Page 568 – The Times Of Central Asia

12 Sep 2024

Central Asia, Justice, Kazakhstan Local Politics, Kazakhstan Justice, Local Politics, Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan Proposes Lowering Age of Criminal Responsibility

October 16, 2024
By Vagit Ismailov

Kazakhstan has proposed lowering the age of criminal responsibility

Leading the initiative at a plenary session, Mazhilis Deputy Magerram Magerramov emphasized, “We, legislators, should probably revise the age of criminal responsibility threshold for some crimes, establishing responsibility not from 14, but from 12 years old, for example, in cases of rape.”

Magerramov drew attention to unsafe conditions in schools, citing cases of violence and murder committed by minors. In his opinion, bullying, and romanticizing banditry within the school environment create the basis for violence that continues in the army.

The deputy also stressed the lack of a social protection system and called for strengthening educators’ roles in preventing schoolchildren’s destructive behavior. To this end, he recommended a revision of current approaches to the prevention of criminal behavior among teenagers in tandem with increased attention to moral and ethical education.

Magerramov noted that Kazakhstan needs a comprehensive approach by authorized bodies to solving these problems as well as a revision of the current system which allows juvenile offenders to avoid punishment because of their age.

In June 2024, a new law came into force in Kazakhstan, which introduced liability for bullying and cyberbullying of minors. However, the deputy believes that additional measures are needed to combat juvenile violence.

The age of criminal responsibility varies from country to country. In Japan, Ireland, and Morocco, children can be held responsible for crimes from the age of twelve. In India, the minimum age of responsibility is set at 12, with the caveat that for serious offenses such as murder or rape, the court may take into account the child’s conscious actions.

12 Sep 2024

Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan Justice, Home, Justice, Local Politics, Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan Local Politics, Kyrgyzstan Features, Kyrgyzstan Home

Kyrgyzstan Adds First Three Organizations to List of Foreign Agents

September 18, 2024
By Anton Chipegin

The Kyrgyz Ministry of Justice has posted a list of non-profit organizations that have been given the status of “foreign agent”.

On August 27 the Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan adopted a decree “On non-profit organizations”. The new law came into force on September 9, since when any NPO engaged in political activities and receiving funding from abroad must apply for inclusion as a foreign agent.

The first three organizations to declare themselves as “foreign agents” are the Eurasian Club association of entrepreneurs, the business association JIA, and a branch of the environmental organization Fauna and Flora International.

“Applications shall be submitted to the authorized body to maintain the register of NPOs within two months from the date of entry into force of this decree,” the Ministry of Justice explained to The Times of Central Asia. After receiving an application, the ministry has 60 days to verify the information provided.

The law stipulates that foreign agent status can be removed if an organization has not received funds or property from foreign sources in the past 12 calendar months, or if it has not been engaged in political activity in the past 12 months.

Kyrgyzstan’s president Sadyr Japarov has promised the public that the authorities would not prosecute foreign agents and their representatives. “I, as head of state, guarantee that there will be no persecution. We are not a nuclear country. We are not going to fly into space yet. Our state has no secrets to hide from you and your donors,” Japarov said earlier this year.

12 Sep 2024

Central Asia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan Local Politics, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan Local Politics, Life & Culture, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan Local Politics, Kyrgyzstan, Local Politics, Kyrgyzstan Local Politics, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan Local Politics

Adoption of Latin-Based Common Turkic Alphabet

September 12, 2024
By Sergey Kwan

The Turkic Academy has announced that the Turkic World Common Alphabet Commission is to adopt a Latin-based Common Turkic Alphabet consisting of 34 letters.

At a meeting in Baku (Azerbaijan) on September 9-11, the Commission finalized its two-year development of a proposed standard alphabet for Turkic languages in which each letter in represents different phonetic sounds in Turkic languages.

Emphasizing its historic significance, the Turkic Academy stated that the development of the Common Turkic Alphabet, first proposed by scientists in 1991, promotes mutual understanding and cooperation among the Turkic peoples while preserving their linguistic heritage.

Based in Astana, Kazakhstan, the Turkic Academy is an international organization established under the Organization of Turkic States. Founding member states include Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Türkiye, with Hungary and Uzbekistan joining as observers in 2018 and 2022, respectively.

The Organization of Turkic States currently comprising Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, with Hungary and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus as observers, was founded in 2009 to foster comprehensive cooperation among Turkic-speaking nations.

The alphabet issue in post-Soviet Turkic-speaking countries dates back to 1929, when the Soviet government replaced traditional Arabic-based alphabets used by Muslim minorities in the Soviet Union with Latin-based national alphabets. In 1940, the Latin alphabet was replaced with Cyrillic, used for the Russian language. After the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, former Soviet republics of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan switched to Latin-based alphabets, while Uzbekistan has used both Latin and Cyrillic alphabets since 1992.

In 2017, Kazakhstan’s then-President Nursultan Nazarbayev ordered the government to develop a Latin-based alphabet for the Kazakh language. The switch, initially planned for 2025, was then postponed till as late as 2031.

Citing the complexity of a transition from the Cyrillic to a Latin-based alphabet, in June 2022, Nazarbayev’s successor, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev stated that linguistic reform should not be rushed.

