Kazakhstan zero hour. Political volatility and the spinning economy is causing a picture of generalized paralysis. Protesters have taken over the airport in Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city, according to sources cited by Reuters.
According to international media reports, the riots have already left eight dead and dozens injured. Faced with the deadlock in the uprising, President Tokayev has asked for Russia's help, as part of the agreement concluded between Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
All flights to and from Almaty have been temporarily suspended, as the country is in turmoil due to an increase in fuel prices since the beginning of the year. Kuwait's low-cost airline Jazeera Airways was the first to announce it was suspending flights to and from Almaty due to the situation in the region.
Almost simultaneously, oil giant Chevron Corp announced that it is "working to end" the industrial action taken by its workers at the Tengizchevroil Consortium (TCO) over government policies. The US company is the largest foreign oil producer in Kazakhstan, owning 50% of the shares in the Tengizchevroil consortium. A spokesman assured that oil production has not been affected due to the protest demonstrations.
Kazakhstan has been rocked by massive protests. These started with the arrival of the New Year and the lifting of price controls on LPG by the government.
With its back against the wall, the country's government and its president, Kasim-Jomart Tokayev, announced his resignation. Deputy Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov will take over as interim Prime Minister until a new government is formed. Police, National Guard and army units are involved in the security operation in the city, police chief Kanat Taymerdenov added.
The rallies got out of control andturned into a stone war between citizens and police. Anti-government protesters took to the streets of Kazakhstan's largest city, Almaty, by the thousands. They stormed the mayor's office, destroyed monuments.
According to reports there were also looting incidents at banks and shops. Thousands of people were injured, while 100 police officers had to be taken to hospital, most with minor injuries.
Although the president attempted to calm tempers, assuring that lower fuel prices would be restored, social anger was running rampant.
Protests are rare in the oil-rich former Soviet country, which is tightly controlled by the government. City authorities urged residents to stay in their homes, saying the law enforcement operation was continuing.
Kazakh President Kashim Zomart Tokayev earlier warned that he would respond "with the utmost ferocity" to the protests, citing "massive attacks" on law enforcement forces and "deaths and injuries" among police officers.
"Anarchy in the streets"
Internet and mobile phones are not working in the country today. In Almaty, the economic capital of Kazakhstan, crowds occupied government buildings. After clashes with protesters, police officers appear to have withdrawn from some streets in the city. One resident, who spoke to Reuters after mingling with the protesters, said most of them appeared to come from poor suburbs or from neighboring villages and towns.
In the main square, some people were handing out vodka and discussing whether they should head to the market or to the wealthy suburbs to loot the area. "There is anarchy on the street. The police are nowhere to be seen," the resident said."
Videos posted online show protesters chanting slogans under a giant statue of former President Nursultan Nazarbayev, which they have tied up with ropes in an attempt to tear it down. The woman who posted the video on Twitter said she shot it in the town of Taldikorgan, in eastern Kazakhstan.
Earlier, via Instagram, a Kazakh blogger was live-streaming the fire in the Almaty mayor's office while gunfire could be heard in the background. Other videos showed the prosecutor's office burning.
"Government resign"
The protest movement started on Sunday in a provincial town over the increase in the price of LPG and spread to Almaty on Tuesday night into Wednesday. French Press Agency reporters said they saw police officers firing tear gas and flash bombs to disperse a crowd of 5,000 people. "Government resign" and "Out with the old man" (i.e. Nursultan Nazarbayev), the gathering chanted.
This afternoon, thousands of people occupied the city hall. Men wearing police uniforms were seen lowering their shields and helmets and embracing the protesters. "They came over to our side," one woman shouted."
In an attempt to calm the spirits, President Tokayev accepted the government's resignation and declared a state of emergency throughout the country, including the capital Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana). Traffic was also banned from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m.
Tokayev also took over as head of the powerful Security Council in place of Nazarbayev who, at 81, although he stepped down from the presidency in 2019, continues to exert considerable influence on the country's political affairs.
Earlier, Tokayev had removed Nazarbayev's nephew from his position as second in command of the State Security Committee, the successor to the Soviet KGB.
Russia, for which Kazakhstan is a very important economic partner, has called for the crisis to be resolved through dialogue and not "with street riots."
The LPG crisis
The protest movement began on Sunday after the price of LPG rose in the city of Zanazen in western Kazakhstan. It then spread to Aktau, on the banks of the Caspian Sea and in 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 euro) a litre instead of 120.
The price increase is considered unfair by citizens, given Kazakhstan's vast gas and oil reserves.
Today state television reported that the director of an LPG plant and another official were arrested in Mangistau district, where Zanaozen is located. They are accused of "raising the price of gas unnecessarily" which "incited mass protests across the country."
Kazakhstan, Central Asia's largest economy, which previously saw double-digit growth, has seen its tenge devalued and inflation soar due to falling oil prices and the economic crisis in Russia. The Mangistau region depends on LPG, which is a key fuel for cars, and any increase in its price will drag down food prices, which have already risen since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Source: Proto Thema
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs Cyprus Times
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or Cyprus Times
Source[/P][/P]
