Kazakhstan Arrests Human Rights Activists After Pressure From Beijing

WASHINGTON—Human rights advocates on Jan. 15 accused Kazakhstan of acting as an extension of Beijing’s security apparatus, after authorities arrested activists who protested the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) mass internment camps in China’s Xinjiang region.The issue drew sharp criticism at a ChinaAid press conference at the National Press Club in Washington on Thursday, featuring human rights advocates, religious freedom groups, and former detainees from China’s camps.Nineteen people now face prison sentences of up to 10 years, according to Serikzhan Bilash, founder of Atajurt Kazakh Human Rights, a group that documents abuses against ethnic Kazakhs and Uyghurs in China. He said those detained include a pregnant woman and a father of seven children. All except one of those arrested are members of his group.The arrests followed a November protest in Almaty, Kazakhstan, in which demonstrators burned a Chinese flag and images of Chinese leader Xi Jinping to oppose Beijing’s policies in Xinjiang and Kazakhstan’s visa-free arrangements with China.Kazakh authorities initially treated the matter as an administrative offense, handing down fines and 15-day detentions. Under Beijing’s pressure, the case escalated into a criminal prosecution, Bilash said.The Chinese consulate in Almaty sent two letters on Nov. 14 to Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in which it requested a meeting with ministry representatives and said the case had an “extremely negative impact” on the two countries’ friendship. The Epoch Times viewed translated copies of the letters.The activists are now charged with “inciting discord,” a criminal charge in Kazakhstan that Human Rights Watch described as “vague and overtly broad.” Fourteen are in custody and the rest are under house arrest, according to Bilash. The trial is expected to begin on Jan. 21.“The Kazakhstan authorities referenced the two letters directly in the indictment,” Bilash told The Epoch Times. “This kind of thing has never happened in Kazakhstan’s history.”Kazakh authorities have not publicly addressed the role of Chinese diplomatic pressure in the case.Bilash said the detainees have been scattered across multiple prisons, some hundreds of miles apart, making visits difficult. Only lawyers are allowed to see them, he said. In one case, a detained man reported being held in a facility without heating despite winter temperatures that dipped below zero degrees Fahrenheit, forcing him to sleep fully clothed in boots, said Bilash.Bilash, who was arrested in Kazakhstan over his activism in 2019, expressed fear that detainees could be harmed in custody. He cited the 2020 death of a supporter who had attended his court hearings wearing a t-shirt bearing his name. That man, Dulat Agadil, later died in prison with wounds on his body, Bilash said. Months later, the supporter’s eldest son was fatally stabbed.“We want the world to know that these people will not commit suicide, and they do not have heart disease,” he said of the detained activists.Kazakh police arrive after activists stage a protest against human rights abuses happening in China’s Xinjiang region, in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on Nov. 13, 2025. Screenshot/Atajurt Kazakh Human RightsTransnational RepressionAt Thursday’s press conference, advocates called for the release of the 19 activists and urged governments to counter the CCP’s transnational repression.Pastor Bob Fu, the founder of ChinaAid, described the incident as “ punishment beyond borders.”“Silence today will invite further repression tomorrow,” he said. “History will record who stood with the persecuted and who chose convenience over conscience.”Other speakers described Kazakhstan as part of a broader pattern in which Beijing uses economic leverage, diplomatic pressure, and family-based coercion to silence critics abroad.Kazakh activists celebrate the wedding of Tursynbek Kabi’s daughter, in Almaty, Kazakhstan, in July 2024. Kabi was one of 19 human rights activists arrested after they staged a peaceful protest. Courtesy of Atajurt Kazakh Human Rights“The CCP treats everyone as a threat,” said Serkan Tas, an associate director of China studies at the D.C.-based Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation. “Our research shows that Chinese authorities label any diaspora member who asks questions, even someone simply trying to locate a missing relative, as an overseas terrorist.”Tursunay Ziyawudun, a former Uyghur detainee in a Chinese internment camp before escaping to Kazakhstan in 2019, said she was repeatedly harassed and threatened after leaving China.Chinese police called her directly, she said, demanding that she return and warning her not to speak publicly about her experiences. When she testified to human rights organizations and international media, the pressure escalated.“They were saying, like, don’t you know we have your relatives, your family members? Why are you sharing what you went through?” Ziyawudun told The Epoch Times. “And that’s how they harassed me and threatened me.”She said several of the newly arrested activists had also survived Chinese internment camps and fled to Kazakhstan believing they would be safe. She said Bilash’s organization had helped her “find some safety” when she first arrived in Kazakhstan.It’s “very sad to know” they are being detained even though outside of China, she said.Experts say the cases highlight a long-standing gap in protections against transnational repression, particularly in countries economically dependent on China.Adaire Criner of the Uyghur Human Rights Project said that it’s “a painful reminder of the CCP’s long history of transnational repression in Central Asia.”U.S. lawmakers have increasingly warned about China’s efforts to pressure foreign governments into silencing dissidents abroad. Piero Tozzi, deputy staff director of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, said Beijing’s leadership is deeply intolerant, even of symbolic dissent.“Xi Jinping is so thin-skinned—even a picture of Winnie the Pooh, he takes offense,” Tozzi said, referring to censored images comparing Xi to Winnie the Pooh.