Sultanov B.K. Kazakhstan Today

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social partnership, pension, social insurance and migration in line

with its powers.

The ministry runs territorial bodies in regions and Astana and

Almaty. It also includes the Migration Committee.

The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources of the Republic

of Kazakhstan is a central executive body that formulates state

policy and coordinates management processes in the spheres of

energy, mineral resources, oil and gas, petrochemistry and nuclear,

energy-saving and the use of renewable and non-traditional sources

of energy.

The main objective of this ministry is to ensure the sustainable

development of Kazakhstan’s economy.

The ministry also drafts programmes for the development of the

country’s fuel and energy sector and ensures the sector’s development

and the country’s energy security and independence.

In addition, one of the ministry’s most important functions is to

ensure the replenishment of the mineral resource base, the rational

use of mineral resources and the comprehensive development of

petrochemical productions.

The Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Ka-

zakhstan conducts management and inter-sectoral coordination in

the spheres of education and science.

The main objectives of the ministry are: formulating a single state

policy in the spheres of education, science, technology and aerospace

activities and the state youth policy; creating the conditions necessary

for people to receive education; improving scientiﬁ c research and

boosting the nation’s labour competitiveness; ensuring the protection

of rights and legal interests of children.

The ministry includes the Committee for Supervision and Ex-

amination in the Education and Science Sphere and the Aerospace

Committee.

In line with legislation, the Ministry of Education and Science

drafts blueprints, strategies, state and targeted programmes and

plans to implement state policy in the spheres of education, science

and technology and the state youth policy; to ensure rights and legal

interests of children; formulate the policy to improve the quality of

education and draft the innovation policy in the spheres of education,

science and aerospace and develop the space sector.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan

(MIA) is a central executive body that manages the system of interior

bodies of Kazakhstan and protects public order and ensures public

security in Kazakhstan. The ministry implements state policies on

the law-enforcement.

The objectives of the interior bodies are: protecting public order

and ensuring public security, including in emergency situations and

under martial law; preventing, investigating and uncovering crimes

and administrative violations and searching for criminals; conducting

preliminary investigation, questioning and administrative procedures

within remits deﬁ ned by legislation.

In addition, the ministry’s powers include: detecting and pre-

venting homelessness and crimes by minors; ensuring trafﬁ c safety;

guarding government and other facilities and individuals and escort-

ing detainees and convicts, preventing terrorist attacks and releasing

hostages.

The ministry also monitors the observance of rules of living in

Kazakhstan by foreign citizens and stateless persons.

The activities of interior bodies should be based on the principles of

lawfulness, the unity of command, the unity of the system of interior

bodies, transparency and coordination with other law-enforcement

and government agencies, ofﬁ cials, organisations and citizens.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Republic of Kazakhstan

performs the functions that draft state policy and legislative regula-

tions in the sphere of industrial development, the development of the

defence industry and the scientiﬁ c, technical and innovative develop-

ment of the country. This ministry also coordinates the development of

the trade, entrepreneurship and protection of competition, construction

and architecture, landscaping and housing and utilities spheres.

The most important objective of this ministry is to create favour-

able conditions for encouraging private investment in the non-extrac-

tive sector of the economy.

The ministry includes the Committee for Industry and Scientiﬁ c

and Technical Development, the Committee for the Regulation of

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Trade and Tourism Activities, the Committee for the Protection of

Competition, the Committee for Construction and the Housing and

Utilities Sphere, the Committee for Technical Regulation and Metrol-

ogy and the Investment Committee.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection of the Republic of

Kazakhstan conducts management and inter-sectoral coordination

on the drafting and implementation of state policy in the sphere of

environmental protection and the use of natural resources.

The main objective of the ministry is to improve the environment

and achieve favourable levels of the environmentally sustainable

development of society.

The ministry incorporates the Committee for the Supervision of

Environmental Protection and territorial environmental protection

bodies in the regions, Astana and Almaty.

In line with legislation, the ministry formulates state policy on

environmental protection and drafts proposals to formulate a single

state policy in this sphere.

This ministry also develops and improves the system of state man-

agement in the environmental protection sphere, state environmental

expert examination, activities relating to the issuing of permits, li-

cences and environmental conclusions, regulation and standardisation

within its remits and a system of economic methods and mechanisms

of encouragement of the rational use of natural resources and envi-

ronmental protection.

The Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan is a central

executive body that manages the budget and ﬁ nancial sphere.

The main objectives of the ministry are: formulating and imple-

menting state policy on the budget, customs and tax control, internal

ﬁ nancial control and state purchases.

This ministry also conducts state regulation of the production and

sale of tobacco products, ethyl alcohol and alcoholic products and

certain types of petroleum products.

The ministry’s powers also include issues of bankruptcy, out-of-

court procedures of liquidation of indebted companies, rehabilitation

procedures relating to insolvent debtors, the management of state

property, accountancy, ﬁ nancial reporting and auditing.

The ministry includes the Treasury Committee, the Customs Con-

trol Committee, the Tax Committee, the Financial Control and State

Procurement Committee, the Committee for Work with Insolvent

Debtors, and the State Property and Privatisation Committee.

The Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Kazakhstan is a central

executive body of Kazakhstan that manages the sphere of the legisla-

tive provision of activities of government and public organisations

in the country.

The main objectives of the ministry are: providing a legislative

basis for the work of the state; ensuring the legality of the work

government agencies, organisations, ofﬁ cials and citizens; ensur-

ing the protection of the rights and lawful interests of citizens and

organisations.

The ministry includes territorial bodies in the regions, Astana

and Almaty and the Registration Service Committee, the Intellectual

Property Rights Committee, the Penal and Penitentiary System Com-

mittee, and the Committee for Legal Advice and Services.

In the order set by legislation, the Ministry of Justice develops

national legislation, organises lawmaking work and conducts the legal

examination of legislative acts.

Its powers also include providing a legal basis for the drafting and

conclusion of Kazakhstan’s international agreements; offering legal

advice and services to the population; and protecting intellectual

property.

Relatively recently the ministry’s functions expanded into admin-

istering criminal punishment and the temporary isolation of suspects

in detention centres.

In addition, the ministry supervises the government registration

of legal entities, property rights and operations with them, legisla-

tive acts, acts of civil status, registration of citizens, registration of

movable property as security and issuance of documents to citizens

of Kazakhstan.

The Ministry of Emergencies of the Republic of Kazakhstan for-

mulates state policy in the sphere of preventing emergency situations

of a natural or manmade nature, handling the consequences of these

and civil defence.

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This ministry is responsible for state control in the sphere of ﬁ re

and industrial safety, and health and safety at hazardous production

facilities. The ministry also monitors safety in industry and the build-

ing and expanding of state material reserves, ensuring the functioning

and development of the state system for the prevention and handling

of emergency situations, and the prevention and extinguishing of

ﬁ res.

The ministry incorporates territorial bodies in the regions, Astana

and Almaty, the Committee for State Control and Supervision in the

Sphere of Emergency Situations and the Committee for State Mate-

rial Reserves.

In line with the tasks delegated to it, the ministry prevents and

clears up natural and manmade emergency situations and takes civil

defence measures. In addition, it drafts proposals to use material,

technical, food, medical and other resources from state and mobilisa-

tion reserves and means from government reserves.

The Ministry of Tourism and Sport of the Republic of Kazakhstan

formulates state policy in the spheres of tourism and sport. The de-

velopment of tourism has been acquiring particular importance for

the country’s economy. The development of amateur and professional

sport in Kazakhstan is also an important aspect of the government’s

activities that aims to diversify the development of the economy and

the social sphere in Kazakhstan.

The ministry includes the Tourism Committee and the Sport

Committee.

2.6. Reforms in the Judicial System

After the adoption of the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakh-

stan on 28 January 1993, new social and political relations emerged in

the country. Moreover, Kazakhstan declared that its aim was to build

a lawful state. Achieving this required radical legal reforms which

would better meet the socio-political, socioeconomic and international

status of the new state.

The president’s Resolution On the State Programme of Legal Re-

forms in the Republic of Kazakhstan of 12 February 1994 became a

historical document that deﬁ ned the priority aspects for reforms in the

judicial and legal system: just and independent courts; highly-quali-

ﬁ ed, impartial judges appointed on a permanent basis; improvements

in the living standards of judges – these are the foundations of impar-

tial judiciary and it is precisely a decent life for a judge that stresses

the importance and immeasurable responsibility of their work and

provides social security for them. Therefore, improving their living

conditions was made a priority.

