KAZAKHSTAN: MEDIA REACTION, MAY 22 - 29

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASTANA 000953

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STATE FOR SCA/CEN, SCA/PPD

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TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL ECON SOCI KDEM KCRM KPAO KMDR AF KZ
SUBJECT: KAZAKHSTAN: MEDIA REACTION, MAY 22 - 29

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1. SUMMARY: Mukhtar Dzhakishev, the head of the state nuclear
company, Kazatomprom, was arrested this week as a part of a
continuing government anti-corruption campaign. The other major
story was the publication and banning of "Godfather-in-Law," a book
written by the former son-in-law of President Nazarbayev, Rakhat
Aliyev. Also, the popular daily "Liter" commented on the recent
North Korean missile tests and the world's reaction to them, and the
analytical weekly "Delovaya Nedelya" focused on whether Kazakhstan
should join the anti-terrorist coalition in Afghanistan. And
finally, pro-government "Megapolis" published a vitriolic,
anti-American article about a series of civil society-building
seminars funded by the United States Agency for International
Development (USAID) and conducted by the International Republican
Institute (IRI). END SUMMARY.

THE ARRESTS CONTINUE


2. The arrest of Mukhtar Dzhakishev caused many independent and
opposition figures to speculate that his arrest had more to do with
politics than with corruption. Independent, Russian-language
"Biznes i Vlast (Business and Politics)" quoted Vladimir Kozlov,
head of the unregistered Alga opposition party, as saying, "these
arrests are turning into an epidemic that is mowing down the best.
It was under Dzhakishev that Kazatomprom became an international
uranium leader. Suddenly, he has turned into a thief and a
criminal." (COMMENT: Dzhakishev has close ties to ousted BTA Bank
head Mukhtar Ablyazov, who finances Alga. END COMMENT.) Human
rights activist Yevgeniy Zhovtis said the arrest was not "a
consequence of a systematic anti-corruption campaign, but rather of
political infighting." Independent, Russian-language "Vremya"
reports on a letter from a group of businessmen to President
Nazarbayev protesting that "law enforcement agencies have launched a
full--scale attack on business, killing the entrepreneurial spirit
and persecuting the best business people. Mukhtar Dzhakishev is one
of them."

"GODFATHER-IN-LAW"


3. Pro-government, Russian-language "Delovaya Nedelya," commenting
on Rakhat Aliyev's book "Godfather-in-Law" just after its
publication, said, "It is obvious that the author's goal was not to
understand why Kazakhstan is still a poorly-developed country, but
to seek revenge on Nazarbayev for his downfall." The author
conceded, "It is hard to judge the book without reading it, but it
is even harder to write about Ak Orda's (i.e., the Presidential
Administration's) crimes without mentioning Rakhat Aliyev's role in
them." The author speculated about how Kazakhstani officials will
react to the book by saying, "The authorities can choose to
demonstrate their adequacy, the maturity of the society, and the
scrupulousness of law enforcement when choosing how to react to the
book. However, the authorities can also do just the opposite: they
can start a new court case, look for the book in the luggage of
passengers coming from Europe, or block the Internet. But such
measures will only become a silent acknowledgement of guilt."


4. Soon after the "Delovaya Nedelya" story, Radio Free Europe/Radio
Liberty's (RFE/RL) "Radio Azzatyq" reported that Kazakhstan's
Procurator General's Office had filed a lawsuit against
"Godfather-In-Law" for "breaking the law on the privacy of
correspondence and telephone conversations." In a separate "Radio
Azzatyq" interview, Rakhat Aliyev said that these actions by the
procurator's office are an acknowledgement that the book is true.
"Who gave the order to start the case?" asked Aliyev, "probably the
main character of the book." Pro-government, Russian-language
"Express K" quoted the executive secretary of the Agency of
Information and Communication, Batyr Makhanbetazhiev, who said that
Kazakhtelekom has blocked access to the websites Geo.kz and Live
Journal (where Rakhat Aliyev frequently posts) due to "a court
decision to stop the dissemination of illegal information."

"CAPRICIOUS CHILD"


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5. Pro-government, Russian-language "Liter" commented on North
Korea's missile tests, noting that "Pyongyang received no benefits
form the tests and faced harsh criticism from many countries,"
including Kazakhstan. The author blamed the Obama administration,
because "while trying to normalize relations with Iran, Cuba, and
even Syria, the White House and State Department neglected North
Korea. This demonstrates the absence of an American strategy
towards the Korean peninsula." While "Pyongyang behaves like a
capricious child who screams and cries," its "old plan" is not
working this time because "for the first time since the end of the
Cold War, the world has taken a unified position on this issue."
The author concluded that since "Kazakhstan was the first country to
abandon its Soviet-era nuclear arsenal, the camp of Kazakhstan's
potential allies is growing."


AFGHANISTAN CALLING?

6. "Delovaya Nedelya" published two articles on how Kazakhstan
should approach the situation in Afghanistan. In the first, the
author stated that NATO is trying to "internationalize" the conflict
without having "a clear action plan." He noted, "American diplomats
regularly probe Kazakhstan's willingness to participate in
operations in Afghanistan and praise the role of Kazakhstan's
soldiers in Iraq. From its side, Kazakhstan has unequivocally made
it clear that cooperation with NATO will be beneficial for them."
The author believes that Kazakhstan's involvement in Afghanistan
will cause "understandable irritation" for Russia, but thinks that
Kazakhstan will participate regardless because this will strengthen
the "western factor" in Kazakhstan's foreign policy. However, he
warned that the current strategy in Afghanistan "is not bringing the
desired results" and NATO is "only making the situation worse."
Also, "starting from 2001, drug trafficking has increased 40
percent." The author acknowledged that the proximity of Afghanistan
to Kazakhstan, as well as Astana's interest in Afghanistan's
stability, constitute a good argument for getting involved, but
concluded that "the consequences of involvement are very hard to
predict."

7. The second Afghanistan article was an interview with Sergey
Pashevich, president of the Union of Combat Brotherhood and a
veteran of the Soviet-Afghan War. Pashevich said that Kazakhstan
should not get involved in the anti-terrorist operations in
Afghanistan. In his view, the Afghan people have become hostages to
the politics of both America and its own neighbors. "When the
Americans start brewing trouble, they try to pull everyone in" so
that participating nations are unable to criticize American actions.
Pashevich argued that Kazakhstan's weak social safety net for
veterans is another reason for it to avoid the casualties it could
take in Afghanistan.
SINISTER SEMINARS

8. Pro-government, Russian-language "Megapolis" published an attack
on USAID and IRI for a series of 12 civil society seminars that
focused on political party development. Claiming that "only
opposition party members and youth organizations took part in the
seminars," the author said, "It is curious that the main topic of
the seminar was increasing youth political activity through
organizing flash mobs." (COMMENT: USAID and IRI invited
Kazakhstan's ruling party, Nur Otan, to participate in all of the
seminars, and Nur Otan chose to participate in half of them. END
COMMENT) He characterized the seminars as presenting methods of
manipulating young people to work against the government, saying
that seminar leaders stated that "unemployed young people are ideal
for organizing disturbances and overthrowing the authorities." The
author concludes, "Due to the absence of state ideological programs
for young people, ideologists from Western countries are trying to
take control over the minds and hearts of Kazakhstani youth."
HOAGLAND