Watchdog

NUR-SULTAN -- Authorities in Kazakhstan have attempted to block protest rallies called on September 25 by the exiled opposition leader Mukhtar Ablyazov.

Ablyazov coordinates the activities of the banned Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan movement from exile in France.

Authorities in several cities and towns closed off streets, surrounded public squares, and prevented would-be demonstrators from going to areas where they'd been called upon to gather together for rallies.

Despite the obstacles, several people in Almaty managed to present their demands publicly.

In Nur-Sultan and Aktobe, RFE/RL correspondents reported that several protesters were detained by authorities on September 25.

In Semey, in the East Kazakhstan region, police also detained RFE/RL's Kazakh Service correspondent Khadisha Akaeva for about one hour along with journalist Daniyar Adilbekov from informburo.kz website.

Akaeva says she sustained minor injuries after she was taken into custody by police.

Ablyazov, the former head of BTA Bank in Kazakhstan, is wanted by authorities in Kazakhstan, Russia, and Ukraine on suspicion of embezzling some $5 billion. Ablyazov and his supporters reject the charges as politically motivated.

Ablyazov was sentenced to life in prison in absentia in 2018 after a court in Kazakhstan found him guilty of masterminding the 2004 murder of another banker.

In a separate trial in absentia in Kazakhstan that ended in 2017, Ablyazov was convicted of embezzlement, abuse of office, and organizing a criminal group. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison on those charges.

Several politicians and activists have fled Kazakhstan in recent years, fearing for their safety or anticipating politically motivated prosecution.

MINSK -- A lawyer representing a top opposition activist in Belarus has been freed after a court imposed a fine against her on September 25, a day after she was detained by police.

Meanwhile, three journalists who have covered weeks of mass protests against the country's longtime authoritarian ruler have each been sentenced to about two weeks in jail.

The lawyer, Lyudmila Kazak, went missing on September 24 before police confirmed later in the day that she had been arrested. She was found guilty of "failing to obey police" and fined about $260.

Kazak has defended Maryya Kalesnikava, a key member of a council Belarus's political opposition set up to push for a new presidential election in the wake of the disputed August 9 vote that officials said had given Alyaksandr Lukashenka a sixth term in office.

The opposition and some poll workers claim that the results were falsified.

Kalesnikava is facing charges of undermining state security and could be sentenced to up to five years in prison if she is convicted.

Kazak had relayed several messages to the public that Kalesnikava sent from jail -- including calls for protesters to continue anti-Lukashenka protests as well as allegations that law enforcement officers threatened to kill Kalesnikava.

"Freedom is worth fighting for. Do not be afraid to be free," one of Kalesnikava's messages said. "I do not regret anything and would do the same again."

Kalesnikava has said Belarusian security forces drove her to the border with Ukraine to try to make her leave the country, but she tore up her passport.

Meanwhile, two journalists with the Polish-funded Belsat TV channel that covers Belarus were sentenced on September 25 to 12 days in jail and each fined about $310. They were charged with working without accreditation.

A Belarusian video journalist was also sentenced on September 25 to 15 days for "involvement in mass disorder," according to the Belarusian Association of Journalists.

Hundreds of thousands of Belarusians have been protesting daily since official results announced from the presidential election gave Lukashenka about 80 percent of the vote.

With reporting by AP