The Astana Times, 24 April, 2013

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The Astana Times Wednesday, 24 April 2013

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Finland President Pays First Visit to Astana

www.astanatimes.kz

Afghans Eurasian Appreciate Media Forum Explore Kazakhstan’s toRegional “Very Honest” Security Issues Approach

By Yelden Sarybay ASTANA –The following is an interview with Dr. Sohrab Ali Saffary, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Presidents Sauli Niinisto of Finland (l) and Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan discussed ways to enhance cooperation in green economy and education, among other areas

By Rufiya Ospanova ASTANA – Finland’s President Sauli Niinistö paid his first state visit to Kazakhstan on April 17 which focused heavily on expanding already growing commercial ties into areas such as green economy and education.

President Niinistö and his delegation discussed plans to expand

bilateral relations with government officials. They also participated in a Kazakh-Finnish Forum which explored introducing new green technologies developed in Finland to Kazakhstan.

President Niinistö met President Nursultan Nazarbayev and senior government ministers, National Ombudsman Askar Shakirov and Human Rights

Commission Chairman Kuanysh Sultanov during his visit.

He was accompanied by Pekka Hallberg, former president of Finland’s Supreme Administrative Court who is involved in a project supporting the rule of law in Central Asia and Economics Minister Jan Vapaavuori and business leaders..

Kazakhstan and Finnish offi-

cials and business executives participated in the MINEX Central Asia 2013 forum on April 17-18 in Astana to generate new foreign direct investment (FDI) to the mining industry across Central Asia. Business leaders from Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Mongolia participated.

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EXPO 2017 Planning Has Begun

By Nadezhda Khamitova ASTANA – Kazakhstan has started extensive preparations for EXPO 2017, Talgat Yermegiyaev,

the head of the Astana EXPO 2017 national company, told the Central Communication Service briefing.

Work has already started on drawing up the master plan and landscape designs for the EXPO site and they will be presented to the International Bureau of Expositions (BIE) in Paris, Yermegiyaev said. The other important task is to prepare registration files to monitor progress on the planning, he said.

“The first report on progress will be presented in May and the progress reports will be assessed in October,” Yermegiyaev said.

“Our consultants have developed

three master plans and the first one has priority. Finally, President Nursultan Nazarbayev will assess progress and decide which plan will be used,” he said.

Yermegiyaev said planners will use existing buildings as well as the new pavilions and display centres for the exposition.

“First we will complete the master plan which will include the architectural designs, technical support and costs of the construction programme. It will take until the end of this year to prepare all these,” he said. “Next year, we will complete the final planning the EXPO complex.

We may divide this process into

steps. By the beginning of May 2014, we will begin the construction work.”

On January 18, President Nazarbayev invited international companies to cooperate in building the EXPO 2017 complex when he addressed the diplomatic corps in Astana. “This is a triumph for the international standing of Kazakhstan,” he said.

“In 2012, our economy attracted more than $20 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI). That result has been achieved by no other state in the world,” he added.

How do you see the bilateral relations between Afghanistan and Kazakhstan?

I think they are very good, but we need to improve, to develop them. Since the defeat of the Taliban, Kazakhstan is doing a lot for Afghanistan.

Firstly, President Nazarbayev and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs talk about Afghanistan at every conference and every summit trying to encourage other countries to help Afghanistan.

Secondly, Kazakhstan also helps us materially by sending, for example, wheat, flour, and dried milk powder. The Kazakhstan government helped build some of our roads, two clinics and a school in northern Afghanistan.

And the most important help that Kazakhstan did at the initiative of President Nazarbayev is the 1,000 scholarship programme.

In five years, we now have 445 students in Almaty, Astana and Karaganda studying medicine, economics, engineering, agriculture, law, and in colleges. At the same time we have some students from the Afghan interior ministry for border problems. They are feeling very well. At the beginning they had some problems with the coldness, but now they are accustomed and telling that all the teachers and staff are very kind to us.

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By Nadezhda Khamitova ASTANA – On April 25-26 Astana, will host one of its biggest annual events, the Eurasian Media Forum, which gathers hundreds of politicians, experts and media figures from dozens of countries to discuss pressing regional issues.

President Nursultan Nazarbayev is expected to address the opening session of the forum.

