Kazakhstan's political system-2000 as the worst
version of the USSR-1980
Tair Farabi "Sometimes it takes one person to close the eyes to open the
eyes of the millions"
Tair Farabi
Astana
"Sometimes it takes one person to close the eyes to open the eyes of
the millions"
Boguslav Voinar
Life is full of funny things. A couple of days ago, looking through a
pile of 20-years-old papers, I was greatly astonished at the likeness between those
distant events and what is going on now. "Familiar faces, aren't they?" It
struck me that we had seen all this already. The political system of today's Kazakhstan
just mirrors the notorious USSR's system of the 70's-80's. Judge for yourself:
Constitution of the USSR - Constitution of the Republic of
Kazakhstan: apart from some very "specific" articles, they guarantee their
citizens fundamental rights. However, these rights were neither respected 20 years ago,
nor they are respected today. The examples abound, every one of us encounters them in our
day-to-day life. Some circular letters of the USSR's Communist Party Central Commission
(like Presidential decrees and regulatory acts of departments) overrode then and override
now the national Basic Law.
Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee – the President
Administration: equally omnipotent and equally irresponsible, unable to adapt to the
changing environment and therefore lacking any perspective. More powerful than other
branches of power de jure and de facto.
Supreme Soviet of the USSR - Kazakhstani Parliament: decorative
organs unable to take action on their own. The same election mechanism: admitted
are only those who are wanted to be seen a member of the CPSU Central Committee (the
President Administration). That's why they do whatever their patrons want them to do,
turning a deaf ear to the needs of their constituencies because it were not the voters who
elected and, most probably, who would elect them in the future.
Council of Ministers of the USSR – Kazakhstani Government: was
and remains just a department in charge of the CPSU Central Committee's decisions (the
President Administration). It enjoys neither legal nor political independence.
USSR's KGB – Kazakhstan's KNB (National Security Committee):
the same total hold over everything and everybody. The department has always been closed
for public eye. The change of one letter in the abbreviation does not change the sum of
aggregate evil. The Committee keeps fighting the dissent, persecuting opposition, jailing
and committing political opponents to psychiatric institutions (the case of Akezhan
Kazhegeldin's bodyguargds, for instance).
The "Pravda" newspaper, "Vremya" News Service -
"Kazakhstanskaya Pravda", "Khabar" News. "Everything's
fine!" is the leitmotif with glossy pictures of the Potemkin villages, numerous
positive examples showing how the "far-seeing and wise policy of the country's
leadership" is being implemented. Like 20 years ago, people do not believe in this
good news and read between the lines. Unlike in the Soviet times, our leaders have used
smarter ways: they control now almost all formally independent but in the essence
state-run mass media sources, and all this has been done under the pretext of
privatization.
Underground publishing – newspapers "SolDat", "Nachnem S Ponedelnika" (Let's Start on Monday),
"ÕÕI Vek" (21st Century).
We are having the same LITO (censorship) reduced to an absurdity: in
the USSR everything that did not "comply with the general political approach"
was corrected and edited, while in Kazakhstan they ban those things from publishing
altogether! At the same time this alternative unofficial reporting is very popular with
the public as the sought after and trustworthy.
Those who flee from the country – like today. Like in previous
years, liberal citizens are allergic to the system and can't accept its rules. How many
millions of our compatriots have left independent Kazakhstan because of the widespread
discontent with the official policy?! Official propaganda prefers to hush it up…
Gordievsky, Nuriyev, Rostropovich, and many others.… Just recently 30 (!) Kazakh
citizens nearly joined them. They sought political asylum in Belgium, and failed. However,
this is just a tip of the iceberg!
The Iron Curtain – the same curtain. "Not
permitted!". This hollo remains in force in independent Kazakhstan too. Kazakhstani
opposition member Amirzhan Kosanov (Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan) has recently
joined the honorable army of those banned from going abroad in soviet times (like
Sakharov, Bukovsky, Shcharansky, Medvedev, and oth.). We can
"congratulate" him on his becoming the first person who has been officially
banned from travelling abroad in our sovereign state!.. The notorious OVIR (the Visa and
Registration Department) is as omnipotent as ever.
