Thread by @OCCRP

⚠️ The Kyrgyz government’s campaign against @TemirovLive, a team of investigative journalists headed by the award-winning Bolot Temirov, is gaining steam — and has just taken a sickening new turn.

Please share this thread. 1/9

@TemirovLive On Saturday, the @TemirovLive office was raided on a dubious pretext: Police say an unknown woman accused “a man named Bolot” of “forcing her to take drugs.”

He was arrested after officers “found” drugs on him that his colleagues say were planted. 2/9
occrp.org/en/daily/15812…

@TemirovLive Now, in a shameful new offensive, a nationalist Facebook page run by an anonymous account has posted a video attacking @TemirovLive. It exposes the intimate private life of a young woman who works for the outlet. 3/9

@TemirovLive This video, as well as another one published earlier, also features documents apparently taken from Temirov’s computer, which was confiscated during the raid. This strongly suggests that these attacks were coordinated, or instigated, by government officials. 4/9

@TemirovLive The documents expose no wrongdoing. They show only Temirov’s collaboration with highly regarded international partners like @Bellingcat, @NEDemocracy, and @OCCRP. But their exposure appears to be part of an attempt by government figures to discredit his reporting. 5/9

@TemirovLive @bellingcat @NEDemocracy Just a day before the raid, @TemirovLive channel had published its latest investigation about a corrupt scheme involving the relatives of Kamchybek Tashiev, the head of Kyrgyzstan’s security services. 6/9

@TemirovLive @bellingcat @NEDemocracy In 2020, Temirov was beaten by three men after publishing an investigation about a former top customs official, Raimbek Matraimov. His reporting has always focused on holding the powerful to account. 7/9

@TemirovLive @bellingcat @NEDemocracy The Kyrgyz government’s campaign against him makes a mockery of its commitments to democracy and freedom of the press. It also raises serious questions about the nature of the regime being built by Sadyr Japarov, who assumed the presidency in January 2021. 8/9

@TemirovLive @bellingcat @NEDemocracy Kyrgyzstan has long been the most democratic country in Central Asia. Its civil society is strong. This government campaign is unworthy of the Kyrgyz people. They — and Kyrgyzstan’s international partners — will take notice. 9/9

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