When Guldaria Sherizat's youngest daughter turns 14 in February 2027, Sherizat's deferred 5-year jail term is set to begin. "Neither the first instance court nor the appeal court adequately considered her circumstances, family situation, or physical health," family members complained to Forum 18. "Her health has deteriorated severely, she is physically exhausted, and she is under tremendous psychological stress." With her husband jailed in Xinjiang, if she too is jailed next spring their three daughters will be left with neither parent at liberty.

Sherizat – who is now 48 - was among 19 Kazakhs originally from China's Xinjiang Province convicted in April 2026 for "inciting discord" against Chinese people. The 19 had protested in November 2025 against Chinese government restrictions on the ethnic Kazakh population in China's north-western Xinjiang Province. In particular, Sherizat was protesting against her husband's jailing in Xinjiang. The Chinese authorities had jailed Alimnur Turganbay in July 2025 for protesting against the jailing in Xinjiang of his nephew Serik Dauitbek for praying (see below).

The 19 – including Sherizat - lost their appeal at Almaty Regional Court on 9 June 2026. Yerlan Kulanbayev of Almaty Region Prosecutor's Office urged the Regional Court to leave the April verdict unchanged. Forum 18 was unable to reach Kulanbayev to find out why he had supported Sherizat's jailing (see below).

On 3 October, Sherizat lodged a further appeal to the Cassation Court in the capital Astana. "The purpose of my actions was not to incite hostility against any nation or people, but rather to draw the attention of the public and state authorities to my spouse's situation, to seek assistance for him, and to advocate for his release," she wrote in her cassation appeal. "I did not call for hatred or discrimination against anyone based on their nationality, religion, or ethnic origin, nor did I urge any actions to be taken against other individuals" (see below).

Sherizat's appeal also notes her poor health, including the lingering impact of an earlier car crash. The Cassation Court has set the hearing for 24 February 2027 (see below).

As she awaits her jailing, Sherizat is registered with the Probation Service, must not leave her local area and must maintain "appropriate behaviour". In November 2025, officials had fitted her with an electronic tag around her ankle while she was under house arrest. Officials removed the tag in June 2026 after she lost her appeal (see below).

Police of Almaty Region's Zhambyl District – where Sherizat lives - referred Forum 18 to Karlygash (they did not know her surname), who heads the local Probation Service. Forum 18 told her of the family's concerns over Sherizat's health and asked her which agency decides whether Sherizat will be sent to prison when her youngest daughter reaches 14. Karlygash did not take Forum 18's calls and did not respond to Forum 18's questions. Almaty Region Prosecutor's Office Press Office did not respond to similar questions (see below).

The trial is underway in nearby Taldykorgan in Zhetisu Region of nine Sunni Muslims accused of membership of the banned Muslim missionary movement Tabligh Jamaat. The trial is due to resume on 30 October (see below).

The prosecution case is based on recordings of conversations in the Taldykorgan home of 49-year-old Zhakipbek Ormanov using a hidden camera and microphones installed as part of National Security Committee (NSC) secret police "special measures". The men were discussing religious and other matters (see below).

"The defendants have not given their testimony yet in the trial," their lawyer Agisbek Tulegenov told Forum 18 "We have also called for a new expert analysis in the case." He currently expects the trial to conclude with a verdict in November (see below).

The trial of the nine follows the December 2025 conviction of 12 other Sunni Muslims for alleged membership of Tabligh Jamaat. The court handed down jail terms of 1 to 5 years, plus post-prison bans of between 1 and 5 years on engaging in religious activities.

Meanwhile, an Almaty court jailed 40-year-old independent Orthodox priest Fr Yakov Vorontsov for 4 years on drug-related charges on 7 October after a closed trial. He had already spent 8 months in pre-trial detention, including a forced psychiatric examination. Fr Yakov denied the charges and has appealed. Fr Yakov criticised Russia's war against Ukraine and twice tried in vain to register his independent Orthodox parish.

Sherizat: Deferred 5-year medium-security jail term

Guldaria Sherizat (born 10 September 1978) was among 19 Kazakhs originally from China's Xinjiang Province who protested in November 2025 against Chinese government restrictions on the ethnic Kazakh population in China's north-western Xinjiang Province.

In particular, Sherizat was protesting against her husband's jailing in Xinjiang. The Chinese authorities had jailed Alimnur Turganbay in July 2025 for protesting against the jailing in Xinjiang of his nephew Serik Dauitbek for praying.

