The Spanish MP, Ingancio Sanchez Amor, addressed a letter to the Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee at the National Assembly of the French Republic, Elisabeth Guigou, requesting that it be delivered to all Committee members. In his letter, he appealed to the French government not to extradite the Kazakh dissident, Mukhtar Ablyazov. Earlier, Sanchez had supported, amongst others, Aleksandr Pavlov, who had recently been granted political asylum by the Supreme Court of the Kingdom of Spain.
After the judicial path has been exhausted, it is the French government that is to decide on the extradition of Ablyazov, hence, Sanchez addressed his appeal, through the foreign committee, to the French executive power. In his letter, he points out, amongst other things, the atmosphere in Kazakhstan which does not favour the opposition and to the abuse by the regime of Interpol’s red notice mechanism in the persecution and hunting of political opponents who have emigrated to the West. European countries, such as Poland, the UK and the Czech Republic have refused to extradite persons associated with Ablyazov, the deputy emphasises. At the same time, he does not speculate as to whether the dissident is guilty of the offences alleged against him by Kazakhstan but argues that his home country is not able to guarantee him the right to a fair trial.
Sanchez openly demonstrated support for Aleksandr Pavlov, the former head of Ablyazov’s security, who was facing extradition from Spain to Kazakhstan. In his letter, he refers to Pavlov as an example of someone who has faced politically-motivated charges.
In conclusion, the Spanish deputy assures that he is ready to support Kazakhstan in its efforts to raise its standards in the area of human rights with parallel respect for the country’s sovereignty.