishenbekov had been sentenced to five years in prison earlier this year for allegedly inciting mass unrest through social media posts.
He is one of four journalists from Temirov Live—an investigative media outlet and partner of the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP)—who were convicted in January 2024 following a police investigation. Authorities accused them of encouraging mass riots based on a forensic linguistic analysis of their online posts. Seven other current and former Temirov Live employees were acquitted due to a lack of evidence.
Among those convicted, journalists Aktilek Kaparov and Aike Beishekeeva received three-year suspended sentences. Ishenbekov was sentenced to five years in prison, while Temirov Live’s director, Makhabat Tazhibek kyzy, was given six. With Ishenbekov’s release, Tazhibek kyzy remains the only staff member still behind bars.
The list of 41 individuals pardoned by President Japarov also includes activist Zarina Torokulova, who was arrested in September 2023 and sentenced in January to five years in prison for reposting two Facebook messages. One of the posts allegedly called for an "online rally" opposing changes to the national flag, while the other referred to the president as a "mafia." Torokulova has denied any wrongdoing and said the charges were politically motivated.
The pardons come amid growing international concern over press freedom and human rights in Kyrgyzstan.
