KAZAKHSTAN: ALMATY NOTES, MARCH - APRIL 2007

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ASTANA 001033 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KZ SUBJECT: KAZAKHSTAN: ALMATY NOTES, MARCH - APRIL 2007 REF: Astana 834 ¶1. (U) The "Almaty Notes" series is intended to maintain focus on developments in civil society, the media, and the opposition in Kazakhstan's "southern capital" following the move of the Embassy to Astana. Aftermath of the Conflict in Kazatkom -------------- ¶2. (U) Following the conflict between Kazakhs and Chechens in Kazatkom (reftel),some mass media published articles blaming the government and Chechens for the conflict. For example, MP Alikhan Baymenov was quoted in the Zhas Qazaq newspaper on March 30 as stating that the "Makhmakhanovs had connections among those who exploit the country's subsoil resources. Wealthy people exploit organized criminal rings for their purposes. A member of the Makhmakhanov family is reportedly suspected of murder." In the same issue, another MP, Nurtay Sabilyanov, criticized the leader of the Chechen community in Kazakhstan, Akhmed Muradov, who allegedly placed the blame on Kazakhs. Sabilyanov said "What future are we facing if such individuals sit in the Senate?" referring to President Nazarbayev's recent recommendation to reserve some seats in the Senate for representatives of ethnic minorities. ¶3. (U) On April 5, members of the "Bolashak" (Future) national youth movement attempted to organize a mass action by placing a wreath to the tomb of Bakytzhan Bugutov, who died in the Kazatkom conflict. The Almaty police prevented the action. ¶4. (U) The government has taken some measures to put an end to heated discussions of the Kazatkom conflict and to prevent any negative consequences. On April 4, Vice Minister of Interior Alik Shpekbayev said in an interview with the Liter daily that "the conflict was of regular and criminal nature, without underlying inter-ethnic causes. Some destructive forces elevate regular quarrels and scuffles between representatives of various ethnic groups to the level of deteriorating interethnic relations. It is all common jealousy of the Makhmakhanovs' wealth." On April 5, the Procurator General made a statement warning owners and editor-in-chiefs of mass media outlets against publishing, broadcasting and placing materials aimed at inciting social and ethnic hatred and insulting other citizens' dignity and honor. Reporter who Covered Kazatkom Missing -------------- ¶5. (U) On April 18, media freedom advocates held a press conference �00A;in Almaty to announce that newspaper reporter Oralgaisha Zhabagtai-kyzy had been missing since March 30. Zhabagtai-kyzy, who worked for the "Zakon i Pravosudiye" weekly newspaper based in Astana, had written an article on the conflict between Kazakhs and Chechens in Malovodnoye village (reftel). The article was entitled "Bloody Lawless Action, or Who is Behind the Makhmakhalovs?" In it, she reported that Vita Makhmakhalov was a suspect in the murder of a criminal leader who had allegedly blackmailed the heads of the Kazakhmys firm in Zhezkazhgan. Her brother and a colleague stated during the press conference that Zhabagtai-kyzy had received threatening phone calls from people with Caucasian accents after the article was published. ¶6. (SBU) On the margins of the press conference, a local reporter speculated to PA FSN that the leadership of Kazakhmys (ethnic Koreans said to be close to President Nazarbayev) ordered Vita Makhmakhalov to kill Sagit Shakputov, the alleged blackmailer in Zhezkazhgan, and were protecting him from prosecution. The reporter concluded that the conflict in Kazatkom was revenge by Shakputov's criminal associates rather than an interethnic dispute. He also said that Zhabagtai-kyzy had likely been killed. Survey on Inter-Ethnic Relations -------------- ¶7. (SBU) In November 2006, the Association of Sociologists and Political Scientists conducted a survey of public opinion on inter-ethnic relations in Kazakhstan. According to the survey, the number of people who expressed concerns about inter-ethnic relations has increased by 1.6 times: 39.5% compared to 25.3% in 2005. Non-Kazakhs most often expressed these concerns. Answers to other questions also pointed toward deteriorating inter-ethnic relations. The number of people who are ready to fight to defend the interests of their ethnic group has doubled in comparison with 2003. Every fifth Kazakhs polled shared this attitude. The perception of the risk of civil war on ethnic grounds has increased by 1.8 times: from ASTANA 00001033 002 OF 003 17.7% in 2003 to 32.6% in 2006. The pollsters concluded that the data means that "Kazakhstan is, if not on the verge of inter-ethnic politic conflict, dangerously close to it." (Comment: Post considers the conclusion to be highly exaggerated.) (Survey of Association of Sociologists and Political Scientists, March 28) Trial of "Shanyrak Defenders" Continues -------------- ¶8. (U) The trial of 25 "Shanyrak Defenders" is continuing in the Almaty City court. At the hearing on March 27, attended by Pol FSN, the court interrogated two witnesses, Auezov district court bailiffs Gulshat Zhansarova and Talgat Tolebayev. Both testified that they had been eyewitnesses of the clashes between the local residents and the police on July 14, 2006, in the village of Shanyrak, but had seen none of the defenders standing trial. Neither of the bailiffs saw the hostage taking because they stayed away from the area of conflict. The lawyers tried to prove that the event on July 14, 2006 was not a demolition campaign, but a police punitive action against the residents and that the bailiffs were invited to portray it to the public as demolition. ¶9. (SBU) Several political activists, including Dos Koshim of the "Ult Tagdyry" (Nation's