Stories about Kazakhstan
In Kazakhstan, the truth about the 2022 deadly protests is still suppressed
For a year and a half, the authorities have not released a complete list of the victims, along with the circumstances of their death.
Central Asian states lead the way in the repatriation of foreign terrorist fighters’ families from Syria and Iraq
The cases of Central Asian countries can serve as a study model, and have many good practices to share with the international community.
Bloggers in Kazakhstan receive prison sentences for advertising pyramid schemes
Their cases are meant to be a lesson for other bloggers who influence public opinion.
Ashes on their foreheads: Forest fires in Kazakhstan expose pervasive corruption and government’s fake promises
Over the past three years alone, four large forest fires have occurred in the north and east of Kazakhstan, causing the destruction of more than 100,000 hectares of forests.
Central Asian leaders sigh with relief as Erdoğan wins presidential elections in Turkey
After a cooling off in the relations in the 1990s and early 2000s, the blossoming of cooperation between Turkey and Central Asia has come under Erdoğan’s rule.
Kazakhstan is still haunted by Soviet-era political repression and famine
Kazakhstan is still grappling with the past tragedies and processing its national trauma.
Fake accounts and presidential elections in Kazakhstan
The ruling leadership in Kazakhstan is aware of the importance of capturing the hearts and minds of internet users, spreading disinformation and using artificial automated accounts to imitate enthusiastic support for the government.
‘Central Asian literature exists regionally only in Russian': Interview with Russophone Uyghur writer Ramil Niyazov-Adyldzhyan
While the majority of Uyghur people live in China, a large Uyghur diaspora lives in Central Asia, including in Kazakhstan, where they are freer to express themselves.
The stories of Koreans in Kyrgyzstan who converted to Islam
Their conversion is partly the result of the re-Islamization of Kyrgyzstan, which started in 1991, after Kyrgyzstan gained independence.
Unfreedom Monitor Report: Kazakhstan
Advox research into digital authoritarianism in Kazakhstan is now in a report. Read an excerpt and download the full pdf.
Central Asian leaders display loyalty to Kremlin at the military parade in Moscow
Russia’s allies in Central Asia are in a delicate position. They have to maintain neutrality while being pressured by Russia, who is leveraging the region’s political, security, and economic reliance.
In Kazakhstan, political dissidents accused of spreading disinformation
These incidents show how the Kazakh government does not hesitate to abuse its own laws, purportedly enacted to safeguard citizens, for its own ends to repress dissent and maintain control of the narrative.
Why are oil workers protesting in Kazakhstan?
The workers are depicted as privileged, earning exponentially more than average citizens. The reasons for their dissatisfaction, however, are structural.
At home, in a presidential palace, and a mosque: Where Central Asian presidents hosted iftar in 2023
Where they are held, who attends them, and what words are spoken at these events can help better understand Central Asia and its people.
Hopes for democracy in Kazakhstan fade further as numerous violations mar parliamentary elections
The ‘New Kazakhstan’ vision that aspires to bring fair and competitive elections is yet to be implemented.
Central Asians fighting in Ukraine are both defending and attacking it
The authorities in Central Asia have issued stern warnings to their citizens not to fight in Ukraine, threatening lengthy prison sentences for participating in armed conflicts abroad as mercenaries.
Surviving economic hardships through Kazakhstan's ‘toi business’
The thriving toi business is a prism through which it is possible to read the complexities of the present, namely chronic unemployment, underdeveloped infrastructure, and strategies of survival under capitalism.
Against journalists, violence without borders in Kazakhstan
In 2022, dozens of journalists were detained or summoned by the police. And while most of these instances occurred during Qandy Qantar, in some cases they seem specifically targeted.
Will a yurt in Ukraine cause a diplomatic row between Kazakhstan and Russia?
Kazakh yurts offering humanitarian help are popping up in Ukraine. Perceiving this as official support of Kyiv, Moscow is reacting by putting pressure on the Kazakh authorities.
Documentary about the 1920s Volga famine is prohibited in Russia but broadcasted on YouTube
A Russian documentary covering the 1921–1923 famine in the Volga region is banned by the Russian government for unclear reasons, but made available online on YouTube.
What did the outside world in the 1930s know about the Soviet famine and the ‘Holodomor’ in Ukraine?
Many Ukrainians used social networks to raise awareness of the 1932-1933 Soviet famine as they see the ongoing Russian aggression against their country as a continuation of the same imperial repression.