This resolution clearly regulated the structure of the country’s

judicial bodies, the powers of judges and personnel issues.

The structure and composition of judicial bodies were also deﬁ ned

at that point. It was decided that the Supreme Court would rule on

all economic issues and issues relating to the carriage of justice and

the provision of judges with everything they needed for this was del-

egated to the head of the apparatus. The composition of regional and

town courts has been the same since that time, while the powers and

objectives of martial courts in Kazakhstan enabled them to become

members of the plenum of the Supreme Court of the Republic of

Kazakhstan. The institution of people’s assessors was abolished.

The president’s next step in reforming the judicial system was the

1995 Decree On Courts and the Status of Judges in the Republic of

Kazakhstan, which had the force of constitutional law. The decree

ﬁ xed the deﬁ ning status of the judiciary’s independence, making it

one of the equal branches of government.

The main government bodies of Kazakhstan responsible for leg-

islative and legal issues are the Supreme Court, the Constitutional

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Council, the Prosecutor-General’s Ofﬁ ce and the Ministry of Justice

of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

“Judicial power shall be exercised on behalf of the Republic of

Kazakhstan and shall be intended to protect the rights, freedoms, and

legal interests of citizens and organisations and ensure the observance

of the constitution, laws, other legislative acts and international agree-

ments of the republic.” [12, Article 76]

The highest judicial body in the country is the Supreme Court of the

Republic of Kazakhstan, the members of which are appointed by the

Senate following the president’s nominations which in turn are based

on recommendations by the country’s Highest Judicial Council.

The Supreme Court has powers to supervise and overturn rulings

of lower courts. In addition, it is the body that gives explanations on

issues of judicial practice and the application of legislative acts.

The Constitutional Council of the Republic of Kazakhstan issues

rulings on all issues relating to the observance of constitutional norms

and procedures adopted. The Constitutional Council considers the

president’s protests and if they are not overcome by a majority of the

vote decisions by the Constitutional Council are regarded as void.

The Constitutional Council rules on the legitimacy of presidential

and parliamentary elections and examines laws to establish their

conformity with the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The Constitutional Council has seven members, three of whom, in-

cluding the chairman, are appointed by the president. Four members

represent the chambers of parliament: two members are appointed

by the Speaker of the Senate and the other two by the Speaker of the

Mazhilis. All former presidents receive lifetime membership of the

Constitutional Council.

The chairman of the Constitutional Council is appointed by the

president, and when votes are divided equally the chairman’s vote

is critical.

The organisation and work of the Constitutional Council is regu-

lated by a constitutional law.

The Constitutional Council’s rulings come into force from the day

of their adoption and are obligatory throughout Kazakhstan. They are

ﬁ nal and cannot be appealed against.

The government body that monitors the observance of law is the

Prosecutor-General’s Ofﬁ ce.

The Prosecutor-General’s Ofﬁ ce reports to the president. It exer-

cises supreme control over the exact and uniform application of laws,

presidential decrees and other legislative acts in the country and moni-

tors the legality of search, questioning, investigation, administrative

and penal procedures.

The Prosecutor-General’s Ofﬁ ce takes measures to establish and

eliminate any violations of law, protest laws and other legislative acts

contradicting the constitutions and laws, represent state interests in

court and conduct criminal prosecution.

The state prosecution represents a single centralised system of

bodies and establishments with prosecutors at a lower level being sub-

ordinate to prosecutors at a higher level and the prosecutor-general.

The Prosecutor-General’s Ofﬁ ce carries out its duties indepen-

dently of other government bodies and ofﬁ cials, political parties

and other public associations. Involvement in the activities of the

prosecutor’s ofﬁ ces is banned.

Acts issued by the Prosecutor-General’s Ofﬁ ce are obligatory for

all bodies, organisations, ofﬁ cials and citizens.

With the aim of ensuring the supremacy of the constitution and laws

and protecting human rights and liberties of citizens, while exercis-

ing supreme control over the exact and uniform application of laws,

presidential decrees and other legislative acts, on behalf of the state

prosecutor’s ofﬁ ces: detect and take measures to eliminate violations

of the constitution, legislative acts and acts by the president; exercise

control over the legality of search, questioning, investigation, adminis-

trative and penal procedures; and represent state interests in court.