The Astana Times interviewed forum director Ruslan Zhemkov about the upcoming conference.

Will this forum differ from previous ones?

Each forum is different from the previous one. Every year we select the most pressing news and issues that concern the world. Our speakers create a unique atmosphere and provide us with exclusive opinions and points of view. This all makes every forum different from the others.

Why is the forum important?

The most important thing about our forum is that we are located in the heart of Eurasia. The idea behind our conference is to create a platform for dialogue between East and West. In the past 11 years we have hosted more than 5,500 foreign delegates from more than 60 countries. This is significant.

Continued on Page A2

Astana Arlans Qualify for World Series of Boxing Finals

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Senate Speaker’s Japan Visit Boosts Political, Economic Ties

By Olga Kazantseva TOKYO – Speaker of Senate of Parliament of Kazakhstan Kairat Mami paid an official visit to Japan on April 18 where he meting the head of the House of Representatives of the Japanese Parliament, Bunmei Ibuki and other officials.

During the meeting in the Japanese Parliament, Ibuki said that since independence, Kazakhstan has achieved high rates of economic development and has taken a leading position in Central Asia. He called for the expansion of bilateral cooperation and the intensification of inter-parliamentary relations.

Speaker Mami in turn noted the importance of interaction between parliamentarians, particularly in the

exchange of experience and strengthening the legal framework of agreements reached at various levels.

The sides also exchanged views on the development of international dialogue and other relevant topics.

“I am sure that Kazakh-Japanese cooperation has great potential.

New long-term projects that are planned in Kazakhstan, of course, will be interesting for business and public circles in Japan,” Speaker Mami said at the opening of the Kazakh-Japanese forum.

The importance of Peer Relationships

The programme of official events began with the meeting of Mami and

his colleague, Speaker of the Upper House (House of Councilors) of the Japanese Parliament Kenji Hirata.

Recently, the Parliamentary League of Friendship with Kazakhstan, consisting of about 40 Japanese MPs, members of both Houses of Parliament from various political parties, was created. Members of the league regularly meet to discuss the status and prospects of bilateral cooperation and, depending on the agenda of the meeting, invite representatives of relevant ministries and agencies in Japan to participate.

An important role in the formation of this vector of cooperation belongs to former Prime Minister of Japan and well-known politician of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Ryutaro Hashimoto.

During his presidency in the League of Friendship from 2002 to 2006, Hashimoto initiated a new foreign political concept in Japan under the name of “Eurasian diplomacy.” Its implementation contributed to the promotion of bilateral collaboration with Kazakhstan and other Central Asian countries. This constructive approach to the work of the league is still supported today. After the recent parliamentary elections, its composition was substantially renewed.

According to Speaker Hirata, Kazakh-Japanese relations are characterised by friendship and cooperation in various fields.

Continued on Page A3

Astana Arlans boxers have fought their way into the finals where they will face Ukraine Otamans in May in Astana.

Inside Nation

EURASIA & WORLD

Officials: New Laws Protect Freedom of Religion Battle Parade Preparations Are in Full Swing

Experts See No Military Solution to Afghan Conflict European Commission Proposes Simplified EU Entry for Foreign Students

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Page A3 – A8

EDITORIAL

Afghanistan Faces Uncertain Future, Needs All Assistance It Can Get

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OPINIONS

IDRISSOV: 20 Years of IFAS: Status and Prospects for Cooperation SHPAKOV: Government Fights New Age of Terror

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NATION & CAPITAL NGOs Helping Build Civil Society in Kazakhstan, Swedish Expert Says Kazakh Science Students Head to Arizona for Science Fair

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US$1 = 151.16 KZT 1 Euro = 197.13 KZT 1 Rouble = 4.78 KZT

The Astana Times

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Wednesday, 24 April 2013

Nation

Officials: New Laws Protect Freedom of Religion

By Rufiya Ospanova

ASTANA – New regulations and legislation issued over the last two years are succeeding in maintaining freedom of religion in Kazakhstan while preventing abuse by extremist groups, top officials say.

“Freedom of religion is the necessary condition for a democratic society, one of the main elements within the system of human rights and freedoms. The issue of freedom of religion shall always remain relevant for Kazakhstan as a multiconfessional country,” Kairat Lama Sharif, Chair of the Agency for Religious Affairs (ARA), told a conference on “Freedom of Religious Denominations” on March 19.

