Gulbanu ABENOVA
VIENNA � Almaty, Jan 20
(THE GLOBE)
The last year was not only successful for the OSCE, the new OSCE chairman-in-office Wolfgang Schussel said on January 13 at the first meeting of the Permanent Council in Vienna.
Wolfgang Schussel emphasized that though some analysts consider the OSCE failed in Chechnya and Kosovo, this could not be avoided, we should be realists. Whatever standards are determined jointly by OSCE states, it is not the OSCE that takes decisions to wage the war or to live in peace.
According to the Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs of Austria, security remains threatened by armies, soldiers, weapons and acts of military aggression. In majority of cases, however, crises are not so much acts of aggression between states as the effect of an �uncivil� society characterized by shortage and misery, serious violations of human and minority rights, organized crime and environmental disasters. The success of the OSCE�s activity can be measured in the practical and often unspectacular improvements in the security of the people in our countries. In striving for this success the OSCE must often prove itself to be as insistent and creative as many NGOs and as dogged and preserving as other diplomatic bodies and organizations. The news OSCE chairman said that in the end of the Austrian Chairmanship they hoped to achieve the following goals: significant progress in the return of 7.5 million refugees and internally displaced persons in the OSCE area, including 2.5 million in the former Yugoslavia, Bosnia, Kosovo and other parts of the former Yugoslav territory. The parliamentary elections in Croatia give cause for optimism in this respect; a functioning Stability Pact for the Balkans that will give hope and orientation to the entire region; political, and not military solutions of the conflicts in the Caucasus, the organization of free and fair elections in Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
�These are ambitious aims for an organization that was recently described as being �efficient in the background, powerless in the foreground.� As one of the 54 participating states, we shall work towards these objectives: if we can say in the end of 2000 that there are fewer trouble spots than in the beginning of the year, we shall have made enormous progress,� Schussel said.
The OSCE chairman touched different spots of the OSCE region, especially the south-east region, which is the acid test for Europe. As far as Central Asia is concerned, the chairman said they must focus greater attention on the situation in this region. Terrorism and violent extremism, organized crime, illegal arms and drug trafficking and economic and environmental problems endanger the stability of the entire region. These problems cannot be effectively resolved at a national level alone.
In conclusion the Austrian Minister said that the idea of the OSCE is fascinating because it brings together more than fifty states, which have emerged from the shadow that has shaped the relations between states for centuries. This shadow was the principle of non-intervention in internal affairs. The OSCE intervenes successfully every day in so-called �internal affairs� of states. Today�s conflicts and crises call for international solidarity. The OSCE promotes international solidarity with a view to strengthening democracy and the rule of law.
THE GLOBE has been publishing the weekly monitor of the Radio Azattyk � the Kazakh Service of Radio Liberty. This radio often broadcasts acute, interesting programs covering a wide range of different problems. In our opinion, the approach to some topics is disputable. We mean the one-sided approach to some events.
Recently Azattyk radio broadcast the material regarding US$ 400,000, which the Kazakhstani party paid to Washington Times newspaper for the PR-appendix (THE GLOBE #1(419), 11.01.2000). Radio Liberty states that President Nazarbaev was presented there as the stronghold of democracy, but it is presented so as if the whole appendix was devoted to him. Further they openly said that the newspaper took a bribe from Nazarbaev. It seems that they try to make the audience dislike the deal.
Meanwhile, this practice is known all over the world. as far as we remember, during the Investment Summit in 1999 Almaty Herald newspaper also published materials ordered by participants of the Forum. And that was considered normal. It is known that Kazakhstan�s businessmen collected the required amount for Washington Times. Radio Liberty did not mention this fact, speaking of some vague �Kazakhstani party�. According to our information, the appendix presented the entire Kazakhstan, but not only its President.
This one-sidedness was emphasized in THE GLOBE�s comments on the material of the Kazakh Service of Radio Liberty devoted to the arrest of the former guards of Kazhegeldin (THE GLOBE #100(418), 28.12.99). The author presented the material, expressing the opinion of the Republican People�s Party of Kazakhstan. We doubted in some extracts from the RPPK announcement.
Often materials of Azattyk deal with the name of Kazhegeldin and his party, RPPK. Kazhegeldin is presented as the leader of the opposition, though once he was the second person in the country, but this is ignored at all. At least during the period of existence of the rubric �Liberty in Kazakh� in the radio Azattyk, they only appreciated the former Prime Minister, but never seriously criticized him. Though, it seems to us that the name of the Radio means the different approach.
In the early 1990s it was prohibited to illuminate the President�s activity in the negative light. Today many independent and opposition editions, especially supervised by RPPK, do this. The Reader could notice that Azattyk radio broadcasts materials criticizing Nazarbaev almost twice a week.
The last above-mentioned critical material criticizes the President in an ugly way and resembles to the effort to cause a scandal, though there is no, in fact. Why does Radio Liberty criticize Nazarbaev so, and why materials on the RPPK leader and his party seem so one-sided? We cannot ascertain anything, but consider it necessary to ask these questions. We offer the Reader to answer to these questions himself.