In addition, the Prosecutor-General’s Ofﬁ ce appeals against laws

and other legislative acts contradicting the constitution and laws of

Kazakhstan; has the right to conduct criminal prosecution in the order

and within the powers set by law.

Prosecutor’s ofﬁ ces compose state legal statistics to ensure the

uniformity, objectivity and sufﬁ ciency of statistical indicators, carry

out special records, and monitor the application of laws in the sphere

of legal statistics and special records.

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Chapter 2. Domestic Policy

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2.7. The Party System

Political parties play an important role in socio-political and public

life, acting as a link between society and the state. The objective of

parties is to actively take part in political life at all stages of the po-

litical process: in elections, in forming legislative branches of power

and adopting political and government decisions.

In a democratic state, competition between political parties plays

an important role. In this regard, on the one hand, the development

of the party system can be considered an indicator of democratisation

in general, and, on the other hand, one can suggest that the estab-

lishment of democratic institutions (above all, free elections) helps

parties to develop.

The Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan guarantees the

rights of parties, movements and associations, except for those whose

activities aim to change the constitutional system with force, violate

the integrity of the country, undermine the security of the state and

incite social, racial, interethnic, religious, class and tribal discord.

The state is not allowed to become involved in the business of parties

and public associations.

Generally, “the process of party construction, which from the

very beginning accompanied political transformations in Kazakhstan,

in the ﬁ rst decade of the reforms, was chaotic in nature. This was

mainly conditioned by the fact that political transformations in the

country took place in parallel with the creation of the foundations of

Kazakhstan’s statehood and the adoption of market mechanisms and

the transformation of public consciousness” [13].

Due to understandable reasons – the dissolution of the previous,

Soviet model of political system and ideology – the process of party

construction in Kazakhstan developed under the conditions of the

lack of a social base and the blurring of political platforms of most

parties. This conditioned a complicated, state-by-stage nature of party

construction in the country.

In July 1996 the country adopted the Law On Political Parties

in the Republic of Kazakhstan. In accordance with this law, in order

to prevent the possibility of a one party monopoly, the territorial

principle of forming parties was adopted and the creation of political

parties in government agencies and the establishment and activities

of militarised political parties were banned.

This law bans the creation and activities of political parties which

aim to change the constitutional system with force, violate Kazakh-

stan’s territorial integrity, undermine the state’s security and incite

social, racial, interethnic, religious, class and tribal discord.

With the aim of preventing a bond between government and party

bodies the law stipulates that civil servants are guided by requirements

of legislation when performing their duties and should not be bound

by the decisions of parties or their bodies.

On 9 February 2009 the Kazakh president signed the Consti-

tutional Law On Adopting Amendments and Addenda to the Con-

stitutional Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan On Elections in the

Republic of Kazakhstan. The law aims to create a legal mechanism

to form a parliament of at least two parties and improve the elec-

tion process. The law stipulates that if as a result of an election only

one party is elected to parliament, the next party with the second

highest vote is allowed into parliament even if it does not clear the

7% barrier.

Thus, the law regarding political parties aims to strengthen the

multiparty system in the country on democratic principles.

As for the role and signiﬁ cance of parties in Kazakhstan’s socio-

political life, we should note that mechanisms for the parties’ real

involvement in government have not yet ﬁ nally been devised. Kazakh

society has not yet fully realised the role of parties as a mechanism of

government by the people. The establishment of democratic institu-

tions and the reformation of the party system in Kazakhstan have not

yet been completed. However, we can already state that parties have

all the preconditions to become a bridge between the people and the

government, foster government thinking in the masses and express

and represent the population’s interests.

The institution of strong and large political parties with wide re-

gional networks is becoming an additional factor in the stabilisation

of society and a mechanism through which the electorate receive the

possibility of consciously inﬂ uencing government policy.

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Chapter 2. Domestic Policy

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As a result, the prospects for parties which operate within le-

gitimate boundaries in terms of their political stability and ability to

inﬂ uence are very promising and stable.

