Akezhan Kazhegeldin's address

Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan Co-chairs M. Ablyazov and G. Zhakiyanov
Kazakhstan Democratic Forces Forum leaders
Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan Executive Committee

Dear Mukhtar and Galymzhan,
Dear associates,

Your appeals, letters, and personal contacts with the representatives in recent months oblige me to take additional responsibility and join the Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan movement's activities. I would like to thank Galymzhan and Mukhtar personally who have invited me to join the DCK and become a member of its Political Council and the movement's third co-chair.

This decision of mine has been influenced by the requests from the DCK Political Council members, the Democratic Forces Forum, and the Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan Executive Committee that have been passed to me both personally and by mail. As a democratic politician, I consider it necessary to answer the call of my fellow countrymen. If my activities as a DCK leader are seen as a condition of the unity and solidarity within the anti-Nazarbayev democratic opposition, no circumstances could get in the road then.

Until recently, just a few associates have been in the know of the negotiations of several past months. Reasons for such secrecy are quite clear. I appreciate the efforts of all those who have helped us. These talks would result in building a united opposition and win a victory over the dictatorship.

I mean here not only me personally but the most experienced and active Kazakh opposition group, the Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan. For four years already, this party has been working in conditions of harassment. We have discussed the matter with the leading members of its Executive Committee and the party's regional branches, and almost entire rank and file. It has been a common opinion that the struggle for freedom and justice demands that opposition and resources be united. The more rotten and dispersed are the authorities, the closer should be cooperation between those forces that openly oppose them.

Below I would like to discuss in more detail most important elements of our activities, basic issues of the strategy and tactics, and some personal aspects.

POLITICAL AIMS. The DCK movement has proved to be a highly effective group with great capability to unite efforts in the time of the trials of M. Ablyazov and G. Zhakiyanov. Defending its leaders is an absolute priority for any political group and shows its capabilities. Unfortunately, the attempts to defend M. Ablyazov's and G. Zhakiyanov's freedom in courtroom and immediately after the trials failed. The long and intensive struggle to secure it lies ahead. During this struggle, it's essential for us to perceive the goals, ways and means, reasons and consequences.

We can say for sure that Nazarbayev's political opponents will be freed as a result of a victory of opposition over the regime, and not vice versa. The regime will not fall as a result of releasing the prisoners. This clearly points out that the only aim of a political movement cannot possibly be defending prisoners. Opposition parties and groups are set up and operate to achieve some political aims: to remove a dictatorship, establish a democratic state, win office, and meet public needs.

The DCK desperately needs the program documents and charter to describe its political platform and goals. What is the opposition struggling for? We all know the answer; however, it should be put to paper. The opposition struggles to:

* remove the Nazarbayev corrupt regime;

* implement institutional political reform that will never allow to emerge a dictatorship on Kazakhstani land;

* carry out constitutional reform that will ensure true separation of powers and guarantee citizens' rights;

* win office as a result of just elections;

* secure social justice and equal opportunities for all in every sphere of life.

4 years ago, I have become a Nazarbayev's opponent to achieve these noble goals. For their sake, I am ready now to unite our efforts and struggle further to win a compete victory over the dictatorship.

CONSTITUTION AS A NATIONAL IDEA. The opposition should have ideas to offer to the public. This is the essence of our intellectual and moral leadership. After the absurd program "Kazakhstan – 2030" failed, the Astana's ideologists try to offer some slogans every year to encourage people. Their attempts are ridiculous. "Kazakhstan without Nazarbayev!" is the slogan that comes home to every one of our fellow countrymen.

To formulate a slogan is not enough. United into the DCK, the democratic opposition should formulate a national idea. We cannot invent it, we have to figure it out, perceive it, hear it in the voice of the history.

There is no more important task for Kazakhstani people than to recover the liberties and rights stolen from them by Nazarbayev. He has amassed dictator's powers in breach of Kazakhstani Constitution. This document has turned into the guidelines for a dictator and corrupt official. Anyone who will come to replace Nazarbayev under the existing Constitution could also turn into a cleptocrat who intend to rule indefinitely.

To prevent this, to prevent the repetition of the Nazarbayev regime, the opposition leaders should work out a new Constitution. In line with this new Constitution, opposition will win office. Kazakhstan will abide by this Constitution in the future. The new Constitution will become the national idea that will unite the nation. No president, to say nothing of Nazarbayev, can be guarantor of a whole nation's rights and freedoms. Only an inviolable basic law could ensure a decent life for us and for future generations.

Renowned international organizations are ready to assist us in drafting a new Constitution. This process should become a form of political struggle for the DCK and society.

Along with the constitutional reform, we should immediately get down to elaborating a judicial reform, to think over a drastic reorganization of special services. From puppet torturers, law-enforcement agencies must turn into the agencies that protect the rights and freedoms of citizens, a department for defense of the democratic constitutional framework.

A program of economic reform will follow our political reform program aimed to ensure equal access to material values for all Kazakhstani citizens.

