BISHKEK -- Marat Kazakpaev, a well-known Kyrgyz political analyst who was arrested in April last year on high treason charges has died.
Physicians at Bishkek city hospital No. 1 told RFE/RL that the 56-year-old died on June 10 in the medical facility, where he had been transferred from a detention center a day earlier.
According to Akylbek Musaev, the hospital’s chief physician, Kazakpaev was in a coma when he was brought to the facility and died of a stroke.
Kazakpaev's wife, Anar Kazakpaeva, accused the State Committee for National Security (UKMK) of ignoring her husband's complaints about his health problems and not providing him with timely medical treatment, saying the authorities carry full responsibility for his death.
Kyrgyz opposition organizations and political parties have demanded a thorough investigation into Kazakpaev's death.
Th UKMK issued a statement saying that Kazakpaev was "properly" treated in its infirmary between April 27 and May 19 due to his health problems, adding that, since then, the political analyst's lawyers had not asked for the transfer of their client to a regular medical institution.
According to the UKMK, Kazakpaev regularly participated in all sessions of his trial, which started in early March behind closed doors.
Kazakpaev and another person identified only by his initials, M.T., were arrested in April last year. The UKMK said at the time that all materials in the case were classified and did not give any details except that the two men could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted.
