• KGS/USD = 0.01149 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00190 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09150 0%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28571 0%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01149 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00190 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09150 0%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28571 0%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01149 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00190 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09150 0%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28571 0%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01149 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00190 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09150 0%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28571 0%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01149 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00190 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09150 0%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28571 0%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01149 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00190 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09150 0%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28571 0%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01149 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00190 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09150 0%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28571 0%
  • KGS/USD = 0.01149 0%
  • KZT/USD = 0.00190 0%
  • TJS/USD = 0.09150 0%
  • UZS/USD = 0.00008 0%
  • TMT/USD = 0.28571 0%
10 January 2025

Viewing results 91 - 96 of 118

As Bishimbayev Case Continues, Kazakhstan Toughens Domestic Violence Laws

While a court in Astana tries former economy minister Kuandyk Bishimbayev for murdering his wife Saltanat Nukenova, the Kazakhstani Senate has passed a law strengthening protections for women and children against domestic violence. The new law, if properly implemented, can hand out much harsher punishments to those who abuse those closest to them. In particular, a term of life imprisonment has been introduced for the murder of a minor child.   In the Face of Widespread Indifference The trial of Bishimbayev – and his relative Bakhytzhan Baizhanov, who is accused of failing to report the murder - has uncovered an uncomfortable truth. Many people already knew that Bishimbayev beat his wife, who died last November. Relatives and close acquaintances of the victim recounted details in court about bruises on Nukenova's face. On the day of her death, a number of witnesses saw Bishimbayev arguing with, and possibly beating, Nukenova. Many of these witnesses are employees of the restaurant where the alleged murder took place. Baizhanov admitted under interrogation that he saw blood as Nukenova was laying motionless, but, on the orders of Bishimbayev, had the restaurant's surveillance tapes deleted, and then drove Nukenova's phone around the city, so that it would seem later that she was still alive at the time. According to Baizhanov, he "did not know and did not realize" that Nukenova was dying. However, a forensics expert testified in court that the nature of Nukenova's injuries indicated serious beatings, not "light slaps and falls," as Bishimbayev had previously claimed. Examinations confirmed that Nukenova died of multiple brain injuries and a lack of oxygen, likely as a result of asphyxiation.   Will the New Law Help Stop Violence?  Kazakhstanis are closely following the legal proceedings that have resulted from Nukenova's death, and are organizing viral online actions and rallies in her memory in cities across Europe. Human rights activists and ordinary Kazakhstanis fought long and hard for domestic violence to be criminalized. Under the new law, criminal liability will be applied to any intentional infliction of harm to health, however minor. The Code "On marriage (matrimony) and family" establishes the legal status of family support centers and the functions they perform, and establishes helplines for information and psychological assistance relating to women's and children's rights. The law also contains many measures aimed at protecting children in public and online. Activists are still cautious about the new law, and argue that much will depend on its practical application and the amount of funds allocated to it. Support centers for victims of violence receive many calls per day, and physically cannot provide assistance to all those in need.   Central Asia's Changing Attitudes to Domestic Violence The other countries in Central Asia face a similar, and perhaps more difficult, situation. Uzbekistan, for example, adopted a law last year to give women and children more protection against domestic violence. Domestic violence in Uzbekistan is subject to administrative and criminal liability, and harassment has been made a crime. The sentences for sexual...

Kazakhstan to Up Price of Gas and Diesel for Foreign Vehicles

Due to government controls, Kazakhstan currently charges the lowest prices for motor fuel compared to other members of the Eurasian Economic Union, including Armenia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia. To maintain the balance of fuel for the domestic market, as well as minimize the risks of ‘gray’ fuel exports, the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan has prepared a draft to increase prices for AI-92 and AI-93 gasoline and diesel fuel to be levied in accordance with the origin of vehicles. The proposed new price for AI-92 and AI-93 gasoline in Kazakhstan is 245 tenge per litre. However, for drivers holding licenses and vehicle registration certificates issued in Kazakhstan, the price will remain unchanged, at 205 tenge per litre, if no more than 300 litres are bought per day. Likewise, the price of diesel will remain at 295 tenge per litre for locals but raised to 315 tenge per litre for non-residents of Kazakhstan. In a statement issued on 11 April, the Ministry of Energy gave assurance that the country currently has sufficient motor fuel to satisfy the domestic market. Now published, the draft is open for public discussion.

Saiga Antelope Revival Pleases Kazakh Naturalists — And Leonardo DiCaprio

Kazakhstan's steppe is now home to booming numbers of saiga antelope, with the country's authorities and environmentalists pulling together to revive the country's iconic species. News that the saiga population is no longer classified as "endangered" has reached the Hollywood actor Leonardo diCaprio, who recently wrote on his Instagram page: "This unprecedented recovery reflects the remarkable conservation of saigas in Kazakhstan. A species that once numbered 48,000 in 2005 has now grown to over 1.9 million individuals in the wild." The animal is, however, still listed as "threatened" in Kazakhstan. The Kazakh Ministry of Ecology estimates that the saiga population will rise above 2.6 million after the calving season this year. However, as their number has grown, the Kazakh authorities have reclassified the saiga as a species that may be hunted. Environmental scientists in the West Kazakhstan region have calculated that around 340,000 adult saigas -- around 18% of the population -- can be culled this year, to which end over 40,000 have already been killed. Saiga meat is sold in stores and bazaars in Kazakhstan, often to be used in stews, and is also found online on the Russian marketplace Ozon. Kazakh society is divided about the treatment of these indigenous antelopes. Some support the cull by pointing out the damage that they cause to crops, which lost the West Kazakhstan region alone over $25 million last year. Others argue that saiga hunting, if not properly regulated, could lead to poaching and the resale of saiga antlers on the black market. This could lead to another drastic decline in a species that has been thriving in recent years.

