Page 171 – The Times Of Central Asia

04 Aug 2025

Kazakhstan Proposes Stricter Measures for Convicted Pedophiles, Including Pre-Release Chemical Castration

August 4, 2025
By Vagit Ismailov

Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Health has proposed tightening the application of chemical castration for individuals convicted of sexual crimes against minors. Draft amendments published on the Open NPA platform outline a new mechanism mandating the procedure six months prior to a convict’s release from prison.

Ministry of Health Proposal

Under the proposed changes, prisoners would undergo a compulsory forensic psychiatric evaluation one year before their scheduled release to assess the risk of recidivism. If deemed necessary, chemical castration would follow six months later.

“An amendment is being introduced on the use of chemical castration six months before release and the referral of materials by the administration of the institution no later than twelve months before the expiry of the sentence to the court for the appointment of a forensic psychiatric examination,” the explanatory note states.

Legal Basis and Procedure

Chemical castration is regulated under Article 91 of Kazakhstan’s Criminal Code. It is currently applied to individuals over the age of 18 convicted of crimes against the sexual integrity of minors, provided they have been diagnosed with a disorder of sexual preference.

The procedure involves the administration of antiandrogenic medication to suppress testosterone levels and reduce sexual drive. Presently, the measure can only be imposed by court order.

The Ministry of Health argues that conducting the procedure shortly before release would minimize the risk of reoffending during the immediate post-release period, which is considered particularly high-risk.

Lifelong Supervision Also Under Consideration

In a parallel initiative, the Ministry of Internal Affairs has proposed introducing lifetime administrative supervision for convicted pedophiles. Currently, such supervision is limited to eight years.

“We can also restrict leaving the house at night,” said Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Igor Lepekha. “Previously, supervision lasted eight years. Now, it is planned to be significantly extended.”

Under the proposal, courts would reassess each case every six months based on the likelihood of recidivism. Additional measures may include restrictions on visiting educational institutions, curfews, and more. Violations would carry administrative or criminal penalties.

A Push for Surgical Castration

A more extreme measure was proposed in 2024 by parliament deputy Yelnur Beisenbayev, who advocated for the surgical castration of pedophiles, calling it a powerful deterrent.

“I spoke in favor of surgical castration. We included this provision in the draft law, but the government did not support it, citing concerns about violating privacy,” Beisenbayev said.

He criticized the government’s stance as “spineless,” asserting that physical castration could serve as both a preventive measure and a means to protect children from violent sexual crimes.

04 Aug 2025

Kazakhstan, Life & Culture, Kazakhstan Life & Culture

Kazakhstan Among Top Ten Countries in Reducing Premature NCD Mortality

August 4, 2025
By Dmitry Pokidaev

Kazakhstan has become the first country in Central Asia and one of only ten in the World Health Organization’s (WHO) European Region to meet the target of reducing premature mortality from noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) by 25% by 2025, according to the Ministry of Health.

The data is based on the WHO Regional Office for Europe’s latest report, Preventable Mortality, Risk Factors and Strategies for Responding to NCDs. The ten countries recognized for achieving this milestone are Belgium, Denmark, Israel, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Sweden, and Estonia.

“These countries have implemented the most effective WHO strategies, reduced risk factor prevalence, and strengthened healthcare systems, resulting in a consistent annual decline in deaths from preventable and treatable NCDs, particularly cardiovascular diseases and cancer,” the report states. Kazakhstan’s efforts in these two areas were specifically highlighted.

Kazakhstan’s progress has focused on prevention, early diagnosis, expanded treatment access, and improved survival outcomes. WHO monitoring shows the country has implemented 50% of recommended NCD control measures and conducted its first national STEPS survey, a WHO-endorsed standard for assessing NCD risk factors, significantly bolstering public health capabilities.

In response to the high burden of cardiovascular disease, Kazakhstan has increased the number of catheterization laboratories from 31 to 49 between 2017 and 2024, and opened 83 stroke centers, substantially reducing stroke-related mortality and disability rates.

The country has also made significant progress in high-tech medical interventions. Since 2012, more than 600 ventricular assist devices have been implanted, and in 2025, Kazakhstan performed its 100th heart transplant. In 2024, it became the first country in the CIS and Central Asia to introduce a new technology for treating cardiac arrhythmias.

