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Kazakhstan Embassy's News Bulletin No11, March 21, 2005
Date: 21.03.2005
http://www.kazakhstanembassy.org.uk
POLITICS
Tokaev says Kazakhstan seeks political model to enhance democratic credentials
Kassymzhomart Tokaev, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan said the country now has the âwherewithal of legal, political and institutional grounds to further strengthen democracyâ? and is in search of âa political modelâ? to help Kazakhstan meet emerging challenges and enhance the countryâs democracy.
Minister Tokaev, speaking at the March 15 session of the UN Commission for Human Rights, in Geneva, said Kazakhstanâs being a presidential republic has helped the country to pursue the economic reforms that have made the country âa success story and a regional power. However, we are in permanent search of a political model to suit Kazakhstan in the face of emerging challenges, one that will enhance the countryâs democratic credentials.â?
The Minister said key proposals by President Nursultan Nazarbayev, in his recent state of the nation address, are directed to this goal. The proposals include a package of concrete measures for political and economic modernization forming an integrated approach to the transformation of political and public institutions in light of international experience and consistent with the traditions and history of Kazakhstanâs multiethnic and religiously diverse society.
He stressed âmajor objectives of our political reforms include government decentralization, introduction of local self-government, further improvements to electoral legislation and large-scale reform of the judicial system in accordance with generally recognized international standards.â?
Kazakhstanâs eagerness to pursue this path to democracy âwill be evidenced by our impending ratification of International Covenants on civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights,â? the Minister added.
Minister Tokaev also listed a host of problems plaguing the Central Asian region, but said Kazakhstan believes their solution should not come at the expense of human rights: âKazakhstan is seriously concerned by religious extremism which is widespread in the region, by drug trafficking, illegal migration and the smuggling of conventional weapons. We are actively cooperating with all countries involved and international organizations to address these problems. We realize that only joint efforts by the international community and effective cooperation will allow us to take adequate steps to diminish the existing threats and challenges. However, we strongly believe that countering terrorism should not entail violations of the legal right of those who practice a religion. The fundamental right to the freedom of conscience must not be the target of interference and abuse by governments.â?
The Foreign Minister underscored Kazakhstan is âopen for dialogue and will be working with the United Nations and other countries to reach global partnership in guaranteeing comprehensive human rights for everyone.â?
Prosecutor General requests ban of Hizb-ut-Tahrir
Rashid Tusupbekov, Kazakhstanâs Prosecutor General has filed a request with the city court of Astana asking it to recognize Hizb-ut-Tahrir, a religious political party whose goal is to recreate an Islamic caliphate in all the lands of Islam, as an extremist organization and ban its activity in the country. This is the first request under a new law on fighting extremism.
The request said Hizb-ut-Tahrirâs activities in Kazakhstan were aimed at changing the constitutional order, violating the countryâs sovereignty and its territorial integrity, as well as undermining national security and promoting social and religious enmity. The Prosecutor General noted these actions must be recognized as extremist under the new law and that the party must be banned in Kazakhstan.
The Supreme Court of Kazakhstan earlier satisfied another request from the Prosecutor General and recognized 11 international organizations as terrorists, banning their activity in Kazakhstan. Last year, the Supreme Court banned four organizations, including Al Qaeda, the Islamic Party of Eastern Turkistan, Kurdish Peopleâs Congress, and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. On March 15, the court added seven more organizations to the list, including the Muslim Brotherhood, Asbat-al-Ansar, the Taliban, Zhamaat of Mojaheddin of Central Asia, which are also banned in Russia, the United States, Turkey and other countries.
The most recent request of the Prosecutor General said Hizb-ut-Tahrir is in regular contact with some of the banned groups, including Al Qaeda and the Taliban.
Hizb-ut-Tahrir, which claims to pursue its goals by peaceful means and whose full name is Hizb-ut-Tahrir-al-Islami or the Party of Islamic Revival, has been in existence since 1953. It was first noticed in Kazakhstan in 1998, and has since spread its activities from the southern regions to western, central and northern parts of the country. In 2004 alone, Hizb-ut-Tahrir members were seen distributing leaflets and other printed materials with anti-constitutional calls in more than 180 instances. These facts prompted Kazakh law enforcement authorities to launch 111 criminal cases.
Currently, Hizb-ut-Tahrir, which has a centre of strategic planning in London, is banned in Canada, Germany, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Syria, and Uzbekistan.
Majilismen call for quicker accession to Transparency Initiative
Maral Itegulov and Satubaldy Ibragimov, two members of the Majilis (lower house) of Kazakhstanâs parliament have called on Prime Minister Daniyal Akhmetov to speed up Kazakhstanâs joining the Extraction Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). They announced this request at a Majilis session on March 16.
The two majilismen believe âKazakhstanâs nonparticipation in the Initiative is a major minus for our country internationally.â? They feel Kazakhstanâs accession will send âa signal to the international community that the government is committed to principles of transparency, accountability and public control in extracting industries.â? The parliamentary request also noted Kazakhstan âcan also assume the role of promoting basic principles of democratic management over natural resources in other countries.â?
