© Zhanbyrbaevkz
Demonstrators protest once morest the rise in gas prices in Kazakhstan, in Yntymak Square in the city of Aktau, January 4, 2022.
The images are running on social networks. In the dark night, thousands of demonstrators brandish the light of their phones, as in Almaty, the former capital of the country. They are protesting once morest the rise in the price of gas. The movement started from the town of Janaozen, in the heart of a region in the west of the country rich in oil resources, where demonstrators took to the streets this weekend. Since then, the demonstrations have spread to several localities, including Aktau, the large city on the shores of the Caspian Sea.
On Tuesday evening, police used stun grenades and tear gas once morest protesters. The popular Whatsapp, Telegram and Signal messengers were also inaccessible in the evening. The President of Kazakhstan, for his part, tried during the day to calm the situation. On Twitter, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said that a government commission, including members of his services, had “begin to work” in Aktau. “The commission is instructed to find a mutually acceptable solution to the problem raised, in the interest of the stability of the country”, he clarified.
This is Almaty right now pic.twitter.com/g6cO5qSKLj
— Hanna Liubakova (@HannaLiubakova) January 4, 2022
Tents set up
The president, however, warned once morest “Public disorder”, calling on protesters to “Demonstrate responsibility and a willingness to engage in dialogue.” On Monday evening, the authorities announced a reduction in the price of LNG by setting it at 50 tenge (0.1 euro) per liter in the region. A promise that did not lead to the dispersal of the demonstrators, who set up tents in the city of Uralsk, according to local media, and demand to be able to speak to President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
Since the country’s independence from the USSR in 1991, the city of Janaozen has been the scene of the deadliest unrest in Kazakhstan. In 2011, at least 14 striking oil workers were killed when police cracked down on a protest once morest working conditions and wages.
The current president, in power since 2019, was chosen as successor by the historic leader Nursultan Nazarbayev, 81, who ruled Kazakhstan for thirty years from 1989 and retains significant influence.