The lives of the eldest daughters of Kazakhstan’s first president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, and Uzbekistan’s first president, Islam Karimov, share striking similarities. Both once wielded immense influence in their respective countries, yet their destinies took drastically different turns.
Amid a flurry of media reports after Uzbekistan and Switzerland signed an agreement to return funds appropriated by Karimova, some recent articles have compared the trajectories of the two women. While Nazarbayev allowed his daughter, Dariga, to maintain her wealth and political standing, Karimov took decisive action against his daughter, Gulnara, stripping her of power and ensuring she faced legal consequences.
The Rise and Fall of Gulnara Karimova
Once a high-profile public figure, Gulnara Karimova built a vast business empire, pursued a career in fashion career, and even dabbled in pop music under the name ‘Googoosha.’ A former UN envoy and self-styled ‘Princess of Uzbekistan,’ – “From her desire for self-expression came her poems. From her poems came the music. Meet Googoosha…..poet, mezzo soprano, designer and exotic Uzbekistan beauty,” read Karimova’s X account and since removed official website. “A robber baron… a greedy, power-hungry individual who uses her father to crush business people or anyone else who stands in her way… She remains the single most hated person in the country,” asserted a leaked U.S. diplomatic cable.
With her political ambitions becoming increasingly apparent, alarming Uzbekistan’s leadership, however, the authorities closely monitored her activities and reported them to her father.
By 2014, Karimova had fallen from grace. Placed under house arrest, images of her detention were leaked to the media. After Islam Karimov’s death in 2016, legal proceedings against her intensified. In 2017, she was sentenced to nine years in prison on corruption charges. The Uzbek Supreme Court later extended her sentence to 13 years and four months, with the term officially calculated from August 21, 2015.
Karimova’s financial empire also crumbled. In 2020, the Swiss authorities froze her assets, valued at 800 million Swiss francs (approximately $880 million at the time). Uzbekistan recovered $131 million from these funds, and in February 2024, Uzbekistan and Switzerland signed an agreement to repatriate an additional $182 million. The funds, originally seized by the Swiss authorities in 2012 as part of a corruption case against Karimova, will be transferred to Uzbekistan through the UN Uzbekistan Vision 2030 Fund.
Dariga Nazarbayeva: From Power to Uncertainty
Unlike Karimova, Dariga Nazarbayeva remained a central political figure in Kazakhstan for years. Nazarbayeva held several high-ranking positions, including deputy prime minister and chair of the Senate. In 2019, when Nazarbayev stepped down, she was just one step away from the presidency.
Following the political turmoil in Kazakhstan in January 2022, Nazarbayeva disappeared from public life. While her current whereabouts remain unclear, she is frequently linked to luxurious properties in London and the UAE. A British court recently reviewed a case involving her London properties, which were initially seized as “unjustified wealth.” However, she and her family successfully proved that the assets were acquired legally.
The protests that erupted on January 2, 2022, in Kazakhstan were initially triggered by rising gas prices but quickly escalated into something far more sinister as Nazarbayev attempted to claw back the reins of power. In the aftermath, Nursultan Nazarbayev was stripped of many state privileges, and his relatives lost their leadership positions. According to official figures, 238 people were killed in the resulting crackdown.
Despite stepping away from politics, Dariga remains one of Kazakhstan’s wealthiest individuals. Forbes Kazakhstan ranked her 15th on its 2024 list of the country’s richest people, estimating her fortune at $590 million. However, this figure only accounts for officially confirmed assets.
Two Daughters, Two Legacies
According to Zhas Alash, the key distinction between the cases of the two daughters lies in how their fathers handled their ambitions. Karimov swiftly distanced Gulnara from power, ensuring she faced legal consequences. In contrast, Nazarbayev allowed Dariga to ascend within the government, leaving her influence largely unchecked.
Even after his resignation, speculation persisted that Nazarbayev might groom Dariga as his successor. While that failed to materialize, Dariga remained politically active for years before quietly retreating from public life.
Today, Gulnara Karimova remains behind bars, while Dariga Nazarbayeva’s future remains uncertain.
