Bishkek City Court Refuses to Drop Criminal Case Against Makhabat Tajibek kyzy

Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan – The Bishkek City Court has denied an appeal filed by journalist Makhabat Tajibek kyzy, upholding a lower court's decision to reject her request for the dismissal of her criminal case. The ruling was announced on June 2, according to her lawyer, Akynbek Nogoev.

The Leninsky District Court had previously rejected a similar motion to terminate the case against Tajibek kyzy on March 23. Her lawyer subsequently appealed this decision to the Bishkek City Court. Earlier this year, on March 23, the Leninsky District Court had reviewed Tajibek kyzy's case based on newly discovered circumstances and released her under a travel ban. Prior to this, she had been held at Correctional Colony No. 2 for women in the village of Stepnoye, Chui Oblast.

In October 2024, the Leninsky District Court initially sentenced the journalist to six years in prison. The Bishkek City Court later upheld this sentence, and in February 2025, the Supreme Court also confirmed the rulings of the lower courts. Following these confirmations, Tajibek kyzy's defense team submitted a motion for a review of the case due to newly discovered evidence, leading the Supreme Court to send the case back for reconsideration by the district court.

International human rights organizations and media representatives had previously called for a review of the journalist's sentence. Makhabat Tajibek kyzy is the head of the project Temirov LIVE and the wife of investigative journalist Bolot Temirov. The couple has been involved in high-profile anti-corruption investigations. Bolot Temirov himself was previously expelled from Kyrgyzstan and stripped of his citizenship.