Implementation of the Сouncil of Еurope convention CETS no. 216 into the criminal legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan: problems of qualification and proof (on the example of the verdict in the case of Bizhanov and others).

The article addresses the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention against Trafficking in Human Organs into the criminal legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Its relevance follows from the forthcoming ratification of the Convention and the need to align national criminal law with its requirements. The purpose is to identify the gaps in the current wording of Article 116 of the Criminal Code and to develop ways of eliminating them by comparing the conventional obligations with the materials of a specific criminal case. The methodological basis comprises formal-legal, comparative-legal, systemic and criminological methods, analysis of judicial practice and legal modelling. It is established that the national provision criminalises mainly the act of removal and unlawful transactions, whereas the conventional standard requires liability for recruitment, offering, mediation, transportation, storage and financing of illicit organ trafficking. Judicial materials show that donors acting under extreme need and deception are convicted on an equal footing with the organisers. A new wording of Article 116, separate offences of recruitment, mediation and document forgery, a note on donor-victim immunity, and administrative liability of legal persons are proposed. The conclusions are applicable in law-making and law enforcement.

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