The Kazakh government is facing a media backlash over efforts to restrict journalists’ access to top officials. Authorities contend that recently introduced regulations on media access emulate those already in place in the West.

The origin of the brewing controversy dates to August, when officials restricted access without advance notice for journalists seeking to cover a Cabinet of Ministers meeting. Previously, journalists had been able to go to the third floor of the government building, where cabinet meetings occur. But on this occasion, journalists were told that they would have to cover the meeting from a press center set up on the second floor. The move would prevent journalists from asking government officials questions following the conclusion of the meeting.

One journalist, Zhaniya Urankayeva, a reporter for the Press.kz outlet, defied the new rule and gained access to the building’s third floor. When discovered to be in violation of the new regulation, she was escorted back to the press center. Subsequently, officials in early September decided to revoke Urankayeva’s credentials to enter the government building until the end of the year, effectively a four-month ban.

Urankayeva describes her punishment as a general attack on independent, watchdog journalism. “The government is introducing censorship and trying to ban the journalistic profession,” Urankayeva told Eurasianet.

On September 10, Press Center Director Maksat Tulegenov justified the ban, telling journalists that “the government building is a particularly important state facility, on the territory of which special rules apply regarding access and the internal regime for both employees and visitors.” He alleged Urankayeva, in going to the third floor, ignored cautions given by security services personnel. She insists no one challenged her efforts to go to the third floor.

The incident has focused a spotlight on government accountability. Urankayeva and other journalists say that authorities are becoming increasingly inaccessible to members of the media seeking comment on policy debates and decisions.

“We are forced to catch officials, because the press services of government agencies usually do not provide the necessary information to editorial inquiries, responding with meaningless formal replies,” Urankayeva said. 

Many of Urankayeva’s journalist colleagues have expressed support for her actions, criticizing the ban in news reports and on social media, as well as speaking on her behalf to officials appearing at government press conferences. They describe Urankayeva as a “toothy” journalist known for always asking sharp questions on sensitive issues.

“When it’s Zhaniya’s turn to ask a question to officials, 99 percent of journalists turn on their cameras because she knows how to ask questions, get to the bottom of the truth, and we know there will be cool content,” Nazira Aidarbekkyzy, a correspondent for the news site Voice of the People, wrote on Facebook. 

Gulmira Birzhanova, a lawyer at the Legal Media Center, a media advocacy NGO, contended to Eurasianet that the government’s action against Urankayeva violates Article 20 of the Constitution, which guarantees freedom of speech and prohibits censorship. “Accreditation according to international standards should not limit journalists, but on the contrary, create opportunities and favorable conditions for them to work in a given environment,” Diana Okremova, the center’s director, told Eurasianet.

The Urankayeva affair follows another unwelcome precedent, when officials declined to hold a traditional press conference following President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s annual state-of-the-nation address in early September.

Restrictions on media contacts with officials were introduced as part of new procedures for accrediting journalists, approved by the Minister of Culture and Information Aida Balayeva on August 20. The document contains a set of rules governing the issuance of journalist accreditation needed for access to government buildings and events, as well as rules for reporting in government agencies and restricted areas. Those found in violation of the regulations are subject to having accreditation revoked, as what happened to Urankayeva. 

The new regulations have drawn criticism from rights groups. In early September, for example, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) issued a statement saying the new rules were vulnerable to abuses aimed at restricting the flow of information. “New and proposed amendments to Kazakhstan’s accreditation regulations are excessive and open too many doors to censorship. Instead of the greater openness promised by President Tokayev’s ‘New Kazakhstan,’ what journalists are really getting is ever more creeping state control,” said Gulnoza Said, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator. “Kazakh authorities should heed journalists’ legitimate complaints and revise the media accreditation rules.”

This year, Kazakhstan’s ranking in Reporters Without Borders’ press freedom index fell eight spots compared to 2023, coming in at 142 out of 180 countries surveyed. The international organization’s report notes that although “the quality of online news is improving,” “control over the Internet, the only space where independent media can express their opinions, is increasing.”

Officials are vigorously pushing back against criticism of the rules changes. In July, Balayeva, the information minister, noted that similar rules covering media access at government buildings are in effect across the European Union and in the United States. For example, two reporters, including one from the New York Times, were recently banned from police headquarters in New York City for allegedly violating access rules.

“Compliance with access and internal regimes of especially important state facilities is also an integral part of compliance with current legislation and security,” Balayeva emphasized.