Clare Doyle
BBC News
The trial of 10 people accused of involvement in the killing of Kazakh opposition leader Altynbek Sarsenbaiuly is due to open later on Wednesday.
Mr Sarsenbaiuly was found dead with his driver and his bodyguard in February - all had been shot in the head.
Mr Sarsenbaiuly's family and supporters have already said they do not expect the trial to be fair and have accused the authorities of a cover-up.
Mr Sarsenbaiuly's death caused political turmoil in Kazakhstan.
He was the second opposition leader to be found dead in a matter of months, and the brutal manner of the killing shocked a country which had a reputation for security in an unstable region.
Thousands of ordinary Kazakhs with no political affiliation turned out to Mr Sarsenbaiuly's funeral. Rumours that political intrigue lay behind the killing began to spread immediately.
The authorities attempted to calm the public mood by inviting the American FBI to participate in the investigation and quickly arrested 10 suspects, including a former senior politician, and five agents from the security forces.
'False charges'
These 10 defendants go on trial on Wednesday in the remote town of Taldykorgan.
They are accused of killing Mr Sarsenbaiuly because of a personal dispute, sparked by articles he had published in the media.
Mr Sarsenbaiuly's supporters and relatives have already condemned every aspect of the investigation.
They say the apparent openness is completely misleading and that the arrests are an attempt to deflect attention from the real culprits and the charges are false.
Kazakhstan has enjoyed a reputation as a relatively stable country with strong economic growth, thanks to its huge oil and gas reserves.
Many Kazakhs have benefited from the oil boom and foreign companies have flocked to invest money in huge energy projects.
So far, they have not been deterred by frequent international criticism of the country's record on democracy and human rights.
(BBC)
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