KAZAKHSTAN: FUTURE OF HARE KRISHNA COMMUNE REMAINS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASTANA 001371 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/CEN (M. O'MARA) E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL KDEM KZ SUBJECT: KAZAKHSTAN: FUTURE OF HARE KRISHNA COMMUNE REMAINS PRECARIOUS REF: A. 06 ASTANA 651, B. 06 ASTANA 668, C. 06 ASTANA 903 ¶D. ASTANA 232 ASTANA 00001371 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Various government officials have assured the Hare Krishnas that their ongoing property dispute with local officials will be resolved fairly and peacefully, through negotiations. Although there is hope that an acceptable resolution will be found, so far the Hare Krishnas report only confusion and roadblocks in dealing with the national government, and local authorities continue to threaten the demolition of additional Hare Krishna cottages. End summary. -------------- -- SINCERE NEGOTIATIONS OR PUBLIC RELATIONS COVER? -------------- -- ¶2. (SBU) Throughout the winter, various government officials assured the Hare Krishnas and other observers that their ongoing property dispute with Karasai district officials would be resolved fairly and peacefully, through negotiations, and signaled that the resolution will involve a new plot of land for the Hare Krishnas. In February, Amanbek Mukhashov, vice chairman of the Religious Issues Committee (RIC) publicly stated that the Hare Krishnas would be allotted another plot of land, and ordered them to work with local authorities to find a piece of land. In private conversations with Poloff, the Hare Krishna leadership indicated they were ready to consider moving, as they were not optimistic they would ever receive fair treatment from Karasai district officials or the court system. However, the Hare Krishnas stated that a new plot of land was not the only issue; they also wanted compensation for the investments they made in their current property, including for the homes that were demolished by local officials (Ref A). ¶3. (SBU) On March 13, local akimat officials instructed the Hare Krishnas to relocate to a piece of land 70 kilometers northeast of Almaty. The Hare Krishnas visited the land on March 16, but found it to be deserted, arid, saline land with virtually no vegetation. Accordingly, they rejected the land, though they remained open to further negotiations. ¶4. (SBU) On March 30, local Krishna leader Govinda Swami met with Kazakhstan's Human Rights Ombudsman Bolat Baykadamov and one of his staff members at an OSCE conference in Vienna. Govinda Swami, a U.S. citizen, was accompanied by Liza Zhumakhmetova, a legal adviser in the OSCE's Human Dimension Office in Almaty, and Ninel Fokina of the Almaty Helsinki Committee. According to Govinda Swami, Baykadamov said that the Presidential Administration was now handling the matter on behalf of the government, and wanted to inform the OSCE, foreign government delegations, and the Hare Krishnas that the matter would be resolved quickly because it was becoming an impediment to Kazakhstan's OSCE chairmanship bid. Baykadamov said the Presidential Administration blamed the predicament on "bad acts" by the Karasai district officials and the RIC, and wanted to work with the Hare Krishnas to find an alternate location for a worship Center in Almaty, as well as discuss compensation for the destroyed homes. According to Baykadamov, Karasai district officials and the RIC would no longer be involved in the matter. ¶5. (U) On April 5, Baykadamov returned to Kazakhstan and made a public statement on the Hare Krishna issue. He insisted that the November demolition of Hare Krishna cottages was legal. He announced that he had met with Govinda Swami in Vienna and conveyed the Government of Kazakhstan's message that it was ready to provide another piece of land in Almaty for construction of a new temple. In addition, he stated that the government was ready to find a solution for the Hare Krishna's other issues, including another piece of land where they can raise cows and compensation for the resources invested into development of their property in the Karasai district. ¶6. (SBU) On April 20, after hearing nothing from the government, the Hare Krishnas contacted Baykadamov about the situation. Baykadamov reportedly retracted the statements he made in Vienna, stating that the Presidential Administration was not involved in the matter and never would be. He informed the Hare Krishnas that they needed to work through the RIC and local officials, the same parties that the Hare Krishnas have been dealing with all along. In frustration, the Hare Krishnas now allege that Baykadamov's comments in Vienna and to the media were part of a larger propaganda campaign to assure the OSCE and other Western observers that Kazakhstan is effectively and responsibly resolving the dispute. ¶7. (SBU) After the about-face from Baykadamov, the Hare Krishnas contacted Yeraly Tugzhanov, chairman of the RIC, to proceed with the negotiations. According to Govinda Swami, Tugzhanov informed them ASTANA 00001371 002.2 OF 002 that he was working with the Almaty city administration, and instructed the Hare Krishnas to apply for land in Almaty to establish a worship center. The Hare Krishnas did so, but were told by Almaty city officials that they knew nothing of the situation and had no instructions from the RIC. On May 18, the Hare Krishna leadership travel to Astana to meet with Tugzhanov, who again promised to work with Almaty city officials and make progress in finding a suitable piece of land. -------------- DEMOLITION THREAT REMAINS -------------- ¶8. (SBU) In the meantime, Karasai district officials have continued their legal campaign against the Hare Krishna commune outside of Almaty. On May 3, commune leader Viktor Golous received a call from local court executors that additional demolitions would occur the next morning, May 4, at 10 a.m. The Hare Krishnas immediately began informing their supporters and calling their contacts in the government. According to Golous, Tugzhanov of the RIC informed them that he could not help them and could not interfere with a court action. Poloff contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the matter, but officials there were unaware of any planned demolitions. On May 3, deputy head of the Presidential Administration Maulen Ashimbayev, who was well-briefed on the issue but not aware of the demolition order, assured the Ambassador that the GOK wanted to resolve the dispute through negotiations. ¶9. (SBU) On May 4, several journalists, Pol FSN, and an OSCE observer proceeded to the Hare Krishna commune to observe the demolitions. Though the electricity was shut off for a while, no police or demolition crews arrived, and no demolitions took place. Amanbek Mukhashov, vice chairman of the RIC, later informed Poloff that no demolitions were ever planned, and the matter would be resolved through negotiations. ¶10. (U) On May 8, the Supreme Court issued yet another ruling against the Hare Krishnas, this time concerning the 116 acre parcel of farmland as opposed to the cottages that have been the subject of the demolitions and demolition orders. The ruling stated that the Hare Krishnas no longer have a right to use the land, and clears the way for authorities to confiscate the land at any time and transfer it to the Karasai district land reserve. The Hare Krishnas criticized the ruling as another in a long series of unfair adverse court rulings. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶11. (SBU) Comment: There is some hope that the Hare Krishnas will find a minimally acceptable solution to their multi-year property dispute. Officials in Astana are consistent in their stated desire to solve the problem by finding new land for the Hare Krishnas, and have thus far managed to forestall any further demolitions by aggressive local authorities. The beleaguered Hare Krishnas are prepared to leave their commune in the Karasai district, assuming they are provided with suitable land for their place of worship, their animals and farming activity, and compensation for their substantial investment in the current commune property. However, the government's eagerness to tell the world that it has peacefully resolved the problem appears greater than its actual desire to do so, given the slow pace of constructive negotiations and the continued aggression of local authorities. Post will continue to monitor the situation and engage with government officials in support of a nonviolent, fair resolution. End comment. ORDWAY