QONAEV, Kazakhstan -- A court in Kazakhstan has denied early release for noted dissident Ermek Narymbaev (aka Narymbai), citing a violation of internal regulations allegedly committed by Narymbaev at the penal colony where he is incarcerated.
Narymbaev's lawyer, Zhanar Balghabaeva, told RFE/RL that the Qonaev City Court near Kazakhstan's largest city, Almaty, handed down its decision on December 14.
Court representatives were not available for immediate comment.
Narymbaev has been jailed several times for his political views and is known as a staunch critic of the tightly controlled former Soviet republic's government.
In 2016, he fled Kazakhstan for Ukraine after receiving death threats from unknown individuals. Narymbaev said at the time that the threats were masterminded by Kazakh authorities in a bid to intimidate him.
He returned to Kazakhstan in February after unprecedented anti-government rallies shook the Central Asian nation in early January, leaving at least 238 people dead.
He was arrested upon his arrival in Kazakhstan’s largest city, Almaty, and sent to prison for 30 months to serve the remainder of a previous suspended prison term he was handed in 2015 on a charge of inciting hatred, which he called politically motivated.
In October and November, Narymbaev held a hunger strike for 54 days to protest against his incarceration. He also demanded democratic reforms from the government. He lost 41 kilograms during the hunger strike.