For 20 years, Kazakhstan has enshrined freedom of religion in its Constitution. Article 22 states: “Everyone shall have the right to freedom of conscience.”

The importance of freedom of religion is acknowledged in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration for Human Rights (UDHR), adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. It states, “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.”

One of the first legislative acts passed after independence was the Law on Freedom of Religion and Religious Associations in 1992.

The main achievement in the religious sphere over the past 20 years has been complete absence of inter-faith conflicts, which is critically important for Kazakhstan’s multi-ethnic and multi-religious society. The country has earned an international reputation for its religious tolerance and cooperation and its leading role in promoting inter-faith dialogues on a global scale. The triennial Congress of World and Traditional Religions in Astana became an internationally renowned symbol of the country.

However, guaranteeing freedom of expression unwittingly also gave opportunities for pseudo-religious extremist and terrorist groups to try and operate in the country. It also eroded traditional values and religious identity.

This led to a new Law on Religious Activity and Religious Associations being passed in October 2011. It expressed the need for more active participation by the state in monitoring the activities of religious groups.

The law confirms Kazakhstan “as a democratic, secular state, confirms the right of each person to have freedom of conscience, guarantees equal rights to citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan regardless of their religious convictions (and) recognizes the historical role of the Hanafi school of Islam and Orthodox Christianity in developing the cultural and spiritual life of the people,” Lama Sharif said.

It respects other religions that blend with the spiritual heritage of the people of Kazakhstan, recognizes the importance of inter-faith harmony, religious tolerance and respects the religious convictions of citizens, he added.

The law acknowledges that the state cannot ignore dealing with religious issues.

Given the sensitivity of the issues, experts suggested that the government should offer guidelines to official bodies at regional and state levels on how to enforce the new law and on how they should examine religious literature and define missionary activity. The new law and its implementation will also be subject to independent reviews.

The government welcomed the proposals. In 2012, new regulations were approved to monitor the work of missionaries, the qualifications of religious leaders and the

construction and transfer of buildings to religious groups. New regulations also govern the monitoring of activities of foreign religious groups in the country and the appointment of new religious leaders by foreign religious centres.

Experts are also discussing conducting examination of religious literature and publication of facts with regard to developments relating to the activities of religious associations. Nazym Mukanova, chief expert of the department for relations with Christian and other religious associations of ARA, in a recent article wrote, “Information on passing registration by religious associations and the facts of violation of the law shall not be hidden from public regardless of relation to any confession. However, official information of similar nature shall be published only after determination of facts or court judgment.

This will help exclude unhealthy excitement, promote reduction of inter-confessional confrontation towards religious associations.”

“The law is very important for control of spiritual situation in the country, for effective protection from destructive religious ideas and sects, which quite often interfere with private life of a person.

There were cases when such interference led to divorces or even suicides. Actually, consequences of such sects practice can be observed in all countries, where they exist. Disseminators of destructive religious ideas try to persuade young people that Islam in Kazakhstan has weak historical roots and it is needed to look at other Muslim countries. But we have our own history,” the former Supreme Mufti of Kazakhstan Absattar Derbisali said.

“Kazakhstan has own religious scholars, whose latitude does not contradict with Sharia (religious

● The 20th anniversary Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan “Kazakhstan 2050: one nation – one country – one destiny” under the chairmanship of President Nursultan Nazarbayev is to take place on April 24 at the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation. The event will bring together members of the Assembly from all regions, the chairmen of the national and regional ethno-cultural associations, heads of central executive bodies, political parties, religious organizations, NGOs, diplomatic missions of foreign countries, scientific and creative intelligentsia and the media.

The new law is aimed at protecting freedom of religion and supporting stable spiritual environment in Kazakhstan. law of Islam) and traditions of our people. It is unacceptable for us when our people start to find out what Islam is in other countries, go there, study it and afterwards

bring quite alien understanding to our society,” he underlined adding that new law with accompanying regulations will help Kazakhstan protect freedom of religion.

