The peaceful protests in Kazakhstan on January 5 and the tragic events in Almaty not only demonstrated the people's struggle for justice, but also revealed the government's misguided approach to economic policy, Transparency Kazakhstan reported. This was reported by the national portal "Adyrna".
Initially, these protests over rising liquefied petroleum gas prices underscored the importance of issues related to subsoil use and distribution of revenues from mining to Kazakhstani society. The peaceful protests were a real reaction to the actions of the authorities, as well as the unjustified long-term involvement of former President Nursultan Nazarbayev and his supporters in the political and economic affairs of the country.
Corruption and unfair distribution of wealth, which is widespread in Kazakhstan, was undoubtedly one of the main reasons for the march.
Unfortunately, the violence has provoked peaceful protests, reinforcing hope for change after years of patience. While it is important that the perpetrators are identified and brought to justice, the Kazakh government should refrain from linking it only to a coup plan. Authorities must ensure that last week's deaths were investigated without bias or discrimination against any particular group.
As a next step and to prevent a recurrence, Transparency Kazakhstan considers it vital for the Government and other stakeholders to:
- Strengthening the fight against corruption, focusing on the oil and gas and construction sectors;
- Reform the judiciary to ensure fair decisions;
- Review of the government's achievements in implementing the EITI standard;
- Ensuring absolute transparency of contracts for all mineral deposits, including the Tengiz field project;
- Identification and return of assets lost as a result of corruption transactions;
- to take measures to publish contracts for vaccines delivered to Kazakhstan and to eliminate any forms of modern slavery in Kazakhstan.
National portal "Adyrna"
