BISHKEK -- Jailed Kyrgyz opposition politician Jenish Moldokmatov, who is charged with attempting to seize control of the Central Asian state, has been transferred from a detention center to house arrest.
Moldokmatov's aide, Erlan Bekchoro uulu, told RFE/RL that the Bishkek court's decision to transfer the leader of the opposition Turan party to house arrest was made on February 2.
Bekchoro added that two other politicians in the case, Farid Niyazov and Kursan Asanov, were remanded in custody.
Moldokmatov, an outspoken critic of President Sadyr Japarov, was arrested in May 2021 and charged over the seizure of buildings during anti-government rallies against the official results of parliamentary elections in October 2020.
Later, he was additionally charged with the attempted seizure of power, the organization of mass disorder, threatening or attacking law enforcement officers, and stealing a firearm.
Moldokmatov has rejected all of the charges, calling the case against him politically motivated.
Moldokmatov ran for a parliamentary seat in the October 2020 vote and participated along with thousands of other Kyrgyz in street protests that followed the official results.
The rallies eventually led to the resignations of the government and then-President Sooronbai Jeenbekov.
Japarov was among several prominent politicians freed from prison by protesters during the postelection unrest.
He had been serving a 10-year prison sentence for hostage taking during a protest against a mining operation in northeast Kyrgyzstan in October 2013. Japarov maintains his conviction was politically motivated.
Japarov easily won the January 2021 presidential election.
Despite enacting some reforms, Japarov has been criticized by rights groups for failing to follow through on promises of more freedoms.
They say existing laws on countering extremism have been applied unevenly and that their overly broad definition has allowed for their misuse against political opponents, journalists, and religious and ethnic minorities.