A. Efforts to combat extremism and terrorism
92. Kyrgyzstan is a party to international and regional agreements relating to the fight against terrorism, and it cooperates actively with the United Nations, OSCE, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) on effectively combating extremism and terrorism.
93. The Criminal Code defines responsibility for crimes of a terrorist nature, the instigation of national, racial, religious or inter-confessional hatred, the acquisition, possession, transport or dispatch of extremist materials with a view to disseminating or preparing to disseminate them, and the intentional use of symbols or attributes of extremist organizations.
94. In order to protect human and civil rights and freedoms, which are the foundations of the constitutional system and the guarantee of Kyrgyzstan’s unity and security, the Act on Countering Extremist Activity, adopted on 17 August 2005, defines the legal and organizational basis for combating extremist activity and establishes responsibility for its implementation.
95. The Counter-Terrorism Act of 8 November 2006 defines the basic principles and goals of the fight against terrorism, which include securing and safeguarding fundamental human and civil rights and freedoms and giving priority to protecting the life, health, rights and legal interests of persons exposed to danger as a result of a terrorist act.
96. On 31 July 2006, Kyrgyzstan promulgated the Act on Combating the Financing of Terrorism and the Legalization (Laundering) of Income Obtained by Criminal Means, which aims to protect the rights and legal interests of citizens, society and the State, as well as the integrity of Kyrgyzstan’s financial system, against criminal acts through the creation of a legal mechanism to combat the financing of terrorism and the legalization (laundering) of income obtained by criminal means.
B. Efforts to combat the spread of drug addiction and illegal drug trafficking
97. In recent years, the situation in Kurdistan with regard to drug addiction has worsened steadily, and the adverse impact of illegal drug trafficking on domestic security and social stability has been growing.
98. In order to eradicate the illegal spread of narcotic drugs and to improve the situation in this area, in late 2004 a strategy was adopted to stem the spread of drug addiction in the country and illegal drug trafficking, and a national programme was introduced to combat drug addiction and illegal drug trafficking during the period until 2010.
99. To address problems associated with the fight against transnational drug trafficking, the Kyrgyz authorities are cooperating closely with the intelligence services of other States in the framework of CSTO, SCO, CIS and other bodies. This partnership works to intercept
narcotic drugs that enter the country from abroad or are in transit across the national territory. A national office of INTERPOL has been set up and is operating successfully.
Kyrgyzstan is a member of the Central Asian Regional Information and Coordination Centre for combating the illicit trafficking of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and their precursors (CARICC), an intergovernmental body established with the support of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in the framework of an agreement between Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan that entered into force in March 2009.
C. Combating corruption
100. An Agency for the Prevention of Corruption is in operation in Kyrgyzstan. On 11 March 2009, a national strategy was implemented to combat corruption in the country. The Act on the laws and regulations of the Kyrgyz Republic defines the obligation to conduct an anti-corruption assessment of proposed legislation and other draft laws and regulations.
D. Trafficking in persons
101. A number of laws have been enacted in Kyrgyzstan to implement the provisions of the Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others, the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, and the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air.
102. Pursuant to the Presidential Decree of 21 April 2002, on measures to combat smuggling and trafficking in persons, a national council was set up under the President to combat these phenomena. Its main task is to monitor and coordinate the activities of government bodies in implementing measures to stem such practices.
103. The organizational and legal foundations for preventing and combating trafficking in persons, the rules for coordinating the work of bodies active in the fight against the phenomenon and the establishment of a set of measures to protect and assist the victims are regulated by the Act on the prevention and suppression of trafficking in persons. The Criminal Code makes trafficking in persons a punishable offence; article 124 of the Code defines responsibility. According to statistics, 36 cases were prosecuted under article 124 (trafficking in persons) in 2006, 34 in 2007, 25 in 2008 and 6 in 2009.
104. Under the 2008–2011 Plan of Action for combating trafficking in persons, approved by Government Decree No. 515 of 13 September 2008, information and awareness-raising campaigns are conducted with young people on the subject of smuggling and trafficking in persons and on regulations concerning job recruitment.