On 13 April 2026, Judge Erzhan Baibolov of Enbekshikazakh District Court No. 2 in Almaty Region convicted the 19 participants under Criminal Code Article 174, Part 2. This punishes "Incitement of social, national, clan, racial, or religious discord, insult to the national honour and dignity or religious feelings of citizens, as well as propaganda of exclusivity, superiority or inferiority of citizens on grounds of their religion, class, national, generic or racial identity, committed publicly or with the use of mass media or information and communication networks, as well as by production or distribution of literature or other information media, promoting social, national, clan, racial, or religious discord" when conducted by a group.

Punishments are a jail term of five to ten years, with the possibility of a post-prison ban on certain activities or roles.

Judge Baibolov sentenced 11 of the 19 to 5 years' imprisonment each. Of these, two women - including Sherizat – had their jail terms postponed because they have underage children. The Judge sentenced the other 8 to terms of restricted freedom. The Judge also handed down post-prison bans on specific activity for three years.

For unexplained reasons, the trial was held not at Enbekshikazakh District Court No. 2 in Shelek, but at the Specialised Inter-District Criminal Court of Zhetisu Region in Taldykorgan, a four-hour drive away.

Uyghur District Police – who had arrested the demonstrators in November 2025 - refused to put Forum 18 through on 16 April 2025 to Captain Murager Orazgaziyev, who prepared the indictment. Nor would officers answer any questions about the case or the verdict and put the phone down. Officials at Uyghur District Prosecutor's Office did not answer the phones each time Forum 18 called the same day.

"None of them uttered a single word against the Chinese people," lawyer Shinkuat Baizhanov insisted to Forum 18 in April. "They only criticised the actions of the Chinese authorities."

The then United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, Mary Lawlor, described the convictions of the 19 as "disturbing". "These convictions should be reviewed in a fair trial," she added on social media on 16 April.

Officials blocked Sherizat's bank accounts after her conviction, her family told Forum 18.

Those convicted on terrorism or extremism related charges are added to the Financial Monitoring Agency's List of individuals "connected with the financing of terrorism or extremism". They remain on the List for up to 8 years after the prison part of their sentence is completed as they are deemed still to have a criminal record.

Being added to the List means that any bank accounts an individual may have are blocked with no further legal process. Their families often find out about the blocking of accounts only when they go to the bank. Families are allowed to withdraw only small amounts for daily living if they do not have other sources of income.

Sherizat: Regional Court rejects appeal, Cassation Court appeal lodged

All 19 of those who had protested about China's actions against ethnic Kazakhs – including Guldaria Sherizat – lodged appeals against their 13 April convictions. However, a panel of three judges at Almaty Regional Court, chaired by Aybek Abu, rejected the appeal on 9 June, according to the decision seen by Forum 18. Yerlan Kulanbayev of Almaty Region Prosecutor's Office urged the Regional Court to leave the April verdict unchanged.

Forum 18 was unable to reach Kulanbayev at Almaty Region Prosecutor's Office to find out why he had supported Sherizat's jailing. Telephones were busy or went unanswered each time Forum 18 called between 21 and 27 October.

In November 2025, officials had fitted Sherizat with an electronic tag around her ankle while she was under house arrest. Officials removed the tag in June 2026 after she lost her appeal and the verdict came into force.

Sherizat is among those who have lodged a further appeal to the Cassation Court in the capital Astana. "I believe that the court of first instance did not examine all the circumstances of the case in a complete, comprehensive, and objective manner," she declares in her 3 October cassation appeal (seen by Forum 18).

"The purpose of my actions was not to incite hostility against any nation or people, but rather to draw the attention of the public and state authorities to my spouse's situation, to seek assistance for him, and to advocate for his release," Sherizat wrote in her cassation appeal. "I did not call for hatred or discrimination against anyone based on their nationality, religion, or ethnic origin, nor did I urge any actions to be taken against other individuals."

Sherizat's appeal also notes her poor health, including the lingering impact of an earlier car crash.

The Cassation Court has set a hearing for 24 February 2027, her family told Forum 18.

Sherizat: Awaiting jail

When Guldaria Sherizat's youngest daughter turns 14 in February 2027, Sherizat's 5-year jail term is set to begin.

As she awaits her jailing, Sherizat is registered with the Probation Service. She had to sign an undertaking not to leave her local area and to maintain "appropriate behaviour".

Police of Almaty Region's Zhambyl District – where Sherizat lives - referred Forum 18 to Karlygash (they did not know her surname), who heads the local Probation Service. Forum 18 told her of the family's concerns over Sherizat's health and asked her in writing on 26 October which agency decides whether Sherizat will be sent to prison when her youngest daughter reaches 14. Karlygash did not take Forum 18's calls on 27 October and did not respond to Forum 18's questions.

