Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov has signed into law a controversial bill that allows authorities to register organizations as “foreign representatives,” legislation critics say mirrors a repressive Russian law on “foreign agents,” RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz Service reported.
Japarov said in an April 2 post on Facebook that the law will “regulate” the activities of nongovernmental organizations receiving financial support from abroad and rejected multiple warnings by human rights groups and NGOs about the negative impact the new legislation will have on civil society.
Japarov accused Kyrgyz NGOs of “deceiving” foreign organizations and groups that support them financially, claiming he could “prove” that NGOs in his country steal money from their donors. However, he gave no evidence to back up the assertion.
According to Japarov, the law on “foreign representatives” will help to prevent possible fraudulent activities and the embezzlement of finances received by local NGOs from their foreign sponsors.
“As the head of state, I guarantee there will be no persecution,” Japarov said in his Facebook statement.
Last week, more than 100 Kyrgyz NGOs urged Japarov not to sign the bill, saying it will negatively affect the operations of all such organizations in the Central Asian nation.
They warned Japarov that, if the measure comes into force, organizations involved in assisting Kyrgyz citizens with obtaining medical equipment and medicine to treat numerous diseases, including cancer and HIV, as well as groups involved in educational programs, human rights, and anti-corruption activities, may have to stop their operations.
Earlier statements by human rights groups regarding the controversial bill said that the legislation will negatively affect freedom of expression in the former Soviet republic.
Since the law was first introduced last year, civil society activists have warned of the consequences of approving such legislation, especially given that similar regulations in Russia laid the groundwork for the systematic dismantling of civil society.
According to the bill, noncommercial organizations and media outlets that receive foreign funding and are engaged in broadly defined “political” activities will be obliged to report their activities to the authorities. The legislation will also give authorities wide oversight powers and it introduces potential sanctions for undefined criminal offences.
Since 2012, Russia has used its “foreign agents” law to label and punish critics of government policies, including the February 2022 full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine.