Battle Eurasian Media Forum to Explore Regional Parade Security Issues Preps Are in Full Swing From Page A1

By Anton Serov ASTANA – The group led

by Major General Mukan Dyusekeyev, deputy chief of Kazakhstan’s Armed Forces General Staff, is comprised of various branches of servicemen and is tasked to coordinate all the organizational aspects of the unprecedented battle parade that will be held May 7 as part of the Day of Kazakhstan Defender. A defense ministry task force has also left for the Otar 40th military base to assist with preparations.

Military hardware, including more than 400 armoured and motor vehicles, more than 80 aircraft and helicopters and 7,000 troops have been gathered at the military base.

Military parades are different than battle parades, according to the defense ministry’s press service. Military parades include marching and showcasing models of military hardware and weapons in a static position. Kazakhstan battle parades, however, showcase the military personnel’s battle training level, coherence of actions and the combat capabilities of the Kazakh Army’s arsenal.

Contemporary models of weapons and communications will also be shown.

Air force planes will also carry out actual firing and bomb launching, as well as air aerobatics.

All types of Kazakhstan’s armed forces will demonstrate their flight and naval training, including in intelligence and special missions.

The May 7 parade will include more arms and military hardware than have been shown in previous general military parades, including 86 aircraft and helicopters, which is twice the number that was in the last parade on Constitution Day. The parade will then be a combination of military actions in Astana, Otar and on the Caspian Sea where the flotilla will demonstrate its skills. The naval maneuvers will be live broadcast via a video link to other parts of the country.

Have previous forums influenced political developments in Eurasia?

We do not negotiate or sign any memoranda or agreements between parties participating in the forum.

But it is very important that we seek to ensure the exchange of opinions and affect attitudes, so we work to contain a lot of interesting content.

However, we do not try to have any direct impact on the political or economic situation in Eurasia.

What responses have you received from participants in previous forums?

Last year, we held the tenth Eurasian Media Forum and gathered enormous amount of positive responses about it. We appreciate that our delegates have given us such good feedback. It proves that our platform is very interesting to the world and it shows how open we are for dialogue between East and West.

There are lots of speakers and moderators who have attended the forum several times. Some participants

This year’s Eurasian Media Forum is putting new challenges of regional security on its agenda. have attended every one of them and they are returning this year.

What are your expectations for this year’s forum?

I think that we will be able to

raise some extremely important questions about regional security and show the world that we live in a very open but secure state. I hope to hear about new technologies and ways to build the green economy

from our foreign guests because it is important that Kazakhstan is the nation in the Commonwealth of Independent States that pays the most attention to green energy and ecological questions.”

Forum’s Agenda Focuses on Security, Eurasian Integration, Social Media As usual, this year’s Eurasian Media Forum on April 25-26 will attract a high profile audience. In addition to President Nazarbayev, it will include Eurasia Media Forum Chairwoman Dariga Nazarbayeva, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Leonid Kozhara who is the current chairman of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and conference moderator Riz Khan of AlJazeera International.

This year, the forum will cover issues of major regional concern including security in Central Asia after the withdrawal of the U.S. and NATO troops from Afghanistan in 2014. It will address fears that the withdrawal will cause the situation in Afghanistan to deteriorate and encourage the activities of extreme Islamists in the area.

The forum will also address the consequences of the Arab Spring series of democratic revolutions under the subject title “The Middle East: managed chaos turning into unmanaged disaster?” It will explore the rising influence of Islamic parties in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen and Syria.

The forum will also discuss the positive impact of EXPO 2017 on Kazakhstan and its neighbours. The greatest concern for the public is not whether the country can organise an event on such a scale but what its results will be for the country afterwards, whether the exhibition brings fruitful results and how it will help the country make the transition to green energy.

Speakers will explore the feasibility of creating the green economy in Kazakhstan.

Domestic News in Brief

Finally, the forum will discuss the concept of the Eurasian Economic Union. As the existing Customs Union of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus gradually moves towards creating a full EEU, regional politicians, economists and bankers will take a hard look at the experience of the European Union.

The forum will also host a discussion on information security, the impact of the media and social networks on global politics and on media trends of the 21st century. This will focus on the responsibility of the media towards the information it provides. It will also explore the way modern journalism is changing under the impact of the rapid development of network technologies and the social media and the growing role of popular bloggers.

