Voice of Democracy
Published by Kazakhstan 21st Century Foundation · Washington, D.C. ·July 31, 2002

'THE ROT IN KAZAKHSTAN' -- Kazakhstan has the potential to become one of the world's leading energy exporters, but that promise is threatened by the growing repression and corruption of the Nazarbayev regime, according to The Economist. The Kazakh dictator is "turning the screw with a toughness that has astonished even the most jaded observers" while concentrating political authority in the hands of his family and closest advisors. Western protests have been ignored with impunity, it said. The West has sold out the Kazakh people, doing nothing beyond routine statements, in exchange for a few crumbs like permission for American fighter jets to make emergency landings at the country's airports. Also dangling out there is hope of getting a piece of its promising oil business. Meanwhile, hopes for democracy diminish and "power becomes less accountable" in Kazakhstan and the likelihood grows that "more and more" of its oil income "will be salted away to secret, overseas place." The Economist laments that It will take more than diplomatic protests to make sure that "the country's early promise [doesn't give] way to Soviet-style repression." The Economist urges Western firms doing business in Kazakhstan to "[use] their influence to promote good governance, rather than the opposite, in Central Asia. http://www.economist.com/

NO WAY, SAYS NORWAY ­ Kazakhstan's new law restricting political parties is unreasonable and anti-democratic, Norway charged. The measure, which virtually makes Kazakhstan a one-party system, "limits the political pluralism which is an absolute prerequisite for democracy," said the Norwegian statement.

IT TAKES ONE TO KNOW ONE ­ Who knows more about corruption in Kazakhstan than President Nazarbayev himself? After all he is the target of international investigations into money laundering, bribery and other crimes ­ along with some of his closest family members and cronies. Various international human rights and other groups have harshly condemned the financial, political and moral corruption of the regime. So it should come as no surprise that when Nazarbayev wants to remove his rivals and critics, he accuses them of corruption or sends his tax police or prosecutors after them. He's even made it a crime to insult the president. A law like that in the United States would end late-night television and put every comedian behind bars along with most journalists and politicians. But it’s a familiar pattern in dictatorships, where innocent people are charged with crimes they didn't commit when their only offense was criticizing the megalomaniac-in-charge. If anyone in Kazakhstan should be on trial for abuse of power and stealing from the treasury, it is Nazarbayev himself. One of his most frequent targets has been his former Prime Minister, Akezhan Kazhegeldin. Now forced to live in exile, Kazhegeldin, the head of the Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan, has arranged for the RPPK to form a monitoring group to report to the international community the details of the charges and trial proceedings against critics and opponents of the Nazarbayev regime. http://www.forumkz.org/kazakhstan.htm

NAZARBAYEV SUPPORT SEEN ERODING -- Former Prime Minister Akezhan Kazhegeldin has called on his country's opposition parties to set aside their disputes and join forces in a new effort to remove Nursultan Nazarbayev. The move was prompted by the newly passed law that would effectively bar opposition political groups from registering. Kazhegeldin, chairman of the Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan (RNPK), said enactment of the new law is Nazarbayev's response to the erosion of his support within the country's leadership. In an address to the nation's opposition parties, he called on them to ignore the new law's requirement to re-register before the end of the year and urged them to continue operating as usual, RFE/RL reported. The best course of action now is for the opposition to unite in an election bloc to contest democratic elections under international supervision. He said he is prepared to join the collective leadership of such a group. http://www.rferl.org/bd/ka/

'HOLD NAZARBAYEV ACCOUNTABLE' ­ Kazakh dictator Nursultan Nazarbayev's "undemocratic and totalitarian" behavior "should not be tolerated," declared U.S. Rep. Norman Dicks. The Washington State Democrat, who is a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee and an influential voice in defense spending, was harshly critical of the repressive regime which is seeking a closer alliance with the United States as a result of the war against terror. He said international attention should "focus" on the increasingly repressive and corrupt regime. "Nazarbayev needs to allow for all legitimate opposition parties and their leaders to run for political office and allow for all exiled political leaders to return to Kazakhstan," he said. He excoriated Nazarbayev for banning opposition parties, arresting and exiling political foes, stashing $1 billion of oil revenue in a secret Swiss bank account, and not allowing a free press. He called on the international community to "focus...attention" on the "undemocratic and totalitarian action of the President of Kazakhstan," adding that he also "should be held accountable for widespread corruption." Congressional Record, July 18, 2002. http://thomas.loc.gov/r107/r107.html

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