Future) nationalist movement, Asylbek Kozhakhmetov of the Alga party, and Burikhan Nurmukhamedov of the Ak Zhol party, participated in the proceedings as public defenders. According to Koshim, the prosecution has no strong evidence against the defenders. A police cameraman videotaped the clashes. However, because the cameraman was allegedly frightened the tape came out of poor quality and it does not show the hostage taking. In a private conversation with Pol FSN, Koshim reported that one the principal witnesses in this case, Almaty City deputy chief bailiff Khajimurat Makhmakhanov was dead. Makhmakhanov was the official who organized the demolition campaign in Shanyrak. He was reportedly killed during a violent interethnic incident in the village of Kazatkom, Almaty Oblast, between Kazakhs and Chechens on March 18. ¶10. (U) At the March 29 hearing, the five Shanyrak defenders accused of burning the policeman denied their guilt. According to the accused, they intended to burn not the policeman, but themselves in a protest against the demolition. The defenders allegedly do not know how it happened. The defense is trying to drag out the trial. (Caravan weekly, March 30) Campaign Against Almatyzher -------------- ¶11. (U) "The arbitrariness and impunity of the officials involved in the Bakay and Shanyrak demolition campaigns created a negative trend, which was extended throughout the country," Dos Koshim stated at a press conference in Almaty on March 28. "As a result, in every region of Kazakhstan local authorities along with organizations like 'Almatyzher' and private construction companies use their own discretion toward ordinary people seizing their lands and houses for alleged 'state purposes.' By these actions, local authorities and the construction companies the authorities back contribute to destabilization of political situation through the country," Koshim said in his statement. (Kazakhstan Today news agency, March 28) ¶12. (U) On March 30, about 30 people -- including Socialist Resistance activists -- picketed the office of Almatyzher in Almaty. Pol FSN observed the rally. Two young people were holding a banner reading "Almatyzher is the Enemy of the People." The leader of Socialist Resistance Aynur Kurmanov and Sakhib Zhanabayeva of the Workers' Movement entered the office to hand over their petition. After a short time the acting head of Almatyzher came out of the office and talked to the protesters for half an hour. About two dozen policemen watched the rally. As participants dispersed, the police followed Aynur Kurmanov and his friends. A block from Almatyzher's office the police detained Kurmanov and took him away. ¶13. (U) According to a participant of the rally, Alikhan Ramazanov, Kurmanov spent a night in the police station. The next day the Inter-district Administrative Court of Almaty tried Kurmanov and fined him 11,000 tenge ($90) for organizing an unsanctioned rally. By-Elections to Almaty Precinct Election Commissions -------------- -------------- ¶14. (U) On April 4 two opposition parties, True Ak Zhol and National Social Democratic Party, held a press conference in Almaty to express their outrage by the results of the recent by-elections to Almaty precinct election commissions. Zharmakhan Tuyakbay, Bulat ASTANA 00001033 003 OF 003 Abilov and Oraz Zhandosov maintained that the elections were a farce. Out of 821 vacant seats, 197 were won by Adilet, 81 by Nur Otan, 151 by Patriots Party, 96 by Rukhaniyat, 126 by Auyl, 145 by the People's Communists, 4 by Ak Zhol, 4 by the Communists, 14 by the Social Democrats, and 3 by True Ak Zhol. The opposition alleged that the members of the Almaty City Maslikhat, the majority of whom are Nur Otan members, were tasked with preventing the opposition party representatives from getting control over the electoral process. ¶15. (U) As illustration of the improbability of the election results, Abilov noted that the Rukhaniyat party received only 752 votes in Almaty city in the 2004 parliamentary elections but now holds 335 seats on city election commissions. Abilov claimed that "we have looked for Rukhaniyat's office in Almaty for two days and failed to find it. The same is true with other political parties. And all these 'ghost-parties' exist to fill election commission seats and then to falsify election results," Abilov said. Zhandosov mentioned that the authorities had so far failed to remove members of the former Asar, Agrarian and Civic parties, which had merged with Otan, from election commissions as was required by the law. Police Harassing Krishna Community -------------- ¶16. (U) The police of Tekeli City in Almaty Oblast on March 27 disrupted a religious meeting of the local Krishna community in a private apartment. A representative of the local administration announced the meeting illegal as the community had no registration at the city level. All fourteen participants of the meeting were taken to the local police office and kept there for two hours. The community members were reportedly threatened with reprisals, their passport data was recorded and then they were set free. (www.kazakhkrishna.com, March 29) The Village Invites Young People -------------- ¶17. (U) On March 28 in the Republican Palace of Almaty, the oblast administration organized a propaganda campaign "The Village Invites Young People" to persuade young people to move to villages. Nowadays the villages lack both financing and ambitious young people. In recent years young people have been moving from rural areas to big cities seeking jobs and better opportunities. ¶18. (U) In her comments on the campaign, Irina Mednikova of Youth Information Service NGO cited some young people saying that the campaign was an attempt of authorities to herd them into villages to prevent their involvement in politics. (Liter daily, March 28) ORDWAY