THE MOVEMENT'S EXTRAORDINARY CONGRESS. We need to convene as soon as possible a DCK congress to reorganize the movement's leadership. As majority of its cofounders have disassociated from the movement and even have set up a propresidential party, there is a need now to elect a new Political Council. This should be done in a decisive manner, otherwise, under pressure from the authorities, those cofounders will foredoom the DCK to legal dissolution. Furthermore, the new leadership composition should reflect the recently acquired coalition nature of the movement.

The Congress will adopt a plan of activities to be carried on under new, even more difficult conditions. It should call for the boycott of the anti-constitutional law on parties. We should also have a clear stance on other anti-constitutional laws, which Nazarbayev produces in the hope to stifle opposition. Not only through our boycott of the law on parties should we isolate the regime on the legal field, we should also do so by openly denouncing the laws on public organizations, mass media, and elections. Opposition will never agree to abide by the rules written for it by the anti-national corrupt dictatorship. We recognize only the laws that comply with the internationally accepted democratic norms.

The movement's popular motto "Kazakhstan without Nazarbayev!" should be written in its program documents together with its political aims and our ideas regarding the nation's future after the victory of democracy.

Kazakhstani opposition needs to have support of the international community, foreign governments, and international organizations. To continue receiving more extensive support from abroad, our program has to be understandable to our partners. It should clearly state what Kazakhstan will be look like as a result of our struggle. I would stress again: our principles are simple and universal; these are liberal economy, just distribution of social benefits, equal possibilities for all in labor, business, and politics.

We have been working to hold the forthcoming congress under the auspices of an influential international organization and to invite members of western political elite to attend it as guests.

ACTIONS IN SUPPORT OF M. ABLYAZOV AND G. ZHAKIYANOV. It goes without saying that we should intensify our efforts to free M. Ablyazov and G. Zhakiyanov. We should combine legal activities, political pressure both at home and abroad, and active campaign of unmasking N. Nazarbayev and his handymen.

We should work out a plan of activities aimed to paralyze the authorities by way of actions demanding to free the political prisoners, annul all the politically motivated verdicts, stop persecution of all our activists. Every officer of the Interior Ministry or National Security Committee, every penitentiary servant, every regional head must be named personally in public. Kazakh citizens and foreign governments will be informed about their crimes. We will make those responsible for the wrongdoing think about the consequences they will soon have to take as accomplices of the President clan's crimes.

FORCING ELECTION CAMPAIGN ON THE AUTHORITIES. The political initiative is a powerful opposition weapon. We should not wait until Nazarbayev do his next surprise elections trick. We should immediately start to select candidates for all state posts, campaign for our candidates, and discuss election platforms in all the districts. The DCK should become an election block working on a permanent basis, which will unite the nation's protest potential.

We should clearly state our position regarding the boycott of the law on political parties and election by party ticket. As democratic governments, OSCE, European Union, other international organizations have unequivocally denounced this law and have demanded that it be revoked, it would be unacceptable and stupid of us to play by the Nazarbayev rules. Boycott is a powerful weapon, and we will use it brilliantly.

At the same time, we should focus on several single member constituencies, and use the election campaign for most aggressive criticism of the authorities at all levels. We will organize such a campaign that will ensure the DCK's candidates' victory. If the Nazarbayev clique will again violate the Kazakhstani and international laws to falsify the election results in those constituencies, we will initiate actions of peaceful civil disobedience and protest there. Actions in those local epicenters will trigger a powerful nationwide movement, which will sweep away the politically bankrupt regime, battened by stealing from the nation.

In the single member constituencies, we will closely cooperate with the parties that will fail to join the boycott for some internal reasons. We will not fight those who use the tactics different from ours and whose major task coincides with that of ours - the removal of the shameful autocracy and pervasive corruption.

We will not run out of resources in the designated areas if we consolidate them in the DCK framework. I am speaking not only of the financial resources, which is very essential, but primarily about the organizational resource: people, contacts, and information sources. We should turn to the renowned Kazakhstani citizens, whom secret services have forced to quit political activities, and they have not fully realized their organizational and intellectual potential.

WAYS AND MEANS AND SPONSORS. By eliminating parallelism and meaningless competition, the united opposition movements will be able to hold all the actions they have planed. With time, the increasing number sponsors in the country and abroad will fund our activities. Success is contagious. We should believe in our close victory ourselves, and others will sincerely believe in it too. I would only like to ask you to understand our sponsor's desire to remain in the shadow. In due time, their names will be disclosed to the public.

Meanwhile, for a long time we have been successfully receiving grants from the international community and western public organizations. To unite efforts in seeking such support, to remove unhealthy rivalry between some opposition members for same grantmakers will allow more even distribution of funds between the movements in Almaty and the regions. We should state distinctly that the struggle for our freedoms and rights is not a way to earn our living, not a service rendered by activists to the organization. Struggle for democracy is an honorable right and a civil duty. The organization's task is to create conditions for this struggle and to mobilize the resources. I have got some experience in this field and I use it for the sake of common cause.