E. Right to a healthy environment
105. Kyrgyzstan is a party to 13 international environmental agreements and conventions, including the Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters adopted by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.
106. The Constitution provides that citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic have the right to an environment that is conducive to a healthy existence. They also have the right to compensation for damages caused to health or property through activities involving the use of natural resources.
107. Kyrgyzstan has enacted a number of laws governing environmental protection and the rational use of natural resources, including the Environmental Protection Act, general technical regulations for ensuring environmental protection in Kyrgyzstan, the Act on fees for the use of natural sites of the animal and plant world, the Act on the Protection of the Atmosphere, the Environmental Assessment Act, the Biosphere Territories Act, the Animal World Act, the Industrial and Consumer Waste Act and the Act on the Protection and Use of the Plant World.
108. Presidential Decree No. 506 of 23 November 2007 approved the National Environmental Protection Strategy. Questions relating to environmental protection are included in the Kyrgyz Development Strategy up to the year 2011 as one of five priorities for national development.
109. There are 75 sites in the country, at which more than 145 million m3 of radioactive waste from the metal mining industry are stored on a surface of 650 ha (6.5 km2). The greatest danger stems from 38 storage facilities containing 62.12 million m3 ofradioactive tailings, including 29 uranium tailings storage facilities with more than 41 million m3 of radioactive waste. In addition, more than 83 million m3 of substandard (lean) radioactive ore are stored at 37 dumping sites for untreated mining waste. A perceptible deterioration has been observed in the condition of the tailings storage facilities due to degradation and disrepair of the protective coverings and structures. The situation is aggravated by the fact that most waste storage facilities in Kyrgyzstan are located in zones of high seismic activity and frequent landslides, mudslides and flooding, and in areas with a high groundwater; this constitutes a danger not only to the environment but to the entire Central Asian region.
110. Attaching particular importance to the protection of health and other fundamental human rights from the consequences of natural and anthropogenic disasters, in 2009 Kyrgyzstan initiated a High-Level International Forum on Uranium Tailings in Central Asia: Local Problems, Regional Consequences and Global Solutions, under the auspices of the United Nations. The forum led to the drafting of a road map identifying the most dangerous areas with radioactive waste and a plan of action to ensure their safety.
111. Currently Kyrgyzstan does not have the financial or technical resources needed to maintain and rehabilitate these disposal sites properly. An environmental disaster can be prevented only with substantial, focused and coordinated support from the international community.
F. Freedom of speech
112. The Constitution guarantees freedom of thought, freedom of speech, freedom of the press and the unrestricted expression of opinions and convictions. No one may be forced to express their opinions or convictions.
113. The particular attention of the public is drawn to the article of the Code on the protection of the honour and dignity of citizens and the commercial reputation of legal entities, as well as to the articles of the Criminal Code on responsibility for libel and defamation.
114. The Criminal Code provides for criminal responsibility for libel, which is defined as the act of spreading knowingly false information offending the honour and dignity of another person or tarnishing that person’s reputation through public utterances or presentations in publications or the media, including in connection with an accusation of the commission of a serious or particularly serious offence.
115. In conformity with national legislation, the law enforcement authorities investigate accusations of criminal acts levelled against journalists. Recommendations to delete from
the Code of Criminal Procedure provisions on the prosecution of journalists for libel are being examined, taking into account the need for an objective approach to the obligations of the State to ensure the rights of all its citizens.
G. Freedom of movement
116. The Constitution guarantees the right to freedom of movement, to choice of place of residence in the territory of Kyrgyzstan and to protection and support abroad; everyone is at liberty to leave the country and to return without hindrance. Kyrgyzstan may grant a right of asylum, in conformity with the law, to foreign citizens and stateless persons who are persecuted for political reasons.
117. In accordance with Kyrgyz legislation, welfare benefits are set and paid at the place of registration of residence. If citizens temporarily change their place of residence within the country, welfare benefits may — exceptionally and on the strength of a temporary registration — be set and paid at the place of residence until the end of the period of temporary registration.