At the moment, there are ten political parties operating in Ka-

zakhstan’s political ﬁ eld, of which nine are ofﬁ cially registered. The

Alga! party remains unregistered. The following parties are ofﬁ cially

registered:

The Nur Otan People’s Democratic Party

The Nur Otan People’s Democratic Party is the most powerful

political force. The chairman of Nur Otan is President Nursultan

Nazarbayev.

The Otan

Republican Political Party was set up in January 1999

and was registered with the Ministry of Justice on 12 February 1999.

On 4 July 2006, at the ninth unscheduled congress of Otan in Astana,

the Asar Republican Party merged with Otan.

The Otan party acquired its new name at its tenth unscheduled

congress in Astana on 22 December 2006 when it united with the Civil

and Agrarian parties. As a result of their merger, it was decided to

rename the Otan Republican Political Party as the Nur Otan People’s

Democratic Party.

Nur Otan is now the largest political force in Kazakhstan, with the

ofﬁ cial number of members exceeding 700,000 people.

The party’s main goals are: to actively conduct economic and

political reforms to further democratise society; to improve the living

standards of citizens; to establish social justice and preserve stability

in the country; to strengthen interethnic and inter-religious accord; to

foster patriotism among citizens and responsibility for all-round and

harmonious development of Kazakhstan.

In the Mazhilis of the parliament of the third convocation, Nur Otan

held the majority. After the 18 August 2007 unscheduled election to the

Mazhilis, Nur Otan with 88.4% of the vote was the only party that cleared

the 7% hurdle and became the only party to sit in the Mazhilis.

The previous name of the Nur Otan People’s Democratic Party

The National Social Democratic Party

The National Social Democratic Party was set up on 10 September

2006 and was registered on 25 January 2007. The number of mem-

bers is 140,000. The chairman of the party is Zharmakhan Tuyakbai.

The party has branches in all regions of Kazakhstan and in Astana

and Almaty.

The National Social Democratic Party is a member of Socialist

International, an inﬂ uential international organisation. The party aims

to build a democratic, lawful, social sate and an innovative economy

and pursue a new humanist policy.

In the election to the Mazhilis in 2007, the party came second

with 4.5% of the vote. This result was achieved because of a merger

with the Nagyz Ak Zhol Democratic Party. However, after the defeat

in the election, the leaders of Nagyz Ak Zhol – Bolat Abilov, Oraz

Zhandosov and Tulegen Zhukeyev – announced their withdrawal

from the National Social Democratic Party.

The Azat Democratic Party

The Azat Democratic Party of Kazakhstan was set up from the

Nagyz Ak Zhol Democratic Party, which, in turn, was established on

29 April 2005 as a result of a split in the Ak Zhol Democratic Party,

and was registered on 17 March 2006.

On 23 May 2007 Nagyz Ak Zhol and the National Social Demo-

cratic Party decided to create the For a Fair Kazakhstan election bloc

to take part in the election to the Mazhilis. However, after the adoption

of the new election law which banned election blocs, Nagyz Ak Zhol

merged with the National Social Democratic Party, but preserved its

registration. The National Social Democratic Party received 4.54%

of votes in the election, but failed to get into parliament.

On 9 October 2007 Nagyz Ak Zhol split from the National

Social Democratic Party. On 29 February 2008 the party renamed

itself as the Azat Democratic Party. The structure of the party also

changed: Bolat Abilov was elected chairman instead of three co-

chairmen of the party, Tulegen Zhukeyev became secretary-general

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Chapter 2. Domestic Policy

112 113

and Marzhan Aspandiyarova and Petr Svoik became deputy chairs

of the party.

Azat positions itself as a party of the middle class. The party

aims to build a democratic, secular, lawful and social state and an

open society, to consolidate citizens’ efforts to build an independent,

prosperous, democratic and free Kazakhstan.

The party has lately been drifting towards the national-patriotic

ﬁ eld.

The Ak Zhol Democratic Party

The Ak Zhol Democratic Party of Kazakhstan was registered on

3 April 2002. Its membership exceeds 175,000 people.

In the 2004 election to the Mazhilis the party collected 12.04% of

the vote, receiving one seat. In the latest parliamentary election, the

party won 2.09% of vote and failed to clear the 7% hurdle. In local

elections, it won one seat in a district legislative body.

