Human Rights Developments

Defending Human Rights

The Role of the International Community

Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)

In January, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights Election Observation Mission issued its final report on parliamentary elections held in October 1999, outlining seventeen recommendations. The OSCE center in Almaty attempted to monitor whether these recommendations, including changes to the election law, have been implemented. To that end, on September 2 the center sponsored the first in a series of round table discussions on the question of elections, which included representatives of the government and pro-government groups as well as opposition political parties and nongovernmental organizations.

European Union

President of the European Commission Romano Prodi and External Relations Commissioner Chris Patten met with President Nazarbaev in June and reportedly stressed the need for further progress towards democracy; a textile agreement was also signed. In July, the E.U./Kazakhstan council met for the second time, one year after the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement came into force. Their public statement indicated that the Cooperation Council discussed political and human rights issues.

Council of Europe

The Political Affairs Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) continued to consider Kazakhstan's application for observer status this year.

United States

The December 1999 meeting of the U.S.-Kazakhstan Joint Commission, chaired by Vice President Al Gore, reportedly obtained President Nazarbaev's commitment to work closely with the OSCE on implementing democratic reform. Visits to Kazakhstan by the head of the CIA, the head of the FBI, NATO commander Wesley Clark, and Secretary of State Madeleine Albright in the spring came as the U.S. struggled to preserve its influence in the region. The harshest U.S. criticism came not on human rights issues, but in response to the illegal sale of fighter aircraft to North Korea in 1999 involving high Kazakh government officials. The U.S. proffered U.S.$3 million in additional assistance for counterterrorism, as well as a U.S. Trade and Development Agency (TDA) grant of U.S. $600,000 for a survey of natural gas resources.