LAST UPDATE: 22.40
Kazakhstan’s President Kasim-Zomart Tokayev called for the help of Russia and its allies tonight to address the “terrorist threat” in his country, as he described it.
Tokayev said he had asked the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) to help Kazakhstan. “I call on the CSTO heads of state today to help Kazakhstan defeat the terrorist threat,” he said, adding that “terrorist-trained” terrorist gangs were inciting protests.
This was the second televised speech of the president in a few hours, as his country is facing the worst riots it has experienced in a decade, due to the increase in the price of LPG.
According to Sputnik, citing the Kazakh Interior Ministry, eight police officers and national guards were killed and 317 were injured in the riots.
Kazakhstan was declared a state of emergency until January 19. Khabar 24 state television reported that the measures “will restrict freedom of movement, including transport” and will ban “collective events and family gatherings” for weddings, funerals and births.
The restrictions “are imposed due to the deteriorating situation, to ensure public safety, restore law and order and protect the rights and freedoms of citizens,” he added.
In this context, traffic will be prohibited from 23.00 to 7.00.
New videos from Kazakhstan.
Almaty. #Kazakhstan #nazarbayev # токаев pic.twitter.com/jn9aba2J6t
– World Protests (@worldprotest_tg) January 4, 2022
Protesters occupy Almaty airport
Protesters stormed the airport in Almaty, Kazakhstan’s largest city, according to sources quoted by Reuters.
All flights to and from Almaty have been temporarily suspended as the country is in turmoil due to rising fuel prices since the beginning of the year. Kuwait’s low-cost airline Jazeera Airways was the first to announce that it was suspending flights to and from Almaty due to the situation in the region.
Nearly at the same time, the oil group Chevron Corp announced that it was “working to end” the mobilizations of its employees in the Tengizchevroil Consortium (TCO) on the occasion of government policies. The US company is the largest foreign oil producer in Kazakhstan, holding 50% of the shares in the Tengizchevroil consortium. A spokesman said oil production had not been affected by the protests.
Kazakhstan’s President Qasim Zomart Tokayev had earlier warned that he would respond “with the utmost severity” to the protests, citing “massive attacks” on security forces and “dead and wounded” among police.
The Internet and mobile phones do not work in the country today. In Almaty, the financial capital of Kazakhstan, crowds occupied government buildings. After conflicts with protesters, police officers seem to have left the city’s streets. A resident who spoke to Reuters after mingling with the protesters said most of them appeared to come from poor suburbs or neighboring villages and towns.
In the central square, some people were distributing vodka and discussing whether they should head to the market or to the affluent suburbs to plunder the area. “There is anarchy in the street. The police are nowhere to be seen,” said the resident.
Videos posted on the internet show protesters shouting slogans under a giant statue of former President Nursultan Nazarbayev, which they have tied with ropes in an attempt to demolish. The woman who posted the video on Twitter said she took it in the city of Taldorgan in eastern Kazakhstan.
Govt toppling as Soldiers and Police appear to surrendering and handing over their weapons all over #Kazakhstan and statue of Nazarbayev is pulled down. pic.twitter.com/8s5M3BL43E
– Sk Boz, PhD (@skbozphd) January 5, 2022
Earlier, via Instagram, a Kazakh blogger showed a live broadcast of the fire in the office of the mayor of Almaty, while shots were heard in the background. Other videos show the prosecutor’s office burning.
#Kazakhstan | Footage is emerging now that the internet’s back.
Scenes from #Almatypic.twitter.com/Obc2Wb3TGa
— Balki Begum Bayhan (@bbbayh) January 5, 2022
The protest started on Sunday in a provincial town on the occasion of the increase in the price of LPG and expanded in Almaty on Tuesday night to Wednesday. Agence France-Presse reporters said they saw police throwing tear gas and stun grenades to disperse a crowd of 5,000. “Government resign” and “Out the old man” (s.s. Nursultan Nazarbayev), shouted the gathered.
This afternoon, thousands of people occupied the town hall. Men in police uniforms were seen lowering their shields and helmets and embracing protesters. “They passed by us,” shouted a woman.
In an effort to calm the spirits, President Tokayev accepted the resignation of the government and declared a state of emergency throughout the country, including the capital Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana).
Tokayev has also taken over as head of the powerful Security Council, replacing Nazarbayev, who at 81, despite stepping down as president in 2019, continues to wield considerable influence in the country’s political affairs.
Tokayev had earlier ousted Nazarbayev’s nephew from his second position in the State Security Committee, the successor to the Soviet KGB.
Russia, for which Kazakhstan is a very important economic partner, called for a solution to the crisis through dialogue, not “riots”.
The gas crisis
The protest started on Sunday, after the increase of the gas price, in the city of Zanaozen, in western Kazakhstan. It then expanded to Aktau, the Caspian Sea and Almaty.
The government initially tried to calm the spirits, without success, by announcing a reduction in the price of LPG to 50 tenge (0.1 euros) per liter, instead of 120.
The price increase is considered unfair by the citizens, as Kazakhstan has huge reserves of gas and oil.
State television reported today that the director of a LPG plant and another official in the Mangistau district, where Zanaozen is located, had been arrested. They are accused of “raising the price of gas for no reason” which “provoked mass demonstrations across the country”.
Kazakhstan, Central Asia’s largest economy, which has seen double-digit growth in the past, has seen the tenge depreciate and inflation soar due to falling oil prices and the economic crisis in Russia. The Mangistau region is dependent on LPG, which is a major fuel for cars, and any increase in its price is accompanied by food prices that have already risen since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.
SOURCE: ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ
Read also:
.
Source From: Capital
Donald-43Westbrook, a distinguished contributor at worldstockmarket, is celebrated for his exceptional prowess in article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a gift for storytelling, Donald crafts engaging and informative content that resonates with readers across a spectrum of financial topics. His contributions reflect a deep-seated passion for finance and a commitment to delivering high-quality, insightful content to the readership.