The election defeat forced Ak Zhol to split into two independent

parties. On 18 September 2007, the plenum of the Central Committee

of the Adilet Democratic Party discussed the results of the election to

the Mazhilis and the local elections of the Ak Zhol Democratic Party.

The plenum unanimously decided to convene the fourth unscheduled

congress of the Adilet party to discuss splitting from the Ak Zhol

party. As a result, the Adilet party will most likely re-emerge as a

political player.

It is worth noting that the leader of Ak Zhol, Alikhan Baimenov,

who was seen as a moderate opposition member, after the election

became somewhat radicalised, protesting against the election results

jointly with the leaders of the National Social Democratic Party and

the Communist People’s Party in public and in court. Nevertheless,

it is too early to talk about the consolidation of constructive and

radical opposition forces into a single party, but the possibility of

this occurring in the future should not be ruled out. The party aims

to build an independent, prosperous, democratic and free Kazakh-

stan. Its fundamental values are democracy, independence, freedom

and justice.

The Adilet Democratic Party

The Adilet Democratic Party was registered on 14 June 2004.

Its chairman is Maksut Narikbayev. The party has 70,000 members

and branches in all regions, Astana and Almaty. In the 2004 elec-

tion to the Mazhilis, Adilet received 0.76% of votes. In the Mazhilis

of the third convocation the party had one seat one in a single-seat

constituency.

The parliamentary election on 18 August 2007 made this party

realise that it would not be able to enter parliament with its limited

cadre and material resources. That is why on 8 July 2005 the ﬁ fth

congress of Adilet decided to join the Ak Zhol party.

The party’s main objective is to build a lawful, democratic and

social state in Kazakhstan, create an efﬁ cient, advanced and developed

economic system and build a civil society.

The Communist Party of Kazakshtan

The Communist Party of Kazakhstan is a successor of the Socialist

Party of Kazakhstan, set up in the early 1990s from the branch of the

Communist Party of the Soviet Union in the Kazakh SSR.

The Communist Party of Kazakhstan was registered on 27 August

1998 and underwent re-registration on 20 March 2003. Its leader is

Serikbolsyn Abdildin. The party’s membership exceeds 54,000 people,

and it has branches in all regions of the country. Party members are

chieﬂ y WWII veterans, workers and pensioners.

The party boycotted the election to the Mazhilis of the fourth

convocation.

The party’s main objectives are: to create conditions for building a

society of freedom and social justice based on the principles of scientiﬁ c

socialism in Kazakhstan and build a communist political system.

The Communist People’s Party of Kazakhstan

The Communist People’s Party of Kazakhstan was formed by sev-

eral members who split from the Communist Party of Kazakhstan in

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Chapter 2. Domestic Policy

114 115

February 2004. On 21 June 2004 the party received state registration.

Its leader is Vladislav Kosarev. The party has over 100,000 members,

mainly workers, students, representatives of the intelligentsia, pen-

sioners, and entrepreneurs. The party held no seat in the Mazhilis of

the third convocation.

It received 1.29% of the vote in the election to the Mazhilis

of the fourth convocation, but secured not a single parliamentary

seat. In local elections it managed to win 10 seats in local legis-

latures.

According to its political platform, the party’s activities are based

on the Marxist-Leninist ideology, adapted to new realities of the

development of society.

The Auyl Social Democratic Party

The Auyl Social Democratic Party was registered on 1 March

2002, and it was re-registered on 2 April 2003. The party is chaired

by Gani Kaliyev. It has over 61,000 members and branches in all the

country’s regions.

The party’s declared goals are to strengthen government regula-

tion and support to the agricultural sector and protect the interests

of farmers.

The party held no seat in the Mazhilis of the third convocation. It

won 1.51% of votes in the parliamentary election on 18 August 2007,

and claimed 31 seats in local legislatures.

The Party of Kazakhstan’s Patriots

The Party of Kazakhstan’s Patriots was registered on 4 August

2000 and re-registered on 21 March 2003. It has 172,000 members.

The leader of the party is Gani Kasymov.

It had no seat in the Mazhilis of the third convocation, and managed

to receive only 0.7% of the vote in the 18 August 2007 parliamentary

election. It received one place in local legislatures.

