All Over the Globe

Nazarbayev is Condemned as a Nationalist

National-Bolsheviks Preparing Another Protest Demonstration at the Kazakhstani Embassy in Moscow

Askar DARIMBET

ALMATY, March 20

(THE GLOBE)

THE GLOBE has learned from reliable sources that on March 21 at 12 a.m. the National-Bolshevik Party (NBP) will hold a meeting outside the Kazakhstani embassy in Moscow. According to the party's leader Eduard Limonov, �the meeting is authorised by the authorities and will speak out against the conditions of both the Russian-speaking and Kazakh populations in Kazakhstan, against the tyranny and infringement of legal standards in the case of "the Kazimirchuk group � (note that the latter is being investigated concerning the recent events in Ust-Kamenogorsk). About 100 people are expected to participate in the meeting.

Last Saturday an similar protest was held by ultra-left radicals was held in Moscow. This culminated in an attack on the Kazakhstani embassy there. Three young men � Stanislav Dyakonov, Alexander Averin and Michael Belenky set fire to bottles with kerosene and threw them at the embassy building. However, the bottles did not explode. In the result, two windows were broken and the building facade was damaged. In the building neighbouring the embassy policemen found a note stating simply: �Nazarbayev is condemned. NBP.�

All three participants in the attack have been arrested and are now being kept in one of Moscow's investigation isolation wards whilst the incident is investigated. The Moscow Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) said to THE GLOBE that, according to early information, one of them was suspected of committing similar crimes at the Polish embassy. At present a criminal case has been filed against the arrested men, according to the article 213 (part 1 � �Hooliganism�) of Russia's Criminal Code. The DIA Press Service Director said of the next meeting to be held on March 21, that he "had heard nothing of the NBP being authorised to stage the meeting.�

Mr. Limonov, famous for scandalous announcements, said in his interview to THE GLOBE that Saturday's proceedings �had in no way been ordered by the party, although the National-Bolshevik Party does agree with activists' activities.� As far as the note was concerned, he said that �history is against Nazarbayev: it has never been possible to govern a huge state using mediaeval means. The one family government will not last for a long, and then we believe that Nazarbayev should be tried for crimes against humanity.�

Mr. Limonov expressed his anxiety, as the arrested men could be sent to Butyrka. This would be �unforgivable�, according to him. But in answer to the question of �What do you propose to do?�, the main national-Bolshevik said only the following: �We have a Criminal Code, and that is why I cannot say openly what we will do exactly. We will take all possible measures to help our comrades, and we will try to increase public awareness. This problem should attract attention, that is what we are striving for.�

The press attach� of the Kazakhstani embassy, Vyacheslav Kovalyov, who spoke to THE GLOBE, did not comment on the situation, but said that the embassy did not have authority from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) to comment on recent events. However, the MFA has provided an official response.

The Ministry press secretary, Amangeldy Tazhenov, emphasised that Kazakhstan considered Saturday's events as vandalism in respect to the embassy, and that they had therefore sent word to the Russian Foreign Ministry. The letter contained demands that the situation be clarified and the guilty punished. The Ministry also sent letters to the appropriate sections of Moscow's administration, asking them to increase the guard. The MFA spokesman said that the incident should not change the friendly level of relations between Russia and Kazakhstan.

The Ministry representative also stated that during the incident an embassy officer was injured.

�We expect Russia to inform us of all measures taken to strengthen security and to avoid similar incidents in future,�

In reply to Limonov's statement that the NBP was close in spirit to the three activists, the MFA representative stated �that it was on his conscience but that the most important thing was that the event be considered from the point of view of bilateral relations.� The MFA is unable to say whether the NBP' s meeting was authorised.

The Moscow Central Prefecture is responsible for giving authorisation for such meetings, although THE GLOBE failed to get in touch with it. As a result, the nature of the coming protest remains unclear.

It is not understood why nationalist-Bolsheviks who actively protect rights of the Russian population mainly in the Ukraine and Latvia, suddenly chose Kazakhstan. This event also comes at a crucial time in Russia, only a few days before the presidential election.

A statement made by Eduard Limonov in an interview to the APN (Agency of Political News) further deepens the intrigue surrounding next weeks gathering. He said that his party considered Akezhan Kazhegeldin to be an appropriate candidate for the President of Kazakhstan, for the Russians. In Limonov's opinion, the former Prime Minister unlike Nursultan Nazarbayev is able to lead Kazakhstan through international reconciliation and through stopping anti-Russian discrimination.

THE GLOBE will follow any further developments.