KAZAKHSTAN: PARLIAMENTARIAN, SARSENBAIULY FAMILY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ALMATY 000887

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR SCA/CEN (M. O'MARA, J. MUDGE); DRL/PHD (C.
KUCHTA-HELBING)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/07/2016
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KZ
SUBJECT: KAZAKHSTAN: PARLIAMENTARIAN, SARSENBAIULY FAMILY
SPEAK OUT ON MURDER

REF: ALMATY 821 AND PREVIOUS

Classified By: DCM Mark Asquino, reasons 1.4 (B) and (D).


1. (C) Summary: In separate messages, a prominent
parliamentarian and 18 members of Alynbek Sarsenbaiuly's
family harshly criticized the course of the investigation and
pointed toward political motives behind the murder. The
chairman of the international relations committee of the
lower house of parliament, Serik Abdrakhmanov, dismissed the
official version of events, warned that Utembayev would
likely be killed in order to conceal the truth, linked
Sarsenbaiuly's murder to Nurkadilov's, and predicted that
more blood would be shed if Nazarbayev did not act to uncover
the truth. The Sarsenbaiuly family issued a letter claiming
that their relative had been killed for his political
activity, in particular his criticism of Nazarbayev's family
and close associates. They strongly implied that Rakhat
Aliyev was behind the killing and, like Abdrakhmanov,
rejected the possibility that Utembayev was responsible. In
a meeting with post, Sarsenbaiuly's nephew said that the
family was "99% sure" that Aliyev was involved in the murder,
in retaliation for Sarsenbaiuly's role in his 2001 "exile" to
Austria. End summary.

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Scathing Appeal from Abdrakhmanov
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2. (SBU) Mazhilis international relations committee chair
and Otan member Serik Abdrakhmanov became the first GOK
official to break ranks publicly with Nazarbayev over the
investigation of the Sarsenbaiuly murder. In a March 3
letter to the president that was released to the press and
widely covered, Abdrakhmanov said that the public was
"bewildered" and "outraged" by the official version of
events. He called the situation a tragicomedy, claiming that
Utembayev was a modest man "who could not give an order to
the guards posted outside his office, much less to the elite
'Arystan' group." Abdrakhmanov said that Interior Minister
Mukhamedzhanov was well aware of this but had lied due to
pressure from above.


3. (SBU) Abdrakhmanov stated that Utembayev had "signed his
own death sentence" by confessing to the murder, "if he is
not dead already." "Only a dead Utembayev cannot tell the
truth," he wrote. Noting that Nazarbayev had taken personal
responsibility for the investigation and was therefore
responsible for uncovering the truth, Abdrakhmanov said it
was his duty to report that people were concerned that
Nazarbayev was being betrayed by those in his inner circle.
He linked the murders of Sarsenbaiuly and Zamanbek
Nurkadilov, saying that both were carried out because the
former high-ranking officials knew too much about who in the
inner circle was stealing the country's wealth.


4. (SBU) The parliamentarian went on to warn that if
Nazarbayev does not "defend the TRUTH this time," more blood
will flow in the future. "We cannote guarantee peace and
stability in society with the help of LIES." He closed by
reiterating that Nazarbayev's closest associates were
alienating him from the public and from the truth.


5. (SBU) Some observers believe that Abdrakhmanov was
motivated to take a public stand on the murder due to his
clan links with Sarsenbaiuly and Nurkadilov. He was also a
member of the very influential Alban tribe, and now in fact
may be the most prominent remaining survivor.

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Sarsenbaiuly Family Issues Letter
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6. (SBU) In a similar vein, Sarsenbaiuly's family issued a
letter accusing the Minister of Interior of trying to conceal
the "political motivation" of the murder, and strongly
implying that Deputy FM Rakhat Aliyev was involved. The
March 3 letter, signed by 18 members of Sarsenbaiuly's
family, including his mother and father, was addressed to the
embassies of the U.S., the UK, Austria, and Finland, as well
as to the European Commission, the European Parliament, and
the OSCE. In the letter, Sarsenbaiuly's relatives recalled

ALMATY 00000887 002.2 OF 002


his harsh criticism since 2001 of Nazarbayev's family and
associates. They highlighted in particular his confrontation
with Rakhat Aliyev and Dariga Nazarbayeva. They also noted
the fact that Aliyev was formerly the deputy head of the KNB,
whose operatives have been charged in connection with the
crime. They characterized the premise that Utembayev had
ordered the murder for personal reasons as absurd, and
alleged that the police had questioned the family harshly
with the goal of attributing the murder to family problems or
financial difficulties. The Sarsenbaiuly family compared the
GOK's tactics in repressing the opposition to the Soviet
purges of the 1930s.

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And Goes Further in Private
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7. (C) In a March 6 meeting with post's energy officer,
Sarsenbaiuly's nephew Nurtas Sarsenbayev (protect),one of
the signers of the letter, was more frank. He stated that
the family is "99% sure" that Rakhat Aliyev was "involved" in
the murder. He explained that Aliyev was motivated by
Sarsenbaiuly's key role in getting him exiled from Kazakhstan
in 2001. Sarsenbaiuly had provided convincing evidence to
Nazarbayev that Aliyev was using his KNB position to gather
compromising information on influential people with the goal
of succeeding Nazarbayev. As a result, Aliyev was "exiled"
to Vienna and Sarsenbaiuly was sent to Moscow. Sarsenbayev
claimed that Aliyev had subsequently threatened Sarsenbaiuly
with revenge.


8. (C) Sarsenbayev said that the family does not believe that
Utembayev had ordered the murder or had any motive to do so.
He noted that the article, written years ago when
Sarsenbaiuly was ambassador in Moscow, had not even referred
to Utembayev by name. Utembayev had never contacted
Sarsenbaiuly to complain about it, and had suffered no
negative impact to his career as a result. Sarsenbayev
claimed that in fact his uncle and Utembayev had a relatively
close relationship. He also claimed that to the best of his
knowledge, the police had not interviewed any of
Sarsenbaiuly's relatives subsequent to Utembayev's arrest in
order to question them about relations between the two men.


9. (C) Sarsenbayev speculated that Utembayev had been forced
to confess because "someone has something on him." He added
that someone may have instructed Utembayev to conduct a
business deal with Ibragimov, who Sarsenbayev described as a
"protege of Aliyev," which he did, not realizing he was being
set up for a murder rap. He claimed that while Utembayev was
a member of the State Planning Committee, he had traveled
abroad and opened a bank account for for Kazakhgate proceeds.


10. (C) Sarsenbayev added that the family believes that
Nazarbayev is involved to some degree, but offered no
concrete proof. He claimed that Nazarbayev had been involved
in other opposition cases such as Nurkadilov's death, and was
therefore a "prisoner of palace insiders" with no room to
maneuver on this issue.

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Comment
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11. (C) Comment: The frank and scathing nature of
Abdrakhmanov's appeal to Nazarbayev came as a surprise.
Although he has publicly criticized certain policies and
Nazarbayev associates in the past, Abdrakhmanov may have
crossed a very significant red line with his criticism of the
investigation and his allegations against Nazarbayev's inner
circle. It is highly likely that there will be repercussions
for his career, although probably not immediately. The
remarks recall Zharmakhan Tuyakbay's statements before
leaving the Mazhilis and the pro-presidential Otan party; it
is possible that Abdrakhmanov may soon follow in his
footsteps.


12. (C) Comment, cont: Despite continuing allegations of a
coverup and political theories for hte murder, there is still
no evidence to substantiate any involvement by either the
president or anyone in his immediate circle. End comment.
ORDWAY