Kuanysh ZHUMANGAZINOV
ALMATY, Jan 18
(THE GLOBE)
�International conventions against tortures and other types of brutality are not observed in Kazakhstan. The law-reinforcement organizations violate rights and freedoms of the population, while the President does not fulfill his constitutional responsibilities,� the Republican People�s Party of Kazakhstan (RPPK) activist Baurzhan Dzharylkapov announced on Tuesday, January 18, in Almaty.
According to Dzharylkapov, facts of mass violations of the human rights that happened in our country during the sovereign period prove that Nursultan Nazarbaev infringes the oath to the Kazakhstani people and does not fulfill his duty.
The Kazakhstani General Prosecutor Yuryi Hitrin�s words published by the press confirmed examples given by Dzharylkapov. Having considered the Prosecutor�s statement, he concluded that the KNB menaces democracy in Kazakhstan.
According to Dzharylkapov, in respect to the guards of the former Prime Minister Akezhan Kazhegeldin arrested in December, they use tortures and illegal methods of investigation. By the authorities� order, criminals beat Satzhan Ibraev, and illegal investigating methods are applied to in respect to Pyotr Afanasenko. He said that the KNB chairman Rakhat Aliev takes an active part in the investigation and he suspects that President Nazarbaev approves such tortures.
Hence, in his opinion, it is necessary to appeal to parliamentarians of both Houses with two offers. First, to establish a special Parliamentary commission to investigate facts of President�s non-fulfillment of his constitutional duty. Second, to reconsider articles of the national budget and to reduce financing of the KNB by 30% to narrow the number of infringements of the constitutional rights of the population. The economized money he offers to direct to social requirements of pensioners and other poor strata of the population.
The RPPK activist also proposed to announce 2000 the year of political struggle of Kazakhstani people against tortures and other methods insulting human dignity. He called to demand from the authorities to sign and ratify all international treaties and conventions of UNO and OSCE that promote respect and observation of human rights.
THE GLOBE asked Azat Amirgaliev, the representative of the press service of the KNB department in Almaty and Almaty oblast to comment on Baurzhan Dzharylkapov statements concerning the KNB.
Amirgaliev replied that the KNB press service did not comment on such statements.
Askar DARIMBET
ALMATY, Jan 19
(THE GLOBE)
�I want to attract society�s attention to the very dangerous trend, that might be called the political supervision over the people�s activity, and first of all of the public unions,� the director of the Bureau on Human Rights announced on Wednesday, January 19, in Almaty.
The Yevgeny Zhovtis� meeting with journalists was caused by the incident with the Republican Party happened in December 1999. That time an officer from the Department on Links with the public unions of the City Department of Internal Affairs came to the meeting of the RPPK Central Council. In response to the demand to leave the hall, he instituted a claim against the chairman Gabdullin. He explained the claim, as the latter prevented the state organization from legal activity.
We remind you that departments on links with the public unions subordinate to the Departments of the Internal Affairs were created in 1993, according to the order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Their objective is to establish connection with unions and to prevent possible infringements by the unions.
�Step by step these departments were getting similar to the political police. In the world these structures are supposed to prevent violations, and to keep stability. But it is questionable, how legal these actions are,� Zhovtis emphasized.
Officers of the departments in their claim referred to the order of the deputy of the Minister of Internal Affairs issued in 1997. That order authorized officers of the above-mentioned departments to be present at meetings of public organizations. They also referred to the explanation by the deputy of the Minister of Justice that these actions of the officers were legal.
�First of all, according to their logic, they have the right to be present at any meeting anywhere. Referring to the documents, officers consider their behavior legal. If we suppose, their heads may obliged them to be present at meetings, it is impossible to oblige anybody to invite and to permit them to be present, and moreover � to speak when they are present, by the order,� the director of the Bureau stated.
In his opinion, the actions of the representatives of the law-reinforcement organizations are an illegal interference into the activity of the public organization, as the Kazakhstani legislation accurately stipulates when it is possible to come into the house or office. That is the sanction of the Prosecutor or the order of the heads, if there is a significant evidence, that either people are making or preparing a crime there or an officer of the Internal Ministry pursues a criminal.
�The above-mentioned order is not a normative document at all. The Kazakhstani legislation does not authorize the Ministry of Justice to interpret laws officially. Besides, yesterday I learnt that the explanation by the deputy of the Minister Daulbaev had been withdrawn in the last year,� he said.
Zhovtis also supposed how law-enforcement organizations learn about the meeting, if they neither receive an invitation nor the press informs of the meeting. He considers there could be only two variants: either a secrete officer or telephonic talks are intercepted.
�Taking into consideration the explanation, that officers act within the law on the investigation activity and on the Internal Departments, when they prevent crimes, the next step might be the authorization of the tax police to be present at meetings of the banks� Boards of Directors to investigate if they plan to avoid taxes and to oblige them to say openly what they are going to do,� Yevgeny Zhovtis said.
Zhovtis added that the open political supervision and investigation are signs of the police state.
�We have notified all international organizations and the society of the situation and we are going to take counter-measures. We will lay a case against the mayor Lednev in connection with the illegal interference in the affairs of the public organization by the same article 188 of the Administrative Code. At the trial I will make a speech as a public defender or a proxy of the accused. If they do not allow me that, I will be an observer. We think that the interrelations between the organizations and public unions should be, but everything is to be within the legislation. This should not violate rights and freedoms of people,� he concluded.
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