"Extremist aspects have been revealed in Hizb-al-Tahrir activities, with leaflets disseminated to call for unconstitutional action," said Judge Zhanat Zhumabayeva, as she was announcing the verdict, which may be appealed against at the Supreme Court within the next fifteen days, as the Kazakh legislation has it.
The Hizb-al-Tahrir (Islamic Liberation Party) has been active in Kazakhstan since 1998. The Prosecutor General's experts qualify it as spearheaded against the constitutional regime. The Hizb aims to violate the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Kazakhstan, undermine national security, and instigate religious and social strife, they argue.
More than 180 instances were registered last year alone, on which the Hizb-al-Tahrir was circulating leaflets and other printed matter that contained unconstitutional appeals. Criminal proceedings were launched on 111 related cases in 2004.
Sheikh Tahieddin Nabhoni established the Hizb-al-Tahrir, 1953, on the basis of the Muslim Brothers' Palestinian branch. Abu Rusht, alias Abu Yassin, Palestinian Autonomy national and present-day Hizb leader, is on the international "wanted" list, and the Interpol is on his track.