MOVEMENT LEADERSHIP. Once again, I would like to thank everyone for the offer to become a DCK co-chair. Unfortunately, I have to reject this post. It's very difficult to lead day-to-day activities of a political group even from exile. I know this from the Republican People's Party experience. The authority and unavailability of the leader force his associates to constantly clear up his opinion, they can not act freely and try to agree upon all their moves. That was the reason behind my refusal to lead the Republican People's Party, and we have transferred the respective authorities to the party's Executive Council and its chairman.

The today's situation in the DCK is even more complicated: Galymzhan and Mukhtar have been cut off of the communication channels, their prison conditions has been made more harsh. We suspect that they will spend some time in total isolation, which means that I will be the only DCK co-chair able to act efficiently. This would be unjust, on the one hand, and unconstructive, on the other.

If Communists or "Pokoleniye" (Generation) movement, the major mass organizations, would join the Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan, the traditional logic will require to elect Serikbolsyn Abdildin and Irina Savostina as co-chairs. If trade unions or Russian organizations join the DCK, the organization will have to elect their leaders as co-chairs. As a result, this scheme can be reduced to an absurdity.

We have been criticizing Nazarbayev for his maniacal desire to control everything and everyone, his inability to share authority. That's why, we should not produce too many leaders ourselves, to place those who have been struggling inside the country a step beneath their leaders. In politics, leadership means the attitude of one's comrades-in-arms, appreciation of your contribution to the common cause rather than a position. A leader's task is to produce new ideas, attract new forces and resources. Later, when the victory is won, we will conduct fair election and compete for the votes. Political competition (similar to genuine economic competition) will become possible only with general freedom. Until that moment, we have to remember that our goal and our enemy are common.

This is my beliefs that I have formed during the years of my work as opposition and government member. I know that Mukhtar and Galymzhan do not hold on to high posts. So, we propose that the very position of "co-chairs" should be abolished and all the authority in the DVC should be transferred to its Political Council. It would be in congruence with the coalition character of the organization. Leaders of the organizations that have already joined the DCK, or will join it in the future will become members of the Political Council. Mukhtar Ablyazov, Galymzhan Zhakiyanov, and me will join the Political Council and start working there together with other opposition leaders.

We should also invite Boltash Tursumbayev and Gaziz Aldamzharov, known for their democratic views. They are politicians, free in their beliefs and independent from the President. I would also like to personally invite Erik Asanbaev, an influential statesman, to join the Political Council.

The Political Council and its members are authorized by their organizations to work out political actions and realize them, act on behalf of the movement, direct regional and local divisions within the country and abroad. The Political Council should take collegiate decisions based on free discussion and open exchange of opinions. After the decision is taken, the Council members are to cease polemics and act as a united front. Otherwise our activities will turn into an endless round table. The authorities in Astana, and Nursultan Nazarbayev, first of all, do not believe that the opposition is able to unite to such a degree. We will have to aggrieve him.

The tasks that the Political Council is to fulfil are huge. It is the opposition's headquarters and, at the same time, its strike force. Besides, as we struggle for power and are going to win this power by democratic and peaceful methods, we have to define the DCK Political Council as a prototype of a future Nationality Government that will control the country in transition period and establish a new democratic order.

Certain responsibilities should be assigned to concrete members of the Political Council. They will act as ministers of the future government and in this capacity will represent the oppositions views on every problem. We have to demonstrate the nation that the DCK has the solutions for the problems, that the Nazarbayev's puppet cabinets have failed to resolve. Finances, oil, security, international relations, welfare, rural areas – respective members of the Political Council are to present to society the democratic force's position on ever problem.

To coordinate the work of the Political Council and DCK divisions in the regions, to organize day-to-day activities and resource distribution, the position of a coordinator should be introduced. I would readily agree with a proposal to make Asylbek Kozhakhmetov a coordinator. We should name his position Executive Secretary or whatsoever, this has to be additionally discussed.

I agree with M.Ablyazov who has proposed to appoint two commissioners representing the DCK and the Republican People's Party who will provide for a smooth merger of our groups in the first 6 months of our joint activities. I believe we all agree that Tolen Tokhtasynov and Amirzhan Kosanov are the best candidatures.

Dear associates! We are responsible for Kazakhstan's future, our children's future! We are also responsible for our fate. It depends on us whether we will live our lives under the pressure of the fruitless parasitic clan, or we will join the family of free nations. The whole world sympathizes with us, the salt of the earth in on our side. I am ready to struggle with you and to win together with you.

Sincerely yours,

Akezhan Kazhegeldin

October 4, 2002

P.S. I am forwarding you this document after discussing it with Professor Nurbulat Masanov. For further details not mentioned in the document, please contact him. I will be also happy to advise you on them during our meeting in person. ak@fromru.com

October 9, 2002