KAZAKHSTAN: LIFE ON THE STEPPE, MARCH 21 - 27, 2009

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASTANA 000541 SIPDIS STATE FOR SCA/CEN, SCA/PPD, DRL E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM ECON SOCI SENV KZ SUBJECT: KAZAKHSTAN: LIFE ON THE STEPPE, MARCH 21 - 27, 2009 ASTANA 00000541 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. (U) This is another in a series of weekly cables drawn mostly from public media, as well as think-tank, NGO, and opposition web-sites, selected to show the diversity of life in Kazakhstan, and information about it available to citizens of Kazakhstan. Our goal is to choose what might interest and be of use to various end-users in Washington and -- especially -- to provide a more complex view from the other side of the world, illustrating the vitality (and sometimes the quirkiness) of discourse available to citizens of Kazakhstan. DISQUALIFIED CANDIDATES FOR LOCAL ELECTION CRY FOUL ¶2. (U) The Almaty Election Committee found 18 candidates ineligible to run for office in the upcoming Maslikhat (regional legislative body) election. In January, the Committee announced elections, scheduled for March 29, to fill empty seats in three districts. Initially, 33 candidates registered to compete for the seats but the Committee's recent decision has left the field sharply reduced. Furthermore, questions have arisen whether the decision was politically motivated. According to one ineligible candidate, the reasons why they have been denied participation in the elections were "ridiculous." ¶3. (U) Most of the disqualified candidates were declared ineligible because of alleged inconsistencies in property and income disclosures. One candidate was disqualified for not disclosing that he owned a car, which was stolen from him 16 years ago. Another was found to have "hidden" 361 tenge (a little over two dollars) in a "secret" bank account. Yet another was found ineligible because he did not disclose his share in a non-governmental organization, even though by law it is a not-for-profit entity and does not have shareholders. ¶4. (U) Denis Alimbekov, deputy head of the NGO Talmas and one of the ineligible candidates, has his own opinion about the decisions of the election committee: "The authorities simply decided not to allow 'inconvenient' candidates to run: human rights advocates, civil society leaders -- those of us who really defend civil rights." Asylbek Kozhakhmetov, chairman of the NGO Shanyrak, was also suspicious of the real intentions of the authorities. "I think that if the people at the top decide that some candidates should not have a seat on the city council," he said, then those candidates "will not get there, no matter what." ¶5. (U) Adil Dzhunusov, chairman of the Almaty election committee, categorically denied that the decision to exclude certain candidates was politically motivated. "The idea that the committee want to 'shut down' some inconvenient candidates is absolutely untrue," he said. "We gave them all an opportunity to appeal the decision and dispute the findings of the Tax Committee." BAZAAR VENDORS STRIKE TO SAVE LIVELIHOODS ¶6. (U) Hundreds of vendors held a strike in front of the Zhana market in Almaty last week. The vendors said they worry about their livelihood, particularly because of plans to build a mall where their market is currently located. They fear that the new building will leave them without jobs and with little hope of finding new ones. The market is scheduled to close on April 1, when construction of the mall is scheduled to begin. The 400 vendors currently selling fruits, vegetables, and other items are required to leave by that date. "We have already tried to rent stalls in other markets, but nobody wants us there. Besides that, everyone here already has steady clients whom they will lose when the market shuts down. To throw us out on the street like this is merciless. Everyone has families and now, with the [economic] crisis, we are already on the verge of poverty." WELL-CONNECTED CON ARTIST ¶7. (U) Perhaps inspired by the inventive Ostap Bender from the Ilf and Petrov novels, a 37-year old resident of Pavlodar swindled dozens of people of at least 800,000 tenge ($5,300). As "a person close to the emperor", the swindler promised to use her personal connections with the inner circle of Kazakhstan's power structure to make problems disappear and find solutions to any predicament. For a fee, of course. However, like Ilf and Petrov's infamous "great combinator," those valuable connections existed only in the creative ASTANA 00000541 002.2 OF 002 mind of the Pavlodar con artist and the hopes and dreams of her gullible victims. It is impossible to determine how many people fell for the Pavlodar "power broker" and how much money she stashed away before she was finally apprehended. Nevertheless, since her victims may have had good reason not to complain to the police, it is safe to assume that the amount is some multiple of the 800,000 tenge reported. MAN LIFTS BULL, MAN WINS BULL ¶8. (U) The highlight of the Nauryz festivities in Taraz was a truly manly contest. How many squats can a man do -- with a bull on his shoulders? As it turned out, eleven of the twelve competitors were unable to do even a single squat; they could not even manage to lift the bull on their shoulders. Granted, the bull weighted about 110 kilograms (242 pounds). The winner, however, was not only able to hoist up the young bull but also squatted down and stood up three times in a row. In recognition of his feat of strength, he left the festivities showered with admiration -- and with the heavy beast itself. MILAS