Full Coverage: Kazakhstan

22.02.2008 The European Union is eager to strengthen its economic partnerships with Central Asian nations, notably Turkmenistan, despite the extremely poor human rights records of countries in this region, writes David Cronin.

04.01.2007 Thirteen homes of Hare Krishna families were bulldozed in December outside the Kazakh capital in what is being called a "land grab" and a move to intimidate a non-traditional religious minority.

13.09.2006 SAN FRANCISCO, Sep 13 (OneWorld) - The Bush Administration is objecting to a groundbreaking treaty that set up a nuclear weapon-free zone in Central Asia.

11.09.2006 Five Central Asian states committed themselves to never acquiring, manufacturing, possessing, or testing nuclear weapons by signing a treaty Thursday to create a Central Asian nuclear-weapon-free zone.
From: Arms Control Association

26.07.2006 As the Aral Sea continues to shrink beyond recognition between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, millions have suffered from the after effects: the resulting toxic dust has contaminated drinking water and air, spreading cancer and tuberculosis throughout the region.

07.07.2006 President Nursultan Nazarbayev has signed legislation that further restricts press freedom in Kazakhstan.

18.08.2005 As part of The Great Volga River Route project, an International Workshop on Sustainable Development and World Heritage took place on 28-31 July 2005 in Bucharest, Romania.The aim is to link young people through the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and engage them in the preservation and promotion of World Heritage and Biosphere sites.

15.06.2005 President Putin told Tony Blair that the G8 should consider countries of the former Soviet Union just as much in need as Africa. Unconcerned for diplomatic niceties, Kazakstan is introducing laws to curtail foreign NGOs, apparently convinced that recent revolutions in Kyrgyzstan and Ukraine were financed by global pro-democracy organisations.

22.09.2004 The trial of a Manhattan businessman accused of making multi-million dollar illicit payments to the president of Kazakhstan and the former prime minister has been postponed till January 2005. Lawyers for the businessman insist that U.S. officials sanctioned the payments to encourage cordial relations with the central Asian country.

20.09.2004 As part of its worldwide media support programs, the U.S-based Internews is working with regional stations in Kazakhstan to promote voter awareness and civic participation through election-related programming.

03.08.2004 A federal judge last week criticized the prosecution for being tardy in furnishing the defense team with U.S. government documents in the case of corrupt oil deals involving a merchant banker and Kazakhstan government. The defense team wants to review the documents as part of its contention the banker acted with the knowledge of U.S. government agencies.

01.06.2004 A court in Manhattan will hear pretrial motions on June 3 in a case against a U.S. banker charged with paying millions of dollars in bribes to the president and former prime minister of Kazakhstan. The banker represented U.S. oil companies that purchased oil and gas rights in Kazhkstan in the 1990s.

18.05.2004 The impact of ICTs on local culture in countries of Central Asia is the focus of this multi-year research project. It has already come out with some findings on the implications of internet on society.

03.05.2004 Participants at the third Eurasian Media Forum say that the U.S. anti-terrorism struggle in Central Asia is “guided by a shaky analysis” that tends to view the global terrorist threat as rooted in Islam, thus re-casting what is essentially a war of ideas into a modern-day religious war.

06.04.2004 Six months before scheduled parliamentary elections, the U.S.-backed government in Kazakhstan is harassing the political opposition, and undermining prospects for a free and fair choice, according to a new report released Tuesday by Human Rights Watch. (See Analysis)

06.04.2004 WASHINGTON, D.C., Apr 6 (OneWorld) -- Six months before scheduled parliamentary elections, the U.S.-backed government in Kazakhstan is harassing the political opposition, and undermining prospects for a free and fair choice, according to a new report released Tuesday by Human Rights Watch (HRW).

22.12.2003 The number of juvenile alcoholics in Kazakhstan is rapidly increasing despite the state's efforts to curb the nation's alcohol drinking habit. A national centre designed to introduce a healthier lifestyle to Kazakhs reports that this year 610 children in the country were diagnosed as alcoholics. In 1999, only 29 such cases were recorded.

24.07.2003 The Youth Information Service of Kazakhstan promotes the development of youth through information exchange and promotion of gender development. The aim is to nurture youth as a resource for development efforts in the country.

04.06.2003 The One Minutes Jr. is organising its second workshop for young people between the ages of 12-20 from the CIS countries. The four-day workshop provides hands-on training on how to produce their own video messages, use storyboards and gives advice on shooting and editing.

21.04.2003 Kazakh authorities have blocked access to several Websites providing independent news or the opposition's views and critical of President Nursultan Nazarbayev and government officials involved in corruption, the Reporters Without Borders says.