In late August 2007 President Nazarbayev appointed Gani Kasy-

mov senator, and this is expected to boost the party’s development.

The party’s declared aims are: to help the national revival of

Kazakhstan’s peoples, to build a democratic, lawful state and a civil

society with a market economy, to involve the socially active groups

of society in government and public affairs, to ensure the country’s

sustainable development, to improve the living standards of the

population and to prioritise people’s health.

The Rukhaniyat party

The Rukhaniyat party was registered on 6 October 2003. It has

72,000 members and branches in regions, Astana and Almaty. Its

leader is Altynshash Zhaganova.

The support base of the party is workers of the education, health-

care, science and cultural spheres, entrepreneurs and students.

The party aims to develop the economy, solve social problems and

develop a highly moral and spiritually rich society.

It was not represented in the Mazhilis of the third convocation.

In the election to the Mazhilis of the fourth convocation it received

0.37% of the vote.

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Chapter 2. Domestic Policy

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2.8. Kazakhstan Is a Multiethnic State

Kazakhstan has become home to over 130 ethnic groups. Vari-

ous reasons – historical, political, and social – helped make this the

case.

A few centuries ago the Kazakh steppe started to see people from

outside. Russian peasants who were in search of lands ended up there,

as did Cossacks who were called to protect the frontiers of the Rus-

sian Empire. In the 19

century many Uighurs and the Hui people

ﬂ ed China in search of peace and security and settled in modern-day

Kazakhstan. A great wave of Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Polish

and Bulgarian settlers with their families, junks and livestock moved

to the Kazakh steppes during the Stolypin reforms.

In the 1930-1940s Koreans, Germans, Chechens, Ingush,

Meskhetian Turks and many other ethnic groups were forcibly de-

ported to Kazakhstan. After WWII, dozens of thousands of people

from all over the former Soviet Union ﬂ ooded Kazakhstan – either

for the “great construction projects of communism” or to tame

virgin lands [14].

Kazakhstan is a multiethnic country and the basis of its political

stability is interethnic accord. Kazakhstan has created a legislative ba-

sis which is founded on civil and political commonness of all citizens

which ensures the equality of rights and liberties of citizens regardless

of their ethnic or religious origin. This principle is the foundation of

the government’s policy on ethnic minorities.

The legislative basis of Kazakhstan’s policy towards ethnic minori-

ties is a set of legislative acts, starting with the constitution, which

ban any activities that could disturb interethnic accord. Generally, the

country’s policy towards ethnic minorities is based on the supremacy

of law and the rational combination of collective rights of ethnic

groups and the individual rights of people.

Kazakhstan has created a unique and efﬁ cient mechanism to pur-

sue a policy on ethnic minorities and hold an interethnic dialogue in

form of the Assembly of Kazakhstan’s People, which was set up by

a presidential decree of 1 March 1995 as an advisory body under the

president and which later became an ofﬁ cial body.

As a result of its activities, the process of the cultural revival of

ethnic groups is under way now and the assembly ensures an all-round

dialogue between them. This experience is being studied by some of

the neighbouring countries.

A balanced policy on languages is being pursued, and Kazakhstan

is one of the few countries that have solved these problems without

serious conﬂ icts and shocks. A natural process of mastering the state

language, Kazakh, by the country’s citizens, especially by young

people, is under way. Kazakhstan’s language diversity enriches the

culture of Kazakhstan and acts as an important factor, boosting the

unity of multiethnic Kazakhstan.

Among the signiﬁ cant auxiliary measures to revive and develop

cultures of ethnic monitories are the houses of friendship that are

funded from the budget. With state support, newspapers and maga-

zines are published in 11 languages, 44 television studios broadcast

in 12 languages and 18 radio studios broadcast in seven languages.

Under state purchase orders up to 30 book titles with a total num-

ber of over 80,000 are published in minority languages every year

in Kazakhstan. The Dostyk (Friendship) socio-political magazine is

published with the editorial board involvement of all of the heads of

the country’s national cultural associations that are members of the

Council of the Assembly.

