Kazakhstan

Journalists of Radio Liberty (Azattyk Ynalgysy) work in the bureau in Bishkek on April 28, 2023. - A court in Russia-allied Kyrgyzstan on April 27, 2023 ordered the closure of the local branch of US-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, which criticised the "outrageous" ruling. Award-winning Radio Azattyk is a prominent outlet in the Central Asian country that regularly reports on opposition groups and investigates alleged corruption. © VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO/AFP via Getty Images

Pressure Builds on Central Asia Media

Freedom of speech in Central Asia has deteriorated in recent years, with fresh restrictions on media and bloggers alike and a growing number of criminal cases initiated against journalists.

3 May 24

Smoke from a power station billows into the air over grazing cattle 20km from Bishkek in Novopokrovka. © VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO/AFP via Getty Images

Women in Central Asia Lead on Climate Change

Campaigners tackle widespread scepticism and lack of understanding of crisis.

6 Mar 24

Aleksandr Kablov moved to the settlement in 2017. A shift worker at Kazakstan’s oil and gas fields of Tengiz and Karachganak, the 40-year-old lives there when he is on holiday. © Talgat Umarov

Kazakstan’s Eco-settlers: Turning Barren Land Into Forest

A group seeking an alternative way of life started planting trees; two decades on, they have created an oasis.

18 Aug 23

In Aktau, the capital of Kazakstan’s western Mangystau region, the Caspian Sea has receded dozens of metres away from the city and kilometres away from the northern coast. © Talgat Umarov

Kazakstan’s Alarm as Caspian Sea Shrinks

Islands have appeared in the world’s largest inland body of water, heightening concerns about its future.

19 Jul 23

Father Konstantin, 30, is Kazakstan’s only priest of the Old Believers. Also called Old Ritualists, they are Eastern Orthodox Christians who maintain the practices of the Russian Orthodox Church as they were before the reform introduced by Patriarch Nikon of Moscow in the 17th century. © Talgat Umarov

Kazakstan’s Shrinking Community of Old Believers

A young priest keeps ancient rituals alive in his tiny parish.

11 Jul 23

Russia’s media regulatory body is demanding that a range of Kazak outlets censor content related to the war in Ukraine. © Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Russia Demands Kazak Outlets Censor Ukraine Reports

“It could be described as an attempt against the sovereignty of Kazakstan’s media.”

16 Mar 23

(L to R) Natalia Tsoi, boxing referee from Kazakstan; Farida Abdueva, Muay Thai fighter from Kyrgyzstan; Shoira Zulkaynarova, boxer from Tajikistan; Aziza Yakubova, boxer from Uzbekistan. © Courtesy of N. Tsoi, F. Abdueva, S. Zulkaynarova and A. Yakubova.

Central Asia: Fighting, Inside and Outside the Ring

Women who dream of taking on combat disciplines have to first defy conservative traditions.

8 Mar 23

A mosque in the village of Karakemer, in Kazakstan’s south-eastern Jambyl province. Kazakstans laws foresee that citizens can be punished for dissemination of religious materials, even if they are of a non-extremist nature. This even extends to selling a copy of the Quran or the New Testament on classified sites. © Petr Trotsenko RFE/RL

Kazakstan: Fined for a Book of Bible Stories

Citizens can be punished for dissemination of religious materials, even if of a non-extremist nature.

13 Jan 23

On December 23, 2022, Kazak President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev inaugurated the Tagzym memorial in the country's largest city of Almaty. Meaning bowing in Kazak, the Tagzym honour the 238 victims of the unrest that swept Kazakstan in early January 2022. © Kazakhstan's presidential office

A Year on From Kazakstan’s Bloody January

Murky investigation and lack of accountability followed violence that scarred a nation.

11 Jan 23

Kasym-Zhomart Tokayev votes in the the snap presidential election on November 20, 2022. © Official website of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Akorda.kz

Kazakstan: Same President, New Reforms?

The incumbent has promised change, but prospects for a more democratic system are not promising.

22 Nov 22

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