Forum 18 similarly told the Press Office of Almaty Region Prosecutor's Office of the family's concerns over Sherizat's health and asked in writing on 26 October which agency will decide if and when she will be taken to prison to begin serving her sentence. Forum 18 had received no response by the end of the working day in Kazakhstan of 27 October.

Sherizat: Health concerns over future prisoner

The family of Guldaria Sherizat – who is due to be jailed in spring 2027 - have expressed concerns about her health. "Neither the first instance court nor the appeal court adequately considered her circumstances, family situation, or physical health," family members complained to Forum 18 on 21 October. "They failed to give due consideration to these concerns. None of these important issues received a fair and proper review."

Family members added: "Her health has deteriorated severely, she is physically exhausted, and she is under tremendous psychological stress," they told Forum 18. (Forum 18 has seen medical documents on Sherizat's health.)

Taldykorgan: Trial of nine Muslims continues

The trial of nine Sunni Muslims continues under Judge Alibek Abdikhayev at Taldykorgan City Court in the southern Zhetisu Region. The trial began in June, but hearings have been postponed or delayed several times over the summer. The next hearing is due on 30 October. The men are not held in the defendants' cage in the court room during hearings, one of the defendants told Forum 18.

Those on trial are:
Zhakipbek Zhanibekovich Ormanov (born 8 December 1976)
Aidos Toktarkhanovich Alpiyev (born 15 September 1978)
Nariman Amanovich Amanov (born 15 March 1972)
Estai Kanatbekovich Dzhakayev (born 17 May 1978)
Dubek Khasenovich Bozov (born 21 December 1974)
Duman Abayevich Kabdoldanov (born 28 January 1985)
Zheneskali Sagingaliyevich Nuralin (born 9 May 1972)
Zhomart Rakhatovich Bigozhanov (born 6 February 1977)
Alpysbai Aldabergenovich Tleubayev (born 1 March 1972)

Eight of the nine Muslims live in Zhetisu Region, five of them in Taldykorgan. The ninth lives in neighbouring Almaty Region.

"The defendants have not given their testimony yet in the trial," their lawyer Agisbek Tulegenov told Forum 18 on 21 October. "We have also called for a new expert analysis in the case." He said he currently expects the trial to conclude with a verdict in November.

On 30 May, National Security Committee (NSC) secret police Investigator Lieutenant Colonel Nurbol Zhananov completed the indictment (seen by Forum 18) in the case of Zhakipbek Ormanov and the other eight Muslim men. It alleges that they are members of the banned Muslim missionary movement Tabligh Jamaat. The Deputy Prosecutor of Zhetisu Region, Ilyas Beskempirov, counter-signed the indictment.

The prosecution case is based on recordings of conversations in the Taldykorgan home of 49-year-old Ormanov using a hidden camera and microphones installed as part of NSC secret police "special measures". The men were discussing religious and other matters.

The nine Muslims were not taken into custody. They remain at home, and are banned from leaving the country, one of those on trial told Forum 18 in September.

All nine men are on trial under Criminal Code Article 405, Part 2. This punishes "participation in the activity of a social or religious association or other organisation after a court decision banning their activity or their liquidation in connection with extremism or terrorism they have carried out" with a fine or up to two years' imprisonment.

The nine "categorically deny" the prosecution accusations that they are members of Tabligh Jamaat, Agisbek Tulegenov, the defendants' lawyer, and Galym Ageleuov, a religious expert and president of the Liberty Public Foundation, told a 21 September press conference in Almaty at the office of the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and the Rule of Law.

The Deputy Director of the Research Centre for Religious Issues and Rehabilitation attached to Zhetisu Region's Religious Affairs Department said she was familiar with the trial but had not seen the indictment or attended any hearings. Asked by Forum 18 in September who the defendants might have harmed, she responded: "They didn't kill anyone. They didn't call for anyone to be killed." She insisted she and her colleagues are theologians who "don't interfere in the judicial process".

NSC secret police Investigator Lieutenant Colonel Zhananov again did not answer his phone when Forum 18 called between 21 and 27 October.

Several of the nine Muslims on trial had served prison terms in their youth on criminal charges unrelated to the exercise of freedom of religion or belief. Four of them had faced court cases in recent years to punish them for exercising freedom of religion or belief. (END)

More reports on freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Kazakhstan

For background information, see Forum 18's Kazakhstan freedom of religion or belief survey

Forum 18's compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments

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