Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Kazakhstani counterpart on respect for the fundamental freedoms of expression and association in that country.
We are concerned about restrictions on freedom of assembly and freedom of expression in Kazakhstan, including during the 9 June Presidential election. We consistently raise our concerns as part of ongoing discussions with the Kazakh Government on human rights and democracy, including during the most recent round of the UK-Kazakhstan strategic talks in December 2018 and when I visited Nur-Sultan in April. During that visit I had wide-ranging discussions with senior Kazakh Government figures covering the need for free, fair and transparent elections to support a smooth transition of power and the importance of a representative, multi-party parliament. The UK continues to support a number of projects to promote and develop respect for fundamental human rights in Kazakhstan.