Orda Discusses Foreign Agent Law With President of The Liberty Public Foundation

Orda.kz asked the president of the Liberty Public Foundation to comment on the situation in Georgia, where mass protests against the law on foreign agents took place. Can such a bill be considered in Kazakhstan's Majilis?

85% of non-governmental organizations and independent activists in Kazakhstan function thanks to foreign grants. 15% receive funding from the state and are engaged not in political things, but in social projects, says Agileuov:

"This is how you can receive grants from the state and realize your dreams and aspirations. Everything that concerns civil rights and freedoms, branches of government, analysis of their activities, monitoring, election processes – everything is somehow tied to politics, and our authorities have always believed that everything in this sector should be controlled."

There used to be a Ministry for Civil Society Relations that engaged in issuing grants. It generously distributed money. However, a system of kickbacks shared with officials was reportedly operated there. The state also preferred to allocate funds to those who were more loyal or with whom it had good personal relationships.

As told by the culturologist and human rights activist, the positions of law enforcement agencies have significantly weakened after The January Events. President Toqayev also did not give the relevant orders. He understands the value of a civil society that treats impartially both those in power and those who lead an ordinary life. Therefore, so far, in his opinion, there are no prerequisites for the adoption of the law on agents exposed to foreign influence in Kazakhstan:

"Firstly, Everything will depend on whether Putin's authoritarianism will push through to Toqayev's system, which is quite soft. And if the race to "clamp down" begins, it will affect independent media and the human rights community."

In addition, in Kazakhstan, the authorities control NGOs by financial methods, which is essentially an instrument of pressure. Only instead of the label "foreign agent", they closely monitor reporting and taxes.

"In the case of a violation, fines are imposed. They can be very large. For independent NGOs, media, human rights defenders after the introduction of the rules (Order of the Minister of Culture and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated February 19, 2016 No. 51 – Ed.), according to which it is necessary to declare this money within 10 days after receiving the funds, and otherwise it would be akin to ruin. It makes no sense to impose additional sanctions. All money is accountable,"

the expert noted.

In Kazakhstan, civil society remains undeveloped. It is extremely problematic to get money from a business that, like an NGO, can face state sanctions. Despite the lack of honesty, the appearance of transparency and the same observers are needed even for elections. In Kazakhstan, they often work on a completely gratuitous basis, although they perform an important public function – analysis, evaluation, and data collection.

The Georgian authorities needed the adoption of the law on "foreign agents" at the Kremlin's behest, Galym Ageleuov believes. Putin wants to create a "USSR 2.0", which would include Moldova, Georgia, and Ukraine, and he supported Bidzina Ivanishvili's Georgian Dream party in order to keep Georgia under complete control.

Original Author: Maksim Skopin

DISCLAIMER: This is a translated piece. The text has been modified, the content is the same. Please refer to the original piece in Russian for accuracy.