Astana,
27/11/2015
The European Union and Kazakhstan held the
seventh round of their annual Human Rights Dialogue in Astana on 26 November.
The Kazakhstan delegation was led by Mr Iogan Merkel, First Deputy Prosecutor
General, while the EU delegation was led by Mr Toivo Klaar, Head of Central
Asia Division at the European External Action Service
The dialogue allowed for constructive exchanges
on a wide range of issues, including freedom of association, women's rights,
the prevention of torture and ill-treatment of detainees and press freedom.
The EU acknowledged the significant efforts made
by Kazakhstan to prevent the mistreatment of detainees, including through the
work of the National Preventive Mechanism, and encouraged implementation of the
recommendations adopted by the UN Committee against Torture in 2014.
The EU noted its concerns in relation to
pressure on independent media outlets and the possible negative implications of
new draft legislation on the funding of civil society organisations. The EU
welcomed the release since the last Human Rights Dialogue of a number of
imprisoned human rights and labour activists, and reiterated its concerns
regarding the situation of Mr. Vladimir Kozlov and other detained activists.
The next round of the EU-Kazakhstan Human Rights
Dialogue is expected to take place in Brussels in 2016.
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