New Somon Air Flights from Dushanbe to Astana

On 2 April, Somon Air launched direct flights between the capitals of Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. Direct flights between Astana and Dushanbe will now operate twice a week on Tuesdays and Fridays. Praising the initiative, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Transport stated that the Astana-Dushanbe air route will have a significant impact on furthering the development of trade, business, investment and tourism between Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. Somon Air currently operates regular flights between Tajikistan and Germany, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, China, India, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Russia, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. The airline’s fleet consists of Boeing 737-800 and Boeing 737-900 aircraft.

Nazarbayev’s Nephew Samat Abish Handed Eight-Year Suspended Sentence

An Astana court has found Samat Abish, a nephew of Kazakhstan's former president Nursultan Nazarbayev, guilty of "exceeding power or official authority" and given him an eight-year suspended sentence. Abish, the former deputy chairman of the National Security Committee (KNB), had his criminal case classified as "secret," and all court sessions were held behind closed doors. "By the court's verdict, [Abish] was found guilty of committing a crime under Part 4 of Article 362 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and sentenced to eight years of imprisonment with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions for 10 years. On the basis of article 63 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, it [was] decided to consider the appointed punishment as conditional", reads a message from the inter-district criminal court of Astana. Mitigating circumstances for Abish included his young children, and the fact that he admitted his guilt and showed remorse. The court made an additional ruling to strip Abish of all of his state awards. Abish is the son of Satybaldy Nazarbayev, the younger brother of Kazakhstan's first president. Abish's father died in 1981 in a car accident. Nursultan Nazarbayev's nephew was appointed deputy chairman of the National Security Committee in 2013, and in 2015 became first deputy. Abish lost this position on January 17, 2022 after the unrest in the country and the subsequent detention of KNB head Karim Masimov.  At the time, the country's prosecutor general said that Abish was being held as a witness in the investigation into the unrest. In September last year it emerged that a criminal case had been opened against Abish. He came under investigation after the former head of a KNB department said that he had been following orders from his first deputy during the unrest that January. Abish was charged with abuse of power and abuse of authority. Another nephew of Nursultan Nazarbayev, Samat Abish's older brother Kairat Satybaldy, is accused of money laundering. He has been in prison since 2022 on charges of grand embezzlement. The trial is scheduled for April 1.

Drug Dealing in Kazakhstan Continues to Gain Momentum

Over the past six years the volume of seized synthetic drugs in Kazakhstan has almost doubled, Finprom.kz reports. In 2023 law enforcement agencies in Kazakhstan interdicted and confiscated 41.1 tons of illicit substances, up from 20.3 tons in 2018. In 2023 the number of drug laboratories destroyed increased to 75 from 68, and Kazakhstani officials called the increase in the distribution of banned substances an outbreak of drug trafficking. Because of the increase in drug usage, the Ministry of Internal Affairs has said that new types of synthetics will be included in the national list of narcotic drugs before they are brought into Kazakhstan. As soon as the drugs are on the national list, they'll immediately be registered on Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and UN International Committee lists. Until 2019 in Kazakhstan, the procedure for inclusion of new drugs in the national list took about a year -- now it takes no more than a month. Over the past few years in Kazakhstan, the volume of seizures of all sorts of so-called "salts," "ecstasy" and various synthetic cannabinoids has increased 143.4 times -- rising to 1.1 tons from 7.7 kilograms. At the same time, the share of synthetics out of the total number of confiscated drugs in 2023 was insignificant, at 2.7 percent. It's difficult to obtain accurate data on the market volume of modern illicit substances -- often because new types of drugs are distributed mainly among young people through messenger apps and crypto-wallets, with the use of bots for publishing advertisements. According to the Interior Ministry, more than 3,000 different drug-dealing sites and 1,300 online stores on encrypted messaging app Telegram were blocked by Kazakhstan last year. Finprom.kz analysts report that they themselves managed to independently find several such channels operating in the country. At the end of 2023, Kazakhstani Interior Minister Yerzhan Sadenov named some of the main barriers in the fight against the spread of synthetic drugs. He said the issue is complicated by the fact that the drugs are made in clandestine labs in the country from substances that are not considered illegal in Kazakhstan -- and can only legally be brought to the attention of police after they are used to make a drug. Last year the Ministry of Internal Affairs seized more than 100 tons of these ingredients -- which could have turned into eight tons of finished drugs. Therefore, the Ministry of Internal Affairs proposes increasing criminal liability for trafficking in precursor chemicals. Today the country punishes only the smuggling of these substances. According to the Prosecutor General's Office of Kazakhstan, last year drug crime in the country increased by 9%. In 2023, 7,500 drug crimes and criminal offenses were recorded. The police detained about 4,500 people, including minors, on suspicion of distribution, manufacture or sale of illegal substances.