Mr. Itegulov is a member of the Majilis Finance and Budget Committee. Mr. Ibragimov is a member of the Majilis Economic Reform and Regional Development Committee. Both are members of the Otan political party.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair introduced the EITI at the UN summit on sustainable development in Johannesburg in 2002. Its goal is the publication of information both on payments by extracting industries into the budget and revenues received by the governments of countries rich in natural resources.
Currently, such countries as Azerbaijan, Belgium, France, Germany, Norway, the Netherlands, Nigeria, the United Kingdom and the United States have subscribed to the initiative.
ECONOMY
WEF to list Kazakhstan in Global Competitiveness Report
Kairat Kelimbetov, Kazakhstanâs Minister of Economy and Budget Planning said the country will be listed in the World Economic Forumâs Global Competitiveness Report in 2006.
Speaking at a news conference in Almaty on March 16, the Minister said the procedure of getting listed will give the government reliable information on the status of the economy and its prospects. Today experts of the WEF, based in Davos, Switzerland, began interviewing Kazakh businesspeople and government officials to collect needed information.
The Minister believes Kazakhstan might be listed âsomewhere in the 70sâ?. However, within the next 10 to 12 years âwe plan to join the ranks of the 50 most competitive economies of the world.â?
In the report for 2004-05, Finland was named as the top competitive country, followed by the USA and Sweden. Only three countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States are ranked in the WEF report, Russia at 70, Ukraine at 86, and Georgia at 94.
Produced in collaboration with leading academics worldwide and a global network of 109 partner institutes in dozens of countries across the world, the Global Competitiveness Report has expanded its geographic coverage over the years and now assesses more than 100 economies. The report is unique in that the methodology combines publicly available and survey data which captures the perceptions and observations of business leaders in a given country.
Ministry moves ahead with planning for economic clusters
Kairat Kelimbetov, Kazakhstanâs Minister of Economy and Budget Planning said the working groups developing concepts of new economic clusters have concluded the first stage of preparations to identify obstacles as well as major mechanisms for the creation of clusters.
The Minister said the group working on a tourism cluster achieved the most progress. According to plans, this cluster will most likely include or centre around Almaty, the pleasant tree-lined former capital located in the foothills of the picturesque Tien Shan Mountains.
Working groups also developed plans for clusters in production of construction materials, light, food and metallurgy industries, transportation and logistical support as well as production of equipment for oil and gas production.
These groups include government officials and experts. Their work involves in depth discussions with businesspeople in respective industries.
The discussions have so far revealed similar problems for all potential clusters. These include absence of available and long term financial resources, of qualified personnel, marketing information on appropriate markets and low levels of harmonization between Kazakh national and international standards.
An extensive list of problems affecting competitiveness of these enterprises include underdevelopment of the stock market, inefficient government management and judicial system, high level of corruption, absence of interactive mechanism between government and business, high administrative barriers for entrepreneurs, and incompatibility of personnel training with labour market requirements.
The Minister said the dialog between government officials and businesspeople is an open one, and government agencies remain open to suggestions. He added the ministries involved in discussions will carefully study all proposals from businesspeople and offer ways to help solve existing problems.
OTHER NEWS
More than 250 new schools to be built in next three years
Byrganym Aitimova, Minister of Education and Science announced the Government will build 259 new schools by 2008 in a major drive to improve education.
She said the national budget will finance 138 schools, while local budgets will finance another 113. Elementary, middle and high schools, from grades 1 through 11, are usually gathered under one roof in Kazakhstan.
All new schools will be equipped with modern equipment, including computers, and offer specialized classes, the Minister said.
Kazakhstan abolishes daylight saving time
The Government of Kazakhstan passed a resolution March 15 abolishing daylight saving time citing lack of economic benefits and health complications coupled with a decrease in productivity.
The decision was based on economic calculations, public polls and medicinal studies, as well as police statistics.
Economists concluded one of the major reasons for the time change, the economy of energy consumption, had almost no effect in Kazakhstan with energy savings amounting to less than a dollar per person per year.
Doctors found out that more than half the people of Kazakhstan react negatively to time change. Insomnia, spikes in blood pressure, endocrinal deviations and the exacerbation of chronic diseases were cited as the most common health complications caused by the one hour time shift taking place soon after the vernal equinox.
Dr. Zaira Majitova, MD, said: âA human body has its own biological watch which runs synchronously with natureâs watch. When the human body is forced to readjust artificially, it leads to disturbances in the biological watch. If we donât switch to summer time weâll stay in the correct time frame.â?
Time change also leads to growth in numbers of driving accidents, as well as work related accidents.
In abolishing daylight savings time, Kazakhstan follows the example of China, Estonia, Japan, Singapore, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
For people in the United Kingdom dealing with Kazakhstan, this development means that the time difference between Astana and London will be 6 hours except when the UK switches to daylight saving time when it will be 5 hours.
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