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RUEHAST/USOFFICE ALMATY 1569

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASTANA 000929 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL ECON SOCI KIRF KDEM KZ
SUBJECT:  KAZAKHSTAN:  ALMATY NOTES, MAY 11 - 22 
 
ASTANA 00000929  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (U) Sensitive but unclassified.  Not for public Internet. 
 
¶2. (U) The "Almaty Notes" series from U.S. Office Almaty focuses on 
developments in civil society, the media, and the political 
opposition in Kazakhstan's "southern capital." 
 
TRIAL OF OPPOSITION LEADERS ENDS 
 
¶3. (U) The trial of opposition leaders Bulat Abilov, Asylbek 
Kozhakhmetov and Tolen Tokhtasynov came to an end on May 22.  The 
procurator asked the judge to find the opposition leaders guilty of 
concealing a serious crime.  (NOTE:  The opposition leaders had 
signed letters supporting an asylum request made in Ukraine by 
Yesentay Baysakov, a Kazakhstani citizen previously involved with 
the opposition, who turned out to be a suspect in a murder.  END 
NOTE.)  At the same time, the procurator asked the judge not impose 
any punishment because the statute of limitations had expired in 
April.  The judge satisfied these requests in his May 22 verdict. 
 
¶4. (U) Civil society leader Yevgeniy Zhovtis, who served as defense 
attorney for the opposition leaders, described the judge's ruling as 
"controversial."  He said it was not clear if the guilty verdict 
would nevertheless have legal consequences for the opposition 
leaders (such as barring them from participating in future 
elections).  In any event, they plan to lodge an appeal. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Abilov's deputy, Peter Svoik, told us on May 20 that the 
case was designed to target another opposition leader, Galymzhan 
Zhakiyanov.  According to Svoik, the authorities had hoped to lure 
Baysakov and his brother back from Ukraine and get them to testify 
against Zhakiyanov in the murder case.  However, the Baysakovs did 
not return to Kazakhstan and Svoik believes they are unlikely to do 
so.  In addition, Abilov refused to testify against the Baysakovs. 
Now the authorities have no option but to quietly let the case 
against the opposition figures drop, Svoik claimed. 
 
CAMPAIGN FOR A FREE INTERNET 
 
¶6. (U) On May 15, an activist from the Campaign For A Free Internet, 
Irina Mednikova, was warned by an Almaty procurator not to organize 
a "flash mob" -- a form of protest which has become increasingly 
common in Almaty.  However, she ignored the warning, and on May 16, 
approximately 30 youth activists from the Campaign For A Free 
Internet assembled in Arbat square in Almaty to protest against a 
draft law on the Internet which was recently sent to the Senate. 
The activists told passers-by that the new law would limit access to 
the Internet in Kazakhstan.  Police watched the protest, but did not 
interfere.  No one was detained. 
 
NEW MASS MOVEMENT 
 
¶7. (U) On May 13, the Leave the Houses to the People organization 
held a press conference to announce that it is starting a new mass 
movement, "Kazakhstan - 2012."  The movement will unite individuals 
with burdensome mortgages and "dolshiki" (i.e., people who lost 
savings they invested into the construction of housing that has not 
been completed).  According to the leaders of the new movement -- a 
group which includes noted activist Aynur Kurmanov -- its 
coordination committee alone includes more than 5,000 people.  The 
slogan of the new movement is, "Change Your Policy, or We Will 
Change (Replace) You."  One participant in the new movement, Akhmet 
Askharov, said, "We firmly state that we will not support the 
current regime in the next elections, and that is why we called our 
movement 'Kazakhstan - 2012.'" 
 
TRADE UNION ROUND TABLE 
 
¶8. (U) On May 16 in Almaty, leaders of several independent trade 
unions, together with NGO activists, held a round table on "Problems 
of the Consolidation of Trade Unions in Kazakhstan."  It was the 
first event of its kind during the past decade.  Participants 
included Pavel Shumkin of the Independent Trade Union of Miners, 
Ivan Bulgakov of the Eastern Kazakhstan Copper Industry Trade Union, 
Daniyar Besbayev of the Oil Industry Workers Trade Union, Sergey 
Belkin of the Confederation of Free Trade Unions, and 
representatives of Aynur Kurmanov's Socialist Resistance movement. 
Many participants argued that the current economic crisis has 
 
ASTANA 00000929  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
created favorable conditions for reviving the organized labor 
movement.  The pro-government Federation of Trade Unions of 
Kazakhstan refused to attend the round table. 
 
UNIFICATION CHURCH UNDER INVESTIGATION 
 
¶9. (SBU) On May 12, an Almaty procurator ordered authorities tojyaQNQguilty 
verdict against Drenicheva, but vacated the prison term.  During a 
meeting with us on May 21, Unification Church leaders Konstantin 
Krylov and Tatyana Andrushchenko expressed serious concern about the 
investigation. 
 
MILAS