MEPs called on the Kazakh authorities to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms on Thursday 11 February, stressing, in a joint resolution by The Left, Greens/EFA, S&D, Renew Europe, ECR and EPP Groups, the “worrying deterioration in the general situation of human rights and a crackdown on civil society organisations”.
In this resolution, adopted by 598 votes in favour, 43 against and 52 abstentions, the European Parliament calls on the government of Kazakhstan to drop politically motivated prosecutions and to put an end to all forms of arbitrary detention, reprisals and harassment against, inter alia, human rights activists and civil society organisations.
The population must be able to freely express its opinions, the deputies recall, calling for the immediate lifting of restrictions on the freedom of civil society, opposition activists and peaceful demonstrators.
Parliament also demands the immediate release and rehabilitation of all political prisoners.
The country needs to put in place reforms to further modernise, democratise and maintain stability, add MEPs, who also call on the Commission and the High Representative of the Union for a full review of the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement.
See the resolution: http://bit.ly/3tNld3n (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)