Festivals of folk arts and languages of Kazakhstan’s peoples are

held regularly, and the Day of the Unity of Kazakhstan’s People, the

Day of the Remembrance of Victims of Political Repressions and

the Day of Spiritual Unity and Accord are marked. In addition, each

ethnic group has their own traditional folk holidays that have been

revived during the years of the country’s independence and that are

marked with representatives of other ethnic minorities.

The country’s spiritual revival and inter-religious accord and toler-

ance are being ensured. Tolerance in the religious sphere, historically

inherited by the present generation of Kazakhstan, is a good basis for

preserving civil and inter-religious peace in the future.

As a result, it has been proven by deeds that multiethnicity is not

a fault but, on the contrary, an advantage to the country.

Kazakhstan today

Chapter 2. Domestic Policy

118 119

2.9. The Non-Governmental Sector

During the years of its independence Kazakhstan has managed to

conduct major political reforms that have made possible the creation

of a new political system and the development of new civil society

institutions: political parties and independent media. The non-gov-

ernmental sector is the most dynamic of them.

Non-government organisations (NGOs) operate in all socially

important spheres of life. These include issues of environmental

protection, the social sphere, education, culture, healthcare, gender

relations, human rights and so on. The number of issues NGOs deal

with is approaching 6,000.

However, at the initial stage of the development the non-govern-

mental sector was barely surviving and lived on foreign grants. At

that time Kazakhstan did not have a holistic system of interaction and

cooperation between the state and NGOs. Nor was there a legislative

basis for the operations of NGOs.

Moreover, the economic state of the country hindered signiﬁ cant

state support to this sector. However, the situation has now drastically

changed and as a result of real state support to NGOs the sector is

now a fully-ﬂ edged member of the political process.

Over the last several years, the number of ofﬁ cially registered

NGOs has increased considerably. The characteristic features that

accompany the development of the third sector in Kazakhstan are:

its noticeable activity, involvement in public life and the growing

understanding of the fact that NGOs can have an important positive

impact on the development of society in general.

The creation of the Civil Alliance of Kazakhstan in 2005 has played

a great role in strengthening the positions of NGOs in Kazakhstan.

Earlier, the full development of NGOs had been hindered by lack

of a strategy for cooperation between non-governmental organisations.

They were disunited and did not coordinate their work to solve social

problems. In addition, the situation was complicated by unhealthy

rivalry between them.

Generally, all this damaged the development of NGOs. The above-

mentioned Civil Alliance of Kazakhstan was called on to consolidate

local civil society institutions to maintain efﬁ cient cooperation with

the government. Its activities signiﬁ cantly strengthened the role of

NGOs in society.

Its involvement in the lawmaking process is also strengthening the

non-government sector. In March 2006, the Civil Alliance initiated the

creation of the chamber of Public Experts at the Kazakh parliament’s

Mazhilis. This boosted the professional level of legislative acts. In

addition, this chamber exercises public control over parliamentary

work.

A shining example of the sector’s growing role in the country’s life

is the election of the Civil Alliance president and co-chairwoman of

the Union of Women Entrepreneurs of Kazakhstan, Aigul Solovyova,

to parliament. The presence of civil society activists in power struc-

tures offers additional opportunities to establish an equal dialogue

between the authorities and civil society groups.

Another important step in boosting the non-governmental sector

in Kazakhstan was a constitutional reform, as a result of which a

ban on state funding of public associations was lifted. This will lead

to wider involvement of NGOs in the process of reforms and closer

cooperation with the state.

As a result, NGOs received a new impetus for their development

and involvement in solving socially important problems.

One of the instruments that boosted the role and importance of

NGOs in society is their participation in election processes. NGOs’

views on elections reﬂ ect the level of socio-political maturity of NGOs

themselves and the state’s readiness for democratic elections.

During the 2007 parliamentary election in Kazakhstan, public or-

ganisations carried out advert campaigns to boost voters’ participation

in the voting and monitored the course of the election. For example, in

addition to observers from the OSCE, the CIS and other international

organisations, about 8,000 activists from the national public Commit-

tee for Monitoring Elections observed the election.

Annual civil forums which represent an efﬁ cient platform for

dialogue for discussing existing problems and ﬁ nding solutions to

them based on the principles of equal partnership and cooperation

are one of the indicators of the growing signiﬁ cance of the civil sec-

Kazakhstan today

Chapter 2. Domestic Policy