Kyrgyz Supreme Court Upholds Probation Ruling for Activist Ernis Zheenbayev

Kyrgyzstan's Supreme Court has affirmed a lower court's decision concerning designer and civil activist Ernis Zheenbayev. His lawyer, Nurbek Sydykov, confirmed that Zheenbayev will continue to serve a four-year probation sentence, making the court's ruling definitive.

Initially, the Pervomaysky District Court had sentenced Zheenbayev to six years in prison. However, on March 26, the Bishkek City Court modified this verdict. While acquitting him on charges related to extremist materials under Article 332, Part 1 of the Criminal Code of the Kyrgyz Republic, the court upheld the accusation of inciting mass unrest. The sentence was then commuted to four years of probation, leading to Zheenbayev's release from the courtroom.

Zheenbayev was apprehended on November 10, 2025, following posts made on his personal Facebook page. The criminal case initially included charges of inciting mass unrest and disseminating extremist materials. Media reports suggest that Zheenbayev's posts discussed topics such as Kumtor, rising prices, and freedom of speech. A forensic linguistic examination of these posts, according to the defense, identified calls for mass unrest.

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Thus, Ernis Zheenbayev remains on probation for four years.