Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


Dozens Detained in Anti-Government Protests in Major Kazakh Cities

RFE/RL's Kazakh Service

   NUR-SULTAN - Authorities detained dozens of people in Kazakhstan's two
   largest cities, as protesters staged the latest in a series of rallies
   against newly elected President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev.

   Demonstrators marching Saturday in the capital, Nur-Sultan, were
   confronted by uniformed and plainclothes police officers and were
   forcibly dragged to nearby police buses, according to witnesses.

   WATCH: RFE/RL footage from Shymkent shows men spreading umbrellas to
   block the view of detentions.

   Men appearing to be security agents tried to block RFE/RL reporters and
   videographers from filming the detentions, using umbrellas to block
   their views. Some of RFE/RL's video and broadcast equipment was damaged
   by unidentified men.

   Some of those detained appeared to be bystanders; one woman told RFE/RL
   that her 15-year-old son had been taken away by police even though the
   two of them were out strolling along a river embankment.

   At least 70 people had been detained in Nur-Sultan by late Saturday,
   and a similar number in the country's commercial capital, Almaty. The
   independent website Vlast.kz reported up to 100 people had been
   detained in Almaty.

   Protests also occurred in Shymkent, Karaganda and Oral, where
   detentions were also reported.

   The protests were organized in part by the Democratic Choice of
   Kazakhstan, a banned political party that is backed by Mukhtar
   Ablyazov, a tycoon who has lived in exile since 2009.

   A longtime outspoken opponent of Kazakhstan's governing elites,
   Ablyazov has for years clashed with Kazakh authorities. Last year, a
   court ruled the party was an extremist organization and banned it.

   Saturday's protests were the latest in a series that have occurred with
   more frequency since longtime ruler Nursultan Nazarbaev abruptly
   resigned and named a successor.

   Toqaev formally won election as president June 9, in a vote that
   international observers said was marred by "detentions of peaceful
   protesters, and widespread voting irregularities on election day [that]
   showed scant respect for democratic standards."