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Reporters Without Borders annual reports cover freedom of speech and specifically Internet censorship in Central Asian States. Tajikistan http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=25644 President Rahmon signed into law on 23 August 2007 a parliamentary bill extending protection against defamation to online publications and allowing imprisonment of those convicted, as in the print and broadcast media. Punishment ranges from a fine of up to 1,000 times the minimum monthly wage to two years in prison or 500 hours of forced labor. The culture ministry said the amendments were needed to make online journalists and bloggers act responsibly. The Internet is increasingly used to criticize the country’s leaders. The press law has been amended four times since it was passed in 1990, each time reducing freedom of expression. Uzbekistan http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=25488 Said Abdurakhimov, of Uznews.net, and Alexei Volosevitch, of Ferghana.ru, were arrested by soldiers for no apparent reason on 23 July 2007 and lengthily interrogated. Uznews.net and Ferghana.ru are two independent anti-government news agencies. Access to their sites is blocked inside the country and their journalists do not usually get permission to work inside Uzbekistan. Turkmenistan http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=25584 President Berdymukhamedov took few very small steps towards freedom of speech that did not amount to any real improvements. Cybercafés were allowed to open in February and the country reportedly now has five, including at least two in the capital. This was seen as encouraging since Internet access in Turkmenistan is one of the most tightly controlled in the world, with only 1% of the population able to get online. Internet users were also given a chance to leave comments on one of the official news websites, http://www.turkmenistan.gov.tm/. In a few days, this feature was again restricted. Kazakhstan http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=25492 In January, a journalist from the news website kub.kz, Kazis Toguzbayev, was given a two-year prison sentence, along with probation, for posting an article accusing the regime of protecting the killers of opposition leader Altynbek Sarsenbayev, which the justice ministry found insulting to the dignity and honor of President Nursultan Nazarbayev. Kyrgyzstan http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=25486