US embassy cable - 05ALMATY2838

UNCLAS  ALMATY 002838 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/CACEN (JMUDGE) 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, KZ, POLITICAL 
SUBJECT: KAZAKHSTANI YOUTH MOVEMENT FINDS INSPIRATION IN 
ORANGE REVOLUTION 
 
 
1. (SBU) Summary: In an initiative to mobilize apathetic 
youth in Kazakhstan, a new non-partisan youth movement, 
called Kahar [Protest], emerged last winter. Drawing 
inspiration, if not the numbers, from influential youth 
groups like Otpor and Pora, Kahar could attract more young 
people, especially students, to political activism ahead of 
the widely-expected December presidential elections. That 
said, the organization remains low-key, informal, and 
unregistered. It may face significant obstacles given the 
recently-enacted national security legislation and the 
restrictive NGO laws currently with the Constitutional 
Council. End summary 
 
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Young People of Kazakhstan Unite 
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2. (SBU) On July 26, POEC Intern and Public Affairs FSN met 
with the director of the Kahar [Protest] youth movement 
Bakhtzhan Toregozhina, and several young volunteers, in 
their Almaty headquarters. Toregozhina discussed the origins 
of Kahar, the organization's structure, the need for student 
participation in the political process, and activities 
planned in run-up to widely-expected December presidential 
elections. The unregistered group began organizing 
activities this winter, operating unofficially from a dingy 
three-room basement office with two old computers and a 
photocopy machine. According to an Embassy contact, Kahar is 
technically illegal and must operate underground since it 
has not had a founding congress or registered with the MOJ. 
Toregozhina is an opposition political activist with ties to 
former PM Akezhan Kazhegeldin, who now resides in London. 
Before Kahar, Toregozhina ran an NGO called "Ar.Rukh.Khak," 
which organized pickets and seminars devoted to free speech 
and women's rights. 
 
3. (SBU) Since Kahar started operating this winter, it has 
organized several street demonstrations, conducted voter 
education campaigns, and made public appeals to students and 
young activists. Initially reluctant to discuss funding, 
Toregozhina eventually acknowledged in private that she had 
at one time received financial support from Kazhegeldin. 
Beaming at a portrait of Kazhegeldin which hangs in her 
office, she claimed that if he were in Kazakhstan he would 
be president today. 
 
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A New Shade of Orange? 
----------------------- 
 
4. (SBU) Due to its meager financial means, Kahar has few 
concrete plans for the time being, except for protests and 
voter information initiatives. It has, however, established 
a brand for itself. Kahar's symbol, printed on stickers and 
t-shirts, is a falcon perched on top of a shield, with a 
lemon-yellow background. The color yellow was a good choice, 
they said, since it is eye-catching and a reminder of the 
Kazakhstani flag. Toregozhina claimed Kahar had around 98 
active members, but with up to one thousand attending 
demonstrations and other events. 
 
5. (SBU) The volunteers said that Kahar has representation 
in other areas of the country, including Petropavlovsk and 
Shymkent. Because it lacks financial backing, however, 
Kahar's reach is limited and its core constituency is based 
in Almaty. Toregozhina explained that it is not easy to 
mobilize supporters, since access to university premises is 
restricted. In fact, she said she would be arrested if she 
attempted anything of the sort. Kahar has been most 
successful in recruiting volunteers through its website. The 
website is well-constructed, regularly updated, and includes 
articles and editorials written by Kahar members, media 
coverage about the organization, and a litany of hip 
slogans, songs, and some cartoons. It also provides links to 
Pora (Ukraine) and a few fledging youth groups, such as Zubr 
(Belarus) and Kel-Kel (Kyrgyzstan). 
 
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A Protest Group, but Not the Opposition 
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6. (SBU) Toregozhina noted with great concern last fall's 
flawed parliamentary elections. She believes that students 
 
 
were coerced into voting for incumbent leaders. In 
preparation for presidential elections, Kahar will try to 
conduct voter education and information campaigns. Last 
week, dressed in their signature yellow and black t-shirts, 
Kahar activists attended as observers the July 22-23 
founding party congress of Alga-DCK [now simply "Alga"], a 
spin-off of Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan. When asked 
about support for such opposition forces, however, 
Toregozhina insisted that Kahar is an independent, non- 
partisan youth movement. (Comment: Based on interviews from 
the website and on her comments during the meeting, 
Toregozhina does not hide her close contacts with other 
liberal youth movements, such as Ukraine's Pora and Otpor in 
Serbia. In a Deutsche Welle interview in June, she said that 
Pora was the ideal to which Kahar should strive for 
mobilizing young people to politics. End comment). 
 
7. (SBU) Toregozhina, along with another Kahar member, was 
in Ukraine during the "orange" revolution. She proudly 
showed us numerous photographs of the event, which were 
posted all over the walls of the office. A Pora leader 
reportedly paid a visit recently to Toreghozhina, offering 
training and instructions on conducting youth movement 
activities. In late June, Toreghozhina was invited to Berlin 
by a German-based Central Asian democracy support group. 
 
8. (SBU) Kahar has attracted some press coverage, especially 
by opposition media outlets. Using similar tactics employed 
by the youth movement Zubr in Belarus, Kahar has conducted 
humorous but confrontational stunts in public, in part to 
arouse in interest in the group, but also to agitate 
authorities and attract publicity. In early July, Kahar 
activists marched on Gogol Street with white stickers taped 
to their mouths saying "We want to speak." During a weekend 
rock concert in mid-July, several Kahar activists were 
arrested for distributing leaflets containing Kahar's 
contact information and some provocative lyrics by 
Kazakhstani rock legend Viktor Tsoi. In another incident, 
Kahar members distributed lemons to people, symbolizing 
grenades. Four more actions are planned over the next few 
months, Toregozhina said. 
 
9. (SBU) Comment: Despite its small size, Kahar could 
attract close attention by the Kazakhstani authorities, 
fearful of any hint of a "colored revolution" as elections 
approach. With its web-links to Pora and publicized contacts 
with other youth movements, this unregistered, group has 
taken a provocative stance. Recent national security 
legislation provides the GOK with a range of legal tools to 
act against the group, should it chose to do so. End 
Comment. 
 
10. (U) Dushanbe minimize considered. 
 
 
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