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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASTANA 000724 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, SCA/PPD, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM ECON SOCI SENV KCRM KZ
SUBJECT:  KAZAKHSTAN:  LIFE ON THE STEPPE, APRIL 18-24 
 
ASTANA 00000724  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1.  This is another in a series of weekly cables drawn mostly from 
public media, as well as think-tank, NGO, and opposition web-sites, 
selected to show the diversity of life in Kazakhstan, and 
information about it available to citizens of Kazakhstan.  Our goal 
is to choose what might interest and be of use to various end-users 
in Washington and -- especially -- to provide a more complex view 
from the other side of the world, illustrating the vitality (and 
sometimes the quirkiness) of discourse available to citizens of 
Kazakhstan. 
 
OIL WORKERS' STRIKE ENDS IN SUCCESS 
 
¶2.  Oil workers in Mangistau oblast who had not been paid for 
several months had to resort first to a labor strike and then to a 
hunger strike to finally receive what was rightfully theirs.  The 
protests by 70 employees of the Second Drilling Unit of 
UzenMunaiGas, a subsidiary of the Kazakhstani national oil company 
KazMunaiGas, lasted ten days.  Initially, the drillers stopped all 
work and demanded their salaries and the resignation of the unit's 
general director, who unilaterally decided to withhold their 
salaries, ostensibly due to the ongoing financial crisis.  "Seven 
days later, when nothing happened, we announced a hunger strike," 
Zhak Aminov, one of the participants of the protests said.  The 
workers fasted in teams of three in one of the oil company's trucks, 
and at the same time turned to local representatives of the Azat 
opposition party for legal assistance.  With the help of Azat, the 
workers petitioned the management of UzenMunaiGas and local 
authorities to quickly and peacefully negotiate a settlement 
agreeable to both sides. 
 
¶3.  However, during the night of April 19, three days into the 
hunger strike, local police officers stormed the truck with the 
fasting workers and forcibly removed them.  Yet, as local and 
national media began to pick up the story, the pressure began to 
grow on local authorities to deal with the "pesky" problem.  Local 
authorities denied any excessive use of police force and claimed the 
officers had to arrest the ring leaders of an unsanctioned 
demonstration.  Soon after, however, the authorities relented and 
gave in to the workers' demands.  A decree has been signed promising 
to pay their back wages, and the director and head engineer of the 
Second Drilling Unit have been dismissed. 
 
DEATH OF POLICE CADET REVEALS WEB OF CORRUPTION AND FRAUD 
 
¶4.  The recent suicide of a young cadet attending the Pavlodar Legal 
College, a school for aspiring law enforcement officers, appears to 
have been the tip of an iceberg of corruption and fraud.  According 
to the school administration, the young man took his life because of 
love woes.  His parents and journalists from the newspaper "Vremya," 
however, tell a different story.  As the newspaper reported in 
several articles, the school, which is formally under the auspices 
of the Ministry of Justice, was run like a personal fiefdom by its 
former director, Colonel Amangazy Syzdykov.  According to an 
internal investigation by the Ministry, which was prompted by the 
first article published in "Vremya," the cadets almost literally 
could not take a step without having to bribe the school 
administration.  Permission for leave cost 1,500-2,000 tenge 
($10-13), passing an exam cost 10,000-15,000 tenge ($66-100), and 
permission to depart on vacation was 7,500-15,000 tenge ($50-$100). 
As it turned out, the young cadet committed suicide in December last 
year not for love but for money, or rather lack thereof.  The 
student reportedly had to pay 15,000 tenge for an examination in 
July 2008, and then another 11,000 tenge ($73).  However, having no 
money, he borrowed the sum from his fellow students promising to pay 
them back when he returned from vacation.  When his parents were 
unable to give him the money, the cadet decided that his situation 
was hopeless and killed himself. 
 
¶5.  This was not all that the investigation found -- or rather did 
not find.  According to "Vremya," the investigators found no test or 
exam records for the period of 2004-08, meaning that in the time 
period the students of the Pavlodar Legal College did not take a 
single examination.  Moreover, during Syzdykov's tenure, the 
school's payroll listed a number of "dead souls" -- people who were 
receiving salary without actually working.  One instructor who 
travelled overseas when he was supposed to be teaching in Pavlodar 
was actually promoted to major.  Colonel Syzdykov himself continues 
to have a successful career.  Following his tenure at the Pavlodar 
 
ASTANA 00000724  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
Legal College, he was appointed head of the Penitentiary System 
Committee of Pavlodar oblast.  It remains to be seen whether the 
"Vremya" expose and an internal investigation into Syzdykov's "rule" 
at the Pavlodar Legal College will finally catch up with Syzdykov. 
 
RICH BANNED FROM SPECIAL MARKET FOR LOW-INCOME RESIDENTS 
 
¶6.  Last month, the city of Pavlodar opened up a special market to 
serve low-income residents.  Weeks after opening, however, the 
authorities had to restrict access to it since the cheap prices 
attracted not only the destitute, but also wealthy bargain-hunters. 
According to the local media, Pavlodar's rich quickly became 
regulars at the "Shapagat" market and, arriving in SUVs and 
government-owned cars, were frequently seen leaving with bulging 
shopping bags.  Clearly, everyone loves a bargain, even in 
Kazakhstan.  However, soon goods meant for Pavlodar's invalids, 
pensioners, and other needy people began disappearing from shelves 
before those people actually had a chance to buy them.  Local 
authorities ultimately had to step in and restrict the 
bargain-shopping to those who truly need it.  The "Shapagat" market 
is partially subsidized by the city administration in that its 
vendors do not have to pay rent.  This allows store owners to keep 
prices on average 10 percent lower than anywhere else in the city. 
 
KAZAKHSTANIS ASPIRE TO "CONQUER THE WORLD" WITH KUMYS 
 
¶7.  Kazakhstan has big plans for kumys, the national drink made from 
fermented mare's milk.  According to Minister of Industry and Trade 
Vladimir Shkolnik, the country plans to increase production of the 
drink and export it beyond Kazakhstan's borders.  "Considering the 
fact that kumys is a Kazakhstani national product that could become 
the country's trademark, we cannot remain in the role of a spectator 
as other countries like Russia, Germany and France slowly fill this 
export niche," said Shkolnik.  Kazakhstan's kumys producers will 
reportedly need government support to acquire new technologies for 
production and preservation and expanded horse ranching. 
Traditional kumys, which is mildly alcoholic (with about 2% of 
average alcohol content), can be stored for only up to three days, 
and its production is limited to the milking period of mares. 
Recently, however, a method of producing pasteurized kumys was 
developed allowing year-round export.  Kumys is often described as 
an "acquired taste" among non-Central Asians, but has been praised 
in Russia for its purported medicinal qualities. 
 
HOAGLAND