Karishal Asanov is a prisoner of conscience who was arrested on 19 August 1992 and charged with “infringement upon the honour and dignity of the President”. Shortly before his latest arrest he had been confined for compulsory psychiatric evaluation. Karishal Asanov is 59-years-old and an assistant professor at the Kazakh State University in Alma-Ata. The charge against him was brought after the newspaper Khak published an article critical of the President which comprised extracts from a book published by Karishal Asanov. Khak is published in Moscow by Alash, a nationalist political party which has not been granted registration in Kazakhstan. AI is also aware that Karishal Asanov suffers from hypertension and fears that he may not be getting adequate medical care.