Among the many renowned speakers and experts attending the forum will be French journalist Julian Nundy; New York Times-bestselling author, Greg Palast; Institute of Global Economics and Business Director Yuri Moseikin from Russia; chairman of the International Relations Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic Kanybek Imanaliyev; former Greek Deputy Prime Minister Theodoros Pangalos; Cihan News Agency General Manager Abdülhamit Bilici from Turkey; American Iranian Council President Hooshang Amirahmadi; Al Jazeera International Senior Presenter Stephen Cole; Israel Press Council Secretary General Arik Bachar; British Member of Parliament George Galloway; Heritage Foundation Fellow Ariel Cohen; and Eurasia House

International President Armen Sarkissian from Britain.

At the Tenth Anniversary Forum last year, over 450 journalists, politicians, academics and business leaders from 40 countries gathered in Astana on October 11.

Prime Minister Serik Akhmetov addressed that gathering and said that since its creation in 2001 the Eurasian Media Forum had become a unique platform for global dialogue and the exchange of views on important issues.

“Themes such as justice, morals and true values are as important as those relating to economic issues and should occupy the same amount of media space,” forum chairwoman Nazarbayeva told the October gathering.

Russian journalist, Maksim Shevchenko described the forum as proof of the “fundamental role of Kazakhstan as an intellectual political centre.” There was no other conference anywhere in the former Soviet republics comparable to the Eurasian Media Forum, he said.

The first five forums held annually after 2002 each attracted more than 500 media, political and business experts from 60 countries.

The Eurasian Media Forum is the most prominent international media initiative in the region and it has the goals of exploring the strategic role of Eurasia in world affairs, finding new approaches to international relations, promoting equality of access to reliable public information throughout the area and encouraging the highest standards of journalism.

● On April 17, Kazakhstan’s Prime Minister Serik Akhmetov attended the Forum of Machine Builders in Astana. Akhmetov read out the Kazakh President’s welcome address. “Kazakhstan’s machine building complex should become one of the key sectors of the country’s economy in the near future. The Government creates all conditions for it: establishes institutional and legal frameworks, improves the investment climate, improves mechanisms of publicprivate partnership,” the President’s welcoming speech reads.

Akhmetov noted the need to modernize the industry. “For ten years we have increased the production output from 45 billion to 680 billion tenge. It is vital to encourage modernization and reconstruction of factories and enterprises. We need new technology, new equipment. It is impossible to produce competitive products without it,” the head of the government said.

More than 700 delegates from the CIS and non-CIS countries attended. The forum sought to become an international platform for effective interaction between representatives of government, business and science for the development and adoption of innovative solutions in the machine building industry. ● As of March 1, 2013, the population of Kazakhstan increased to 16,953,900, head of the Statistics Agency Alikhan Smailov stated at a briefing on the results of socio-economic development of the country. “As of March 1, 2013 the population amounted to 16,953,900 people, and in comparison with the beginning of the previous year increased by 42,000 or 0.4 percent,” Smailov said. It was noted that the increase in population was natural, which in January-February 2013 was 41,400 people. Also, speaking of the demographic situation in the country, Smailov reported that in January-February 2013 the number of births was 66,400 that is 0.8 percent more than in 2012.

The number of deaths in JanuaryFebruary 2013 was 25,600 people, which is 2.3 percent less than in January-February 2012. ● A regular sitting of the Steering Committee of the 28th World Winter Universiade 2017 chaired

by Prime Minister Serik Akhmetov was held in Astana on April 16.

Akim of Almaty City Akhmetzhan Yessimov presented a final version of the Concept and Master Plan of the 28th World Winter Universiade. According to Yessimov, the concept of the event “reflects the mission of the 28th Winter Universiade, the organizational structure of the games, interagency coordination, project management and risk management.” The preliminary timeframe of the event is 29 January - 8 February 2017, which is yet to be agreed with the Executive Committee of the International University Sports Federation. The programme includes eight compulsory and five additional disciplines. Universiade venues include six existing and four new facilities that will have to be built. ● More than 9,000 scholarships have been awarded over the 20 years of the international presidential programme “Bolashak,” Kazakhstan’s Minister of Education and Science Bakytzhan Zhumagulov told a government meeting on April 16. Bolashak focuses on training specialists needed for the country. From 1994 to 2013, 9,250 scholarships were awarded, the number of graduates was 5,714, and 2,796 scholarship holders have been trained in 33 countries around the world, Zhumagulov said. According to the minister, today the public sector employs over 20 percent of all graduates, national companies and companies with state participation employ 21 percent, the private sector 55 percent, international organizations and NGOs 4 percent.

