KAZAKHSTAN: ALMATY NOTES, NOVEMBER 24-DECEMBER 5

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASTANA 002452 SIPDIS STATE FOR SCA/CEN, DRL, DRL/IRF E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM ECON SOCI KDEM KIRF KZ SUBJECT: KAZAKHSTAN: ALMATY NOTES, NOVEMBER 24-DECEMBER 5 ASTANA 00002452 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. The "Almaty Notes" series from U.S. Office Almaty focuses on developments in civil society, the media, and the opposition in Kazakhstan's "southern capital." OPPOSITION LEADERS CHARGED WITH CRIME ¶2. On December 1, the Interior Ministry charged Azat party leader Bulat Abilov with "concealing a grave crime" per Article 363 of the Criminal Code. On December 2, the Ministry filed the same charges against Shanyrak movement leader Asylbek Kozhakhmetov and Communist Party secretariat member Tolen Tokhtasynov. The latter was notified of the charges by e-mail, as he currently resides in Mongolia. All three opposition leaders were accused in connection with the same matter. From 2005-07, they signed four letters to Ukrainian authorities in support of the political asylum case of Yesentay Baysakov, a Pavlodar businessman previously connected to the opposition. Baysakov is currently wanted in Kazakhstan in conjunction with the 2001 murder of a rival businessman. The Interior Ministry maintains that the letters from the opposition leaders were crucial in persuading the Ukrainians to approve Baysakov's asylum request. ¶3. Abilov and Kozhakhmetov both signed statements promising not to leave Almaty. However, Abilov was allowed to travel for a week to China to undergo medical treatment. Nothing is known about Tokhtasynov's reaction to the charges against him. Kozhakhmetov maintains that the case is aimed at preventing the participation of key opposition leaders in future elections, since convictions would bar them from election participation for at least several years. He also believes there is a battle within the government between "doves" who advocate for greater openness and accommodation and "hawks" who want tighter controls over the opposition. In Kozhakhmetov's view, the charges signal that the hawks are on top, at least for now. Although Article 363 provides for a prison sentence of up to two years, Kozhakhmetov expects that at worst, the opposition leaders will receive just suspended sentences -- though that would still result in a ban on their political activities. INFLUENCE OF RELIGIOUS "SECTS" SHOULD BE LIMITED ¶4. At a press conference in Almaty on December 1, activists from the Union of Kazakhstan Muslims (UKM) called on the government to limit the influence of religious "sects." UKM's leader, Murat Telibekov, nevertheless argued that "repressive measures will lead nowhere" and called instead for stepping up the "ideological struggle." According to Telibekov, the Spiritual Administration of Kazakhstan Muslims does very little or nothing to spread its propaganda among the people. However, an academician, Uzbek-Uly, spoke in more radical terms, saying that sects pose a threat to national security and the government should protect young people from their "destructive influence." Uzbek-Uly argued that the current religion law was too liberal. In order to demonstrate the destructive role of sects, two former members of Kazakhstan's minority Ahmadi Muslim community -- Yerlan Bektemirov and Aleksey Tolchennikov -- were introduced to journalists. Bektemirov and Tolokonnikov had allegedly been forced to unhesitatingly follow the commands of Ahmadi leaders and pay 10 percent of their income to the Ahmadi community. UKM activists maintained that a main "drawback" of the Ahmadis is their religious doctrine, which significantly differs from orthodox Islam. CEMETERY CONFLICT BETWEEN ORALMAN AND LOCALS ¶5. Oralman (i.e., ethnic Kazakh immigrants from other countries) from the settlement of Zhana Kurylys in Almaty Oblast were forced by local residents and police to remove a relative from her grave and bury her body in another place. Local residents reportedly insisted that this was their land and only their relatives could be buried in the cemetery. A local imam tried to dissuade the residents from forcing this action, but he failed. Within two days, according to local reports, the imam fell ill and died. YESIK BUSINESSMEN PROTEST AGAINST LOCAL AUTHORITIES ASTANA 00002452 002.2 OF 002 ¶6. On November 29, more than one hundred businessmen, including market retailers, organized a peaceful protest in the town of Yesik, Almaty Oblast. They protested against local authorities who reportedly "strangle" their businesses with taxes, fines, and inspections. The businessmen concluded their protest by reading out an appeal to President Nazarbayev to protect them. PROTEST OF APARTMENT INVESTORS ¶7. On December 3, a group of Almaty residents who invested their savings into apartments that have not been completed gathered near the city's independence monument to attract public attention to their plight. Within 15 minutes, officials from the mayor's office and law enforcement agencies arrived on the scene. The police detained one man as the organizer of this unsanctioned rally. HOAGLAND