Voice of Democracy
Published by Kazakhstan 21st Century Foundation · Washington, D.C. · April 29, 2002

JUST SAYING NO -- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, on a brief visit to Astana this weekend, was unable to persuade President Nursultan Nazarbayev to agree to basing rights in Kazakhstan for American and western aircraft engaged in the war against terror, despite Nazarbayev’s earlier promises of full cooperation. Rumsfeld had to settle for very limited agreement to allow for “emergency use” of three airfields in addition to continuing overflight permission. Turkmenistan also allows overflights but refuses to provide basing rights. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news

GETTING BACK ON TRACK -- Leaders of the European Parliament met with leaders of the Kazakh opposition, particularly former prime Minister Akezhan Kazhgeldin, in Strasbourg last week to discuss what caused the derailment of the progress Kazakhstan had been making toward democracy. One of the conditions for Kazakh admission to the Council of Europe was for Kazakhstan to submit its constitution for review by Venice Commission of the Council of Europe for compliance with European standards; so far the Nazarbayev regime has refused. The Council has criticized Kazakhstan for its highly centralized government that gives lopsided power to the president while maintaining a weak parliament, a news media that are "not fully independent," and retention of the death penalty. European Parliamentarians “stressed their vivid interest in cooperation with the Kazakh opposition” in order to promote democratic reform and closer relations. http://assembly.coe.int/ppe/events/kazakhstan_a.htm

NAZARBAYEV SHARES IRAN MIDEAST VIEW -- Kazakhstan aligned itself with Iran this week on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Hosting his Iranian counterpart, President Mohammed Khatami, Nursultan Nazarbayev said Kazakhstan and Iran "have similar stances on…the fight of the Palestinian People for its independence." Iran has declared its intention to obtain nuclear weapons in order to use them to wipe out the Jewish state. It is a major sponsor of anti-Israel and anti-Western terrorism. In a joint appearance by the two presidents at Al-Farabi Kazakh National University in Almaty, Nazarbayev "emphasized the congruence in the two countries' approaches in many questions," particularly the Middle East, Interfax reported. http://www.interfax-news.com/

PLAYING BOTH SIDES -- Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev sat by silently while his friend and neighbor, the president of Iran, "lambasted" the United States during an official visit to Almaty this week, Reuters reported. Mohammed Khatami harshly criticized the American military presence in Central Asia as part of the U.S.-led war against terrorism. Iran, which the U.S. considers a major state sponsor of international terrorism and part of the "axis of evil," warned against letting Washington use "the disguise of an anti-terrorist campaign" to establish military bases in the region's former Soviet republics. Khatami's visit was to be followed by one from American Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who is expected to remind leaders like Nazarbayev that Iran has long sought to spread its influence over the region and subvert its neighbors by exporting its radical brand of Islam. Khatami's other mission was to persuade Kazakhstan to turn to Iran as the major export route for its oil to the Persian Gulf instead of a U.S.-promoted Baku-Ceyhan pipeline to the Mediterranean. Washington has long been concerned about the political impact of Iranian-Kazakh oil links. http://dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/top_stories/

DON'T ASK, DON'T CARE ­ To no one's surprise, the head of the Kazakh central bank defended his leader's decision to hide $1 billion in a secret foreign bank account. President Nazarbayev, who faces investigations by Swiss and American authorities for money laundering, clandestinely moved $1 billion out of the country behind the backs of his puppet Parliament. Central Bank chief Grigory Marchenko said it was "the right decision from the economic point of view." Predictably, other Nazarbayev appointees also endorsed the move that Marchenko conceded "was not properly arranged." In other words: illegal. But since Nazarbayev also controls the prosecutors and the courts, he is unlikely to face any embarrassing questions. And that includes the central banker says, "This is why I myself ask no questions." http://dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/top_stories/

SLAVE TRADE FLOURISHES -- "Slavery is real in Kazakhstan," reports Channel 31 TV in Almaty. For $25,000, a slave can be purchased on the black market in cities like Shymkent, Petropavlosk and Taldy-Korgan, according to a 12-year study by the Gender Research Center. Women and youths are in highest demand, usually for prostitution in neighboring Russia or the industrialized West. Male slaves are often purchased as personal servants for affluent women. The report contends "70% of these illegally employed people are infected with AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases, and they are completely dependent on alcohol and drugs." Not all slaves are sold abroad; some are brought from neighboring countries to serve masters in Kazakhstan itself, the report noted. http://www.channel31.Kazakhstan/

For the full stories, see the web citations above or contact us at News@Kazakhstan21.org. The Kazakhstan 21st Century Foundation promotes democracy and human rights in Kazakhstan through public affairs and educational programs in the United States and Europe. This material is distributed by Kazakhstan 21st Century Foundation. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, D.C.