On Saturday, November 7, an Astana court imposed different penalties on two people for the same offence, foul language. It fined a stand-up comedian, and sent a man who swore on someone else’s TikTok broadcast to jail for 10 days. Set against three earlier rulings, the fine for the comedian is the milder outcome, and the provision itself was applied as written.
Swearing on stage in court practice
- 20 MCI
fine under Part 1 of Article 434 of the Administrative Offences Code - 86,500 tenge
20 MCI in 2026 - 5–15 days
administrative arrest under the same part - 10 days
arrest of comedian Alexander Merkul in 2024 - 15 days
arrest of comedian Nurskhan Baskhozhayev in 2024 - 5 → 20 MCI
rise in the fine for swearing in 2023
Based on the review materials
- 20 MCI
One article, two rulings in a day
On November 7 Astana’s specialised inter-district administrative court heard two cases under Part 1 of Article 434 of the Administrative Offences Code, that is, on petty hooliganism. The stand-up comedian, referred to in the court’s statement as “citizen Q.”, received a fine of 20 monthly calculation indices (MCI), or 86,500 tenge, for swearing in front of an audience at a venue in the city. He admitted guilt, repented and asked for a fine; the court took the admission and repentance into account. A man who overnight between November 6 and 7 joined someone else’s live broadcast on TikTok and swore got 10 days of arrest; the court cited “demonstrative disregard for generally accepted norms of behaviour” and the breach of public order, the court said. He also admitted guilt, but admitting guilt did not spare him arrest.
The difference is clear from the article itself. Part 1 of Article 434 provides for a fine of 20 MCI or administrative arrest for 5 to 15 days. The court chooses between the penalties “taking into account the degree and nature of the public danger of the act and behaviour before and after the offence”, the court’s press office explained in another case. The court applied the text of the article: the more demonstrative the behaviour and the less remorse, the harsher the penalty.
How it was punished before
In three earlier cases involving comedians that the press reported, the penalty was arrest. In November 2022 the comedian Andi Topalidis received 10 days of administrative arrest; in May 2024 in Almaty the comedian Nurskhan Baskhozhayev was sentenced to 15 days for foul language during a performance, a review of the legislation recalls. In July 2024 the same Astana court gave 10 days to the comedian Alexander Merkul, who posted on Instagram and YouTube a video of a performance with obscene language. Merkul, as the court’s statement shows, admitted guilt and asked for a fine, but received arrest.
Against that background, the November 7 ruling is milder than each of the three earlier ones. The comedian got what he asked for, while Merkul’s request for a fine in 2024 was not granted. The circumstances of the cases differed: Merkul put the recording of his performance on social media, while the November 7 case concerns swearing at a venue in front of an audience.
Why the law became stricter
Liability for foul language was tightened in March 2023: the fine rose from 5 to 20 MCI (from 17,250 to 69,000 tenge at the then rate), and the possible arrest for a repeat offence rose from 15 to 30 days, the review wrote. In May 2024 the Ministry of Culture proposed another measure: raising fines for performers for improper behaviour, including foul language and performing while intoxicated. Up to 150 MCI was proposed for individuals and up to 300 MCI for legal entities, and for a repeat offence within a year up to 200 and 600 MCI respectively. The review does not say what happened to that initiative.
The fine in tenge depends on the index: in 2026 one MCI equals 4,325 tenge, so 20 MCI is 86,500 tenge. The same fine was imposed in Astana in August 2026 on a foreign woman for a video with obscene language at the Triumphal Arch, and in Aktau on a resident for swearing on TikTok, the court said. The article speaks of obscene language in public places and makes no distinction between stage, street and social media.
What comedians and lawyers say
Comedians themselves, the review writes, believe that a ban on swearing would take the liveliness and naturalness out of their performances. Lawyer Diyara Zakirova, founder of the law firm Force Majeure, recalls that in private clubs the rules on restrictions are announced by owners and organisers and visitors are usually warned that coarse language is possible. If the audience came to a show with such a warning, the question remains whether public order was breached. On November 7 the court called the venue a place where foul language showed disrespect to those around, and did not say whether the audience had been warned in advance.
The dispute between freedom of performance and public order is not resolved in this case: the ruling has not entered into force, and its reasoning has not been published. What matters more for practice is something else: the ruling itself looks well founded, as the article was applied as written, the milder of the two penalties was chosen, and the comedian’s admission of guilt and repentance were taken into account. The question of shows with a warning about restrictions stays open: whether to treat them as a public place is for the courts to determine in later cases.
