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Voice of Democracy
Published by Kazakhstan 21st Century Foundation · Washington, D.C. · Jan. 28, 2002
WANTED, NEW IDEAS --The Kazakh prime minister and his government resigned today in
Astana explaining it's time for "new people with new ideas." Here's some new
ideas: how about democracy, respect for human rights, free speech and free media,
unfettered political opposition, free and honest elections, ethics in government, freedom
of religion, an independent judiciary, an honest legal system, and an end to government
corruption. And we have a few suggestions for some new people, too. Oooops! We almost
forgot. The wrong guy resigned. It was just the figurehead prime minister, Kasymzhomart
Tokayev, not the dictator who wields the real power. The shots are still being called by
the same old repressive autocrat, who accepted the resignations and named another cabinet
stocked with Yes-men who will also sing his favorite tune, "The rich get richer and
the poor get poorer. Ain't we got fun." http://dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/top_stories/
STALIN WOULD BE PROUD OF PROTEGE -- Nursultan Nazarbayev, Kazakhstan's thin-skinned
president who has sent people to jail when he didn't feel they were deferential enough to
his exaltedness, now wants the same protection from criticism for his equally sensitive
Yes-men. The touchy dictator has ordered up a new law drafted to make it a crime to insult
top officials of his government. He has even ordered a review of prior statements by
politicians and journalists over the past three months for possible prosecution. He
accused anyone who disagrees with him of "resorting to adventurist methods, reckless
calls to disobey the authorities, and direct insults of top officials." Nazarbayev
justified his action by saying that through its criticism "this so called democratic
opposition" is trying to reverse all he has achieved in the past decade and its
criticism, while "good for a comical show," will lead to chaos, civil war and
bloodshed." He said his "reckless" critics are "forcing" him to
muzzle all dissent. At least he's not chopping off their heads. http://www.interfax-news.com/
FICTIONAL FREEDOM -- Kazakh laws protecting freedom of speech might as well be
written with invisible ink for all the rights they provide. The right exists "de
jure" but it is "relative and limited," according to the Kazakh newspaper
Respublika. "We have freedom of speech, but not the freedom to apply it," wrote
Mukhametzhan Adilov.Criticism of authorities is possible only in private, and even then it
is risky given government spying on citizens. Television broadcasting is controlled by
Nazarbayev loyalists, including his own daughter; the Internet is heavily censored; the
opposition media are harassed; journalists are prosecuted for trumped up tax charges or
insulting Nazarbayev with even the mildest criticism, and potential advertisers are
discouraged. "Our country describes itself as a democratic state, and this is almost
true. We have democratic values and institutions, rights and freedoms until it comes to
actually implementing them," Adilov writes. http://news.bbc.co.uk/
GIVE 'EM THE FINGER -- The Nazarbayev regime's proposed law ordering mass
fingerprinting of Kazakh citizens is not only humiliating but unconstitutional and a
violation of human rights, according to a leading activist. Yuriy Gusakov, director of the
regional department of Kazakhstan 's International Bureau on Human Rights and the
Observation of Legality, said it would violate Article 17 of the Kazakh Constitution,
which declares: "A person's dignity shall be inviolable." The government defends
the draft legislation, according to Interfax, saying it is not trying to create a criminal
data base but to help identify amnesia victims, lost and homeless persons with mental
disorders, and unidentified corpses. http://www.interfax-news.com/
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.
Voice of Democracy
29 Jan 2002
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