Gigantism, grandiose construction projects of the century and other
ideas – the project of a regional center accomplishment under the code title
"Construction of a new capital - Astana". In soviet times, they did not take
a decision to move the capital to the central part of the country despite all strong
chances. Our authorities have had no scruple to organize this feast in lean times. The
idea of moving the political center may have its strong reasons. But why bucket, dear
sirs?! It's obvious that the impoverished people need other ways of spending their money
that cost them so dear.
Communism-building program – "Strategy–2030". A
ruler, who is unable to provide a good living for the people today, starts telling
fairy tales of how wonderful the life will be "in the distant future". The
former first communist of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev has also given a birth to a
mythical dream about Kazakhstani paradise in 33 years. After all, he won't be personally
responsible for implementation of the document widely known as "Half past
Eight". Khrushchev promised communism in 20 years too, but managed to get away…
"Cold war", "tensions on the international
arena" - "national security" a la Kazakhstan. Our authorities have developed
an idea and polished it up. Under the pretext of national security interests they have
launched an unprecedented campaign to curtail the freedom of speech and harass opposition.
Just remember closing down of the leading opposition publications and lawsuits against
them, provocations and persecution of prominent political opponents.
General Secretary's son-in-law – Nazarbayev's son-in-law. When
fathers-in law wish to create acceptable living conditions for their daughters's family
members it is quite understandable and natural (we are only human). But no more! Realizing
that, Leonid Brezhnev provided his son-in-law Churbanov with an opportunity to live a
comfortable general's life. He also realized that some time would pass and he would no
longer be the first person in the country and would have to answer for his actions. Our
president lacks such sagacity (or just a natural instinct of self-preservation?). His
elder son-in-law Rakhat Aliyev has become the most odious figure in Kazakhstan. In fact,
Nazarbayev has given birth to this monster himself, who, most probably, will destroy him.
And, finally, the top element of this politics – the personality
cult in the 80's – the personality cult in Kazakhstan-2000. Any criticism is
unthinkable of the person who concentrated the power and rules the country all by himself
and therefore is held personally responsible for everything what is going on in this
country. The cult of his personality (in fact, a rather modest one) has been growing:
letters from grateful workers, peasants, and intelligentsia; ecstatic speeches of the
public at meetings in specially designated places. But can you take a trip all over your
country incognito and without the escort like Garun Al-Rashid in order to see what you
have did in the ten years of your rule?! The personality cult has turned in the cult of
the entire family. The former saleswoman has become an academician and started to promote
some doubtful physical jerks by a certain equally doubtful man as a new national idea.
What is most terrifying is that the true scholars and academicians listen to her nonsense
awestruck and stand up to applaud. Thanks to the "Moral Code of
Communism-Builder". Neither Nikita Khrushchev, nor Leonid Brezhnev devised anything
of the kind. And their comrades-in-arms would never allowed this!
As the former first secretary of Kazakhstan's Communist Party Central
Committee and a Brezhnev's colleague, Nazarbayev must realize why that system finally
collapsed. He is aware of such words as stagnation and agony. He has seen the fall of the
many-year dictatorships and demomonarchies. The fallen tyrants fled from the outburst of
righteous anger of their people. The historical wrong done to opposition members is
righted. No formal guarantees given by perspective successor can be absolute, human love
and hatred are so close. In private, Nazarbayev may be reflecting on all those eternal
values. In this light, his ugly politics seems even more obscure…
Surely, there is one basic distinction between those two different
social-political systems. In the USSR of the 80's people felt much more at ease and
comfortable, they did not starve and did not go begging as they do in Kazakhstan-2000. But
that's another whole issue for political economists…
Received via e-mail, December 2000 |