Almaty Redevelopment Dispute Heats up

Residents in the centre of Almaty, Kazakstan’s second city, are protesting about what they say is inadequate compensation for the homes they will lose in a major urban redevelopment scheme. NBCentralAsia commentators say the best way to resolve the dispute would be for the judiciary, parliament and local councillors to institute an independent review.



The dispute involves residents of the central district known as the “golden square” whose homes are scheduled for demolition as part of an urban renewal programme. On January 30, some of them warned that they would begin a hunger strike from February 5 if their demands were not met.



Many accuse the municipal housing management agency Almatyjer, together with investors involved in construction projects in the area, of failing to offer the market price. They also accuse the courts and prosecution service of ignoring their interests.



Almatyjer has been acting as intermediary between the construction firms and home owners.



Bayan Abdullanova, a representative of Almatyjer, says that around 1,000 court actions have been brought over the compensation issue, but says this only represents a tiny fraction of the residents affected by the demolition plans. “The majority have agreed to it and are happy with the compensation,” she told NBCentralAsia. “No one mentions that fact; they just concentrate on cases that make Almatyjer look bad. For some reason, everyone is focusing only on the unhappy home-owners.”



Abdullanova insisted that Almatyjer was complying with all court rulings on the matter, adding that it is happy to discuss individual cases with the owners involved.



Human rights activist Yevgeny Zhovtis sees a number of reasons why the housing dispute has escalated, saying that there are no companies competent to assess market prices, that the courts are less than transparent and do not act independently from the executive authorities, and that housing and planning laws are flawed in that they allow land to be confiscated if the state so requires.



“The definition of the state’s requirements is not properly set out in the legislation,” said Zhovtis. “When the concept is given a broad interpretation, one that is bent often quite arbitrarily… they start confiscating land with ‘the needs of the state’ as the pretext.”



Lawyer Vasily Rezvan believes current regulations and laws work against ordinary citizens, making it impossible to ensure disputes between owners and Almatyjer are resolved fairly, even in court.



Commentators note that this dispute also reflects broader shortcomings in the relationship between various branches of government and the public, suggesting that the elected bodies – parliament and local councils – should get involved to help resolve the situation.



“The Almatyjer situation is an extension of a wider situation – an inadequately reformed political system, the lack of an independent judiciary, citizens’ inability to defend their rights, and the absence of effective representation,” said Zhovtis.



(News Briefing Central Asia draws comment and analysis from a broad range of political observers across the region.)