Kyrgyzstan is the only post-Soviet Turkic-speaking nation committed to the use of the Cyrillic alphabet.

Talk about switching from Cyrillic to Latin in post-Soviet Central Asia has always irritated Moscow, which considered such moves by the former Soviet republics as a means of distancing themselves from Russian influence.

12 Sep 2024

Central Asia, International Affairs, Kazakhstan, Business & Economy, Kazakhstan International Affairs, Kazakhstan Business & Economy

Kazakhstan’s Home Credit Bank Stops Working with Russian VTB Bank

October 8, 2024
By Vagit Ismailov

Kazakhstan’s Home Credit Bank has stopped its cooperation with the Russian VTB Bank because of the risk of secondary sanctions, Home Credit has reported.

“In connection with international sanctions imposed on JSC DO Bank VTB Kazakhstan (VTB Kazakhstan), JSC ‘Home Credit Bank’ has decided to cease cooperation with VTB Kazakhstan to exclude the risks of secondary sanctions. In this regard, any transfer operations in tenge and foreign currency on customers’ accounts to/from VTB Kazakhstan will be stopped,” the bank’s statement read.

VTB remains the only Russian bank with a subsidiary structure in Kazakhstan. Earlier, Sberbank and Alfa Bank sold their subsidiary banks in the country. The US, EU, and UK are enforcing sanctions on VTB.

As of July 1, 2024, VTB Kazakhstan ranked 18th in assets among the country’s 21 banks.

Home Credit Bank Kazakhstan was previously owned by Home Bank, but fully exited the asset at the end of 2022. Home Credit Bank CEO Kirill Bachvarov explained that this was necessary to restore the bank’s rating, as the link to the Russian shareholder negatively affected its position.

In July 2024, the U.S. Treasury tightened sanctions against Russia, adding to the list of companies whose work with Russia could lead to risks of secondary sanctions, including VTB Kazakhstan.

12 Sep 2024

Central Asia, Turkmenistan International Affairs, Turkmenistan, International Affairs, Turkmenistan Business & Economy, Business & Economy

Work Begins on Afghan Section of the TAPI Gas Pipeline

September 12, 2024
By Sergey Kwan

Turkmenistan and Afghanistan have now begun construction of the Afghan section of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) natural gas pipeline.

To mark the launch of work on the pipeline’s Serhetabat-Herat section, Chairman of the Halk Maslahaty (People’s Council) of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, and Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, the Prime Minister of the Taliban-led Afghan government, attended a ceremony at a checkpoint on the Turkmen-Afghan border on September 11.

The staged installation of the TAPI pipeline, already completed in Turkmenistan, will eventually transfer 33 billion cubic meters of Turkmen natural gas annually to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India.

At an estimated cost of $10 billion, the TAPI pipeline will span 1,814 kilometers. With 816 kilometers running through Afghanistan, the project will meet the country’s gas needs, generating around $450 million in annual transit fees, before continuing on to Quetta and Multan in Pakistan and Fazilka in India.

Gas-rich Turkmenistan currently exports natural gas to China and Russia but once completed, the TAPI project will enable the country to diversify its export routes and help realize far-reaching plans to transport its gas across the Caspian Sea to Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Europe.

Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund stated that the commencement of work on the TAPI project on Afghan soil would strengthen relations between Afghanistan and Turkmenistan, whilst speaking from Ashgabat via videoconferencing, Turkmenistan President Serdar Berdimuhamedov, announced, “The commencement of the TAPI project [on the Afghan territory] and other projects is beneficial not only for Afghanistan but also for the countries in the region.”

In addition to TAPI, the ceremony opened a 177-meter-long railway bridge at the Turkmen-Afghan border on Serhetabat-Turgundi railroad, launched the construction of the Serhetabat-Herat (Afghanistan) fiber-optic communication line, a warehouse complex in the dry port of the Turgundi railway station at the Turkmen-Afghan border, and the Turgundi-Sanabar section of the Turgundi-Herat railway. The event also marked the commission of the Nur-el-Jahad power plant in Afghanistan’s Herat province, as part of the first phase of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) power transmission line project.

12 Sep 2024

Central Asia, International Affairs, Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan International Affairs, Business & Economy, Kazakhstan Business & Economy

German Company to Assemble Airplanes in Almaty

September 12, 2024
By Vagit Ismailov

The German company “Linding Group” is set to invest about $10 million in assembling airplanes in Almaty, pending necessary permits from the government.

Based in the economic zone “PIT ‘Alatau”, production will begin in 2026. During the first year, 20 airplanes will be assembled, rising to 50 units annually thereafter.

Kazakhstan is already engaged in several joint projects with foreign enterprises in aircraft production. One such project involves the “Russian Helicopters” company. Within the framework of the agreement with Kazakhstan’s aircraft repair plant No. 405, a large-unit assembly of Mi-8AMT and Mi-171E helicopters was launched in Almaty, predominantly serving the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the National Guard of Kazakhstan.

A further example of international cooperation is the contract between the Ural Civil Aviation Plant and Kazakhstan Aviation Industry (KAI) to produce the Baikal multi-purpose airplane. When fully assembled by the end of this year, the airplanes will be delivered to markets in Europe and Africa.

The realization of all of these projects will both strengthen Kazakhstan’s aviation industry and increase its presence in international aviation markets.