Posting photographs without consent, insults and unsubstantiated accusations on social media have become the subject of court proceedings in Kazakhstan. In two cases, the courts awarded the defendants to pay non-pecuniary damages ranging from 20,000 to 300,000 tenge.
WHAT HAPPENED
According to the Supreme Court, a resident of Ust-Kamenogorsk went to court after two Instagram users posted her photograph with obscene language and posts hinting at immoral behaviour and self-serving schemes with clients.
The defendants explained their actions as a personal opinion. However, the court disagreed with this position: accusations against a specific person required evidence, which the defendants did not provide.
The court ordered both to delete the posts and publish a retraction. In addition, each was ordered to pay 300,000 tenge in non-pecuniary damages and court costs. The appellate and cassation instances upheld the decision.
WHY THE COURT ORDERED THE PHOTO TO BE DELETED IN WHATSAPP
In another case, a resident of Astana discovered her photograph in two WhatsApp group chats with around 1,500 members. The image appeared there after a residents' meeting she had attended.
The Inter-District Civil Court of Astana referred the case for consideration under extraterritorial jurisdiction to the Shu District Court of Zhambyl Region. The proceedings were held online.
The court recognised the screenshots from the messenger as electronic evidence and established that posting the photograph without the woman's consent in group chats violated her rights.
At the same time, the request to delete the messages was rejected: by the time the case was considered, it was technically impossible to ensure their deletion from all participants.
Two neighbours were ordered to pay 20,000 tenge each in non-pecuniary damages. The claim against a third defendant was rejected due to lack of evidence of his involvement. The Zhambyl Regional Court upheld this decision.