The Astana Times

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

Eurasia and world

External News in Brief ● The third Ministerial Meeting of the Istanbul Process on Regional Security and Cooperation for Secure and Stable Afghanistan will take place in Almaty on April 26. The process was launched on Nov. 2, 2011 at the foreign ministers meeting in Istanbul. Its first ministerial conference was held in Kabul on June 14, 2012. The third conference will take place in the InterContinental Almaty Hotel on April 26 and will be opened by President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov and Afghan Foreign Minister Zalmai Rassoul will address it and hold a joint press conference the same day. ● On April 19, Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov chaired the Sixth Meeting of the Commission on Weapons of Mass Destruction Non-Proliferation.

Participants discussed implementing their agreed protocol and outlined new directions for the commission’s work. They reviewed implementation of the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Low Enriched Uranium Bank, the creation of a Central Bio-Security Reference Laboratory, export control legislation improvement and international cooperation growth in the field of chemical security. ● Kazakhstan plans to launch its first domestic remote sensing satellite in the fourth quarter of this year, the National Space Agency said. “The launch of the first Kazakh land remote sensing satellite of medium resolution is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2013 from the Yasny launch site in Russia,” it said. The second Kazakh land remote sensing satellite with high resolution is planned to be launched in 2014 from the French spaceport of Kourou in French Guyana. ● The Russian Academy of Natural Sciences has awarded Professor Sagimbek Altayuli from the Gumilyov Eurasian National University’s Natural Sciences Department in Astana, the Alfred Nobel Medal for contributions to the development of inventions. Prof.

Altayuli has worked in the area of food biotechnology for over 40 years and has a number of inventions and patents to his name. ● Kazakhstan will participate for the first time in the Young Talents creative advertising competition in Cannes, France on June 16–22.

The country will be represented in the cyber category by designer Tatyana Butskaya and copywriter Dauren Shubayev and by advertising designers Sergey Khussainov and Alexey Lubchikov in the film category. ● Sitora Saparbayeva, an eighth grade student from Almaty took first place in the Man in Space competition organized by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Her work will be presented at the International Space Station and Man in Space symposium in Germany. ● Kazakhstan’s Foreign Ministry has found no evidence that the suspects of Boston bombing Tamerlan and Dzokhar Tsarnayevs lived in Kazakhstan. Brothers are originally from Chechnya, after the conflict in the 1990s they left the country and arrived to the United States as refugees. To recall, two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon near Copley Square, turning a celebration into a bloody scene of destruction.

“We have not found any evidence to confirm these rumors [that Tsarnayevs lived in Kazakhstan]. We are ready to render any support to our American partners,” the Ministry wrote and added that Kazakhstan condemned terrorist attacks in any form and expressed sincere solidarity with the Boston citizens.

According to another statement released April 22 by the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, two foreign nationals arrested April 20 on immigration violations are from Kazakhstan and may have known the Boston Marathon bombing suspects. ● On April 23, Prosecutor General of Kazakhstan Askhat Daulbayev met Secretary General of Austria’s Ministry for European and International Affairs Johannes Kirle in Vienna. Kirle suggested the possibility of deepening cooperation through the conclusion of agreements on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters.

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Finland President Pays First Visit to Astana From Page A1

President Nazarbayev told the forum it would explore new directions in bilateral cooperation.

“Kazakhstan highly appreciates Finland as a reliable business partner,” he said. He discussed the launching of the Customs Union with Russia and Belarus, the upcoming sixth Astana Economic Forum and the World Anti-Crisis Conference to be held in Astana on May 22-24.

President Nazarbayev also briefed the Finnish visitors on the Green Bridge programme that Kazakhstan presented at the Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development in June 2012. “Kazakhstan is actively working on its transition into a green economy. We have all that is needed to achieve this, including a vast territory, favourable geopolitical position and financial and natural resources,” he said.

