As the Open Dialog Foundation, we would like to thank you for your support during the past year and wish you all the best in your professional and personal life in 2017! On this occasion we would like also to share with you some of the ODF’s top achievements of the year 2016.
Through illegal extraditions and violations of the rights of refugees, the Ukrainian authorities contribute towards the political persecution by Moldova, Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Belarus.
On 28 June, 2016, the court in Vilnius handed down the ruling denying the requests of Kazakhstan and Ukraine regarding the extradition of Syrym Shalabayev who is a relative of the Kazakh opposition politician and political refugee, Mukhtar Ablyazov.
The participant in high-profile corruption scandals Vladimir Guzyr prepared a statement on the ‘validity’ and ‘legality’ of the request for Syrym Shalabayev’s extradition.
Syrym Shalabayev, a relative of the Kazakh opposition politician Mukhtar Ablyazov, is accused in the criminal case concerning the ‘embezzlement of funds of BTA Bank’. Human rights organisations have underlined the political context of the case.
On 14 January, 2016, MP Yegor Sobolev urged the General Prosecutor’s Office to carefully examine publicised incidents of abuse by Ukrainian investigators in the cases against Kazakh opposition politician Mukhtar Ablyazov and his relative Syrym Shalabayev.
Human rights defenders appeal to the office of the Prosecutor General, Ministry of Justice and President of Lithuania requesting recognition of political motivations behind persecution of a relative of the Kazakh dissident and urging not to allow S. Shalabayev’s extradition to Kazakhstan or Ukraine.
We wish to draw your attention to the alarming fact of the prosecution of the relative of a Kazakh oppositionist in a case which is overtly characterised by political context.
Syrym Shalabayev, a relative of the Kazakh opposition politician Mukhtar Ablyazov, requests that Lithuania grants him political asylum and protection against extradition.
