Local authorities will have to justify their refusal to citizens regarding peaceful gatherings.

The Constitutional Court's website has published the results of the review of several provisions of the law "On the Procedure for Organizing and Conducting Peaceful Gatherings in the Republic of Kazakhstan" .

The court explained that in February 2023, the Akimat of Astana denied the applicant's request to organize a peaceful gathering at the proposed time and place to express their position regarding the adoption of the law "On Mass Media." After the refusal, the applicant turned to the court.

"According to the applicant, the mentioned provisions of the law allow local executive bodies to arbitrarily refuse the conduct of a peaceful gathering without previously offering the organizer an alternative proposal to change the location or time of the event," the court stated.

Following the review, the Constitutional Court indicated that the decision to refuse the conduct of peaceful gatherings must be justified and reasoned. The court added that the information regarding the occupancy of specialized venues posted on the Akimats' websites should provide a clear understanding of the planned events, including their location, date, start and end times, and the expected number of participants.

"In each specific case, the decision to refuse the conduct of a peaceful gathering must be based on a thorough analysis of all existing circumstances and possible risks, taking into account the objectives, relevance, social significance, and scale of the events, as well as other objective factors."

"The legal provisions (suggestions to the organizer of the peaceful gathering to change the location and/or time of the event) are implemented within the framework of conciliatory procedures between the organizers of peaceful gatherings and local executive bodies. Before making a decision to refuse, it is mandatory for local executive bodies to make such a proposal to the organizer of the peaceful gathering," the court informed.

It is worth noting that the Constitutional Court announced the review of this provision in September of last year. At that time, it was reported that the contested norm allows for the refusal of peaceful gatherings if other official or mass events are already planned for the proposed time and location, or if construction and installation work is being conducted.

In late August of last year, the locations for peaceful gatherings and marches in Almaty were changed. As a result, it was decided to relocate peaceful rallies to the Imanova Square along Abylai Khan Avenue, which accommodates half the number of people. There is no need for street closures, and there are no residential buildings in close proximity.

The route for sanctioned marches or demonstrations has also been altered; it will now proceed along Zhambyl Street from Gagarin to Mukhanov. Zhambyl is considered less congested compared to Shevchenko and does not intersect with major streets.

In 2020, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed the law on peaceful gatherings, which stipulates that, among other things, at least three venues for peaceful rallies and gatherings must be designated in the country’s megacities.