The state health program also includes screenings for eight major diseases, including hypertension, ischemic heart disease, diabetes, and various cancers. By the end of 2024, 70% of the targeted population had been screened for breast and colorectal cancer.

As a result of these initiatives, life expectancy in Kazakhstan rose from 74.44 years in 2022 to 75.09 years in 2023.

Kazakhstan has also aggressively addressed behavioral risk factors. It enforces some of the region’s strictest anti-smoking laws, including public smoking bans, graphic warnings, tobacco taxes, advertising restrictions, and a complete ban on electronic cigarettes and vapes. Over the past decade, smoking rates have declined by 20%.

To reduce sugar consumption, the government banned the sale of sweetened beverages in schools and, in 2024, passed legislation prohibiting energy drink sales to individuals under 21.

As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia, Kazakhstan plans to fund health insurance for over one million unemployed citizens starting in 2026.

04 Aug 2025

Draft, Kazakhstan, Business & Economy, Kazakhstan Business & Economy

Kazakhstan Grain Exports Surge to Iran, Azerbaijan, and Central Asia

August 4, 2025
By Sergey Kwan

Kazakhstan exported 12.4 million tons of grain and flour between September 2024 and July 2025, marking a 34% increase from the same period in 2023-2024, when exports totaled 9.3 million tons, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.

Kazakhstan recorded substantial export growth to key regional markets. Shipments to Uzbekistan rose by 28.2%, from 3.384 million to 4.338 million tons, while exports to Tajikistan grew by 39.2%, reaching 1.446 million tons. Deliveries to Kyrgyzstan more than doubled, increasing 2.5 times from 156,000 to 398,000 tons. Exports to Iran surged nearly 17-fold, jumping from 56,000 to 974,000 tons, and shipments to Azerbaijan skyrocketed 120-fold, from just 6,000 to 723,000 tons.

A major milestone of the 2024-2025 export season was the diversification of export destinations. For the first time, Kazakh grain reached Belgium, Poland, Portugal, Norway, and the United Kingdom.

Additionally, Kazakhstan exported approximately 60,000 tons of wheat to Morocco and 15,000 tons to Vietnam.

Grain exports to Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey resumed after a five-year hiatus, and shipments of durum wheat to Italy saw significant growth.

The increased volumes highlight the growing competitiveness of Kazakh grain on the international market and reinforce Kazakhstan’s standing as one of the world’s leading grain exporters.

04 Aug 2025

Business & Economy, Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan Business & Economy

Kazakhstan Proposes Digital Platform for SCO Agricultural Trade

August 4, 2025
By Dmitry Pokidaev

At a recent gathering of agricultural ministry officials from Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states in Beijing, Kazakhstan’s Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Yermek Kenzhekhanuly, proposed establishing a unified digital platform to streamline and enhance agricultural trade across the bloc.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the country exported $5.1 billion worth of agricultural products in 2024, a 3.9% year-on-year increase to 16.1 million tons. Notably, 69% of this trade involved nine SCO member countries, underscoring both regional interdependence and the potential for expanded agricultural cooperation.

The SCO includes Kazakhstan, China, Russia, Belarus, India, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

“We view the agricultural sector as an area for strategic partnership, not competition,” Kenzhekhanuly stated. He emphasized Kazakhstan’s readiness to help develop a unified agricultural space grounded in trust, coordination, and complementarity.

The proposed digital platform would incorporate tools for electronic certification, logistics tracking, and product traceability. The Kazakh delegation also stressed the importance of harmonizing technical regulations and phytosanitary standards to facilitate mutual trade and eliminate non-tariff barriers.

The meeting concluded with the signing of the Protocol of the Tenth Meeting of SCO Ministers of Agriculture, reaffirming the member states’ commitment to deepening cooperation in the agricultural sector.

As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia, Kazakhstan is also working to diversify its agricultural export markets, including recent wheat shipments to North Africa.

04 Aug 2025

Business & Economy, Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan Business & Economy

Kyrgyz Authorities Upgrade Energy Infrastructure in Conflict-Affected Batken Region

August 4, 2025
By Anton Chipegin

Authorities in Kyrgyzstan have modernized more than 600 kilometers of high-voltage power lines in the Batken region and launched construction of a new power substation near the Tajik border, an area impacted by armed clashes in 2022.