President Niinistö said Kazakhstan had succeeded in balancing different interests and that it had successfully set long-term strategic goals and combined them with high rates of growth that had laid the foundation for the country’s success in the past 20 years. “I was pleased to learn that Kazakhstan is developing a strategy for the transition to a green economy,” he said. “Finland and Kazakhstan have projects in the water sector and they are developing energy efficiency and renewable energy resources.”

“A third of the 20 documents that were signed at the meeting were devoted to education. They will expand the collaboration and student exchanges between our two countries,” the Finnish president said.

Cooperation on green economy. education and science has to be launched according to the agrrement signed by the two presidents.

The forum concluded with the adoption of a declaration on cooperation in developing green economy.

“Kazakhstan is a country where economic growth is rapid. This means the wellbeing of its people is growing and its health system and education level are improving.

Those are very important factors,” he said.

At a joint press conference, President Nazarbayev thanked the Finnish leader Niinistö for his visit and expressed his appreciation of the growing ties between the two countries.

“Kazakhstan and Finland enjoy traditional friendly relations. Today’s bilateral political dialogue is

one of growth and trust,” he said.

“Our meeting with the president of Finland has been the third one in 18 months. Since 2010, the Embassy of Kazakhstan has been opened in Finland. This is another confirmation of the efforts of our countries to deepen partnership.”

“Despite the negative consequences of the global financial crisis, trade and economic cooperation between our countries has been growing,” President Nazarbayev said. “In 2012, the volume of bilateral trade reached $800 million.

This is 700 per cent more that our overall trade volume with the other Scandinavian countries. Today, we discussed the possibility of expanding participation of Finn-

ish businesses in projects to diversify our economy. This will further strengthen relations between our countries.”

President Nazarbayev said cooperation with Finland on green economy issues would also contribute greatly to preparations for EXPO 2017 in Astana on the theme of future and sustainable energy.

He said the two countries would also cooperate in new transport, construction and tourism projects.

He invited Finnish businessmen to launch joint ventures in the field of food processing.

Nazarbayev also answered questions about Kazakhstan’s upcoming accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and on progress

Senate Speaker’s Japan Visit Boosts Political, Economic Ties From Page A1 The confirmation of this is the completion in February of this year of a draft agreement on liberalisation, encouragement and protection of investments. At present the document is being prepared for official signing. Speaker Hirata expressed confidence that the adoption of the agreement will increase and intensify investment and humanitarian exchange between the two countries. Inter-parliamentary cooperation will contribute to the same purpose, he added.

Speaker Mami concurs with the idea that parliamentary cooperation will strengthen all-around cooperation and said that a visit to Kazakhstan by leaders of the Japanese Parliament could give a new impetus to cooperation.

Evolution of the Partnership

The status and prospects of Kazakh-Japanese relations were discussed at a meeting between Speaker Mami and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The head of the Japanese government conveyed his best wishes to President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan and stressed that Kazakhstan is an important partner for Japan. He also said that he would make every effort to strengthen bilateral relations and called for further promotion of inter-parliamentary relations as a significant component of successful collaboration.

In turn, Mami noted that Kazakhstan considers Japan an important partner in Asia and aims to develop the strategic partnership in all areas.

It’s worth mentioning that the close positions of the parties on the key issues of international security are contributing to the evolution of the Kazakhstan-Japan partnership.

Tokyo welcomed Kazakhstan’s accession to the Treaty on NonProliferation of Nuclear Weapons, highly appreciating the initiatives of Kazakhstan in international and regional organisations. It is symbolic that Japan has become a cosponsor of the U.N. General Assembly’s resolution proclaiming August 29 as the International Day against Nuclear Tests. In turn, Kazakhstan has consistently supported Japan in its election as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council. Tokyo supports the initiative on the Conference on In-

in expanding human rights and reforming the law-enforcement system.

“Accession to the WTO is of an economic nature,” he said. “Our country is striving to enter the family of civilized nations. Finland has been following the way of democracy for 100 years, while Kazakhstan has been an independent state only for 20 years. We believe we are advancing along this path more rapidly that Finland did.”

“After the collapse of the Soviet Union, we had to overcome the problems of survival, and did not think of others. Now we can say that Kazakhstan stands in the