Journalist Duvanov sentenced

Today, on 28 January the Karasai district court of Almaty oblast has found Sergey Duvanov, chief editor of the information bulletin "Human rights in Kazakhstan and in the world" published by Kazakhstani international bureau for human rights and observance of the law, guilty of rape. S.Duvanov has been sentenced as per art. 120 part 1 to a 3.5 year imprisonment in general regime prison camp. Representatives of the headquarters in defence of S.Duvanov informed after the trial.

As it was reported earlier, the criminal case on the fact of rape of an underage girl (article 120 part 1 item "d" of the Criminal Code of RoK) was initiated on 28 October, 2002 by the Karasai district police department of Almaty oblast. According to the police, S.Duvanov raped the girl on 28 October in his country house. The following morning he was arrested on the grounds of an appeal from the victim.

As Yevgeniy Zhovtis, director of Kazakhstani international bureau for human rights and observance of the law, advised journalists, the group of lawyers defending S.Duvanov, was going to prepare and submit an appeal into the Almaty oblast court. Besides, Ye.Zhovtis said that the bureau was going to make a statement on this case today and circulate the facts, collected by the headquarters for the defence of S.Duvanov during the investigation of the case and the court hearings.