According to the National Electric Grid of Kyrgyzstan (NEGK), stable and uninterrupted power supply has been ensured across all settlements in the region during the first half of 2025. Major repairs extended to remote mountainous areas prone to natural hazards, where energy workers replaced over 2,500 outdated porcelain insulators, enhancing grid reliability. Much of the infrastructure was located in landslide-prone and difficult-to-access terrain.

“To prevent natural disasters, particularly floods, and ensure the safety of electrical equipment, we reinforced overhead power lines using gabions, stone materials, wire ties, and specialized equipment,” the NEGK reported.

The Batken region experienced prolonged blackouts following the 2022 Kyrgyz-Tajik border conflict, which left 32 settlements without electricity. Although power was restored within a year, much of the infrastructure had not been updated for decades. Local officials now say outages should become rare.

Construction has also begun on a new substation valued at $800,000 near the Tajik border, with completion expected by October 2025. The facility will supply electricity to an 800-hectare area, including the newly built village of Zhan Dostuk. The village is designated for residents displaced from areas transferred to Tajikistan under an intergovernmental agreement. Power will also extend to the planned city of Batken City, newly constructed state-owned mortgage housing, a large Russian-language school, and a stadium with a capacity of 10,000 spectators.

Additionally, the region remains a key hub for the CASA-1000 project, which aims to export electricity from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to Pakistan via Afghanistan, an initiative that officials say will strengthen energy infrastructure across Central Asia.

04 Aug 2025

Life & Culture, Tajikistan Life & Culture, Tajikistan

Over 100 Female Suicides Reported in Tajikistan in First Half of 2025

August 4, 2025
By Vagit Ismailov

In the first six months of 2025, 102 women and 30 girls died by suicide in Tajikistan, according to figures announced by Bunafsha Fayziddinzoda, head of the Committee on Women and Family Affairs.

Disturbing Trends

While the overall number of female suicides declined by eight cases compared to the same period in 2024, the number among girls rose by six.

The Committee has been conducting large-scale preventive efforts. As part of its outreach, 430,264 families were visited in a “door-to-door” campaign, accompanied by 3,847 “district-to-district” and “village-to-village” meetings and 795 school-based awareness events.

Gender-Based Violence: Not Just a Women’s Issue

From January to June 2025, authorities recorded 2,121 cases of violence, 277 more than in the same period last year. Women accounted for 1,763 of these cases, up by 256, while cases involving men fell to 251, a decline of 86.

Fayziddinzoda cited the primary causes of domestic violence as spousal conflict, jealousy, third-party interference, and mental or physical illness. Economic and sexual violence were also reported. She added that in many cases, violence against men is perpetrated by in-laws, including a wife’s brothers, fathers, and uncles.

In July, the Committee launched hotline 1313. It received 58 calls in its first month, nine of them from men. According to Azimova, male callers reported abuse by wives, daughters-in-law, and in some cases, their own mothers.

Children and Marriage

Official data showed that 30,356 marriages were registered in the first half of 2025, a slight increase of 78 from the same period in 2024. However, 4,117 marriages were dissolved, affecting 3,632 children. While divorces decreased by 291 cases, 230 court-sanctioned marriages involving minors were also registered, 100 fewer than last year. Nonetheless, 26 early marriages involving underage girls were reported.

Those responsible have been prosecuted under Articles 168 and 169 of the Criminal Code. Penalties include fines of up to 150,000 somoni ($15,700), corrective labor, or up to five years of restricted liberty.

Education Access and Structural Challenges

Obstacles to compulsory secondary education also increased: 271 cases were recorded, 59 more than in the previous year. Those found guilty, usually parents or guardians, face prosecution under Article 164 of the Criminal Code, with penalties of up to $9,500 in fines, compulsory labor, or up to two years of imprisonment.

Compulsory education in Tajikistan now includes grades 10 and 11, a move implemented in 2024 to combat early marriage, particularly in rural regions where girls were often removed from school after grade 9.

Azimova stressed that violence is not confined to socially disadvantaged families.

“Today, there are people who are seen as model citizens, even hajis, who unfortunately behave unacceptably toward their wives and children, unbeknownst to those around them,” she said.

The Committee reiterated that violence and crime cut across all segments of society and must be addressed universally.