About 120 Kyrgyz public figures, writers, actors, politicians, and activists have urged President Sadyr Japarov and other top officials of the Central Asian nation to unblock the websites of RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service, known locally as Radio Azattyk.
The open letter issued on December 13 was also addressed to parliament speaker Nurlanbek Shakiev, Prime Minister Akylbek Japarov, chairman of the State Committee for National Security (UKMK) Kamchybek Tashiev, and Kyrgyz society.
SEE ALSO: Kyrgyz Parliament Suspends Accreditation Of Seven RFE/RL Correspondents"Freedom of speech is a basic value of the Kyrgyz people that has been cherished and protected for many centuries.... It is impossible to overestimate the significant contribution Radio Azattyk has made during its 70-year history to the formation of the sovereign, independent Kyrgyzstan, to the achievement of the liberty Kyrgyz people dreamed about and for which our ancestors fought during the Soviet period,” the letter says, urging the nation's leadership to immediately restore Radio Azattyk's full-fledged operations.
The Kyrgyz government made the decision to block Radio Azattyk’s websites in Kyrgyz and Russian on October 26 after RFE/RL refused to take down a video about clashes along a disputed segment of the Kyrgyz-Tajik border. Officials claimed the video -- produced by Current Time, a Russian-language network run by RFE/RL in cooperation with VOA --"predominantly" took the position of the Tajik side.
The decision was based on the Law on Protection from False Information, legislation that drew widespread criticism when it was adopted in August 2021.
Radio Azattyk's bank account in Bishkek was frozen at the time, and in November, Kyrgyz authorities suspended accreditations for 11 RFE/RL correspondents at the parliament.
RFE/RL President and Chief Executive Officer Jamie Fly rejected the government’s move, saying the broadcaster "takes [its] commitment to balanced reporting seriously" and that after a review of the content in question, "no violation of our standards" was found. RFE/RL is appealing the decision.
The Kyrgyz government's decision has previously been criticized by Kyrgyz journalists, some Kyrgyz lawmakers, and rights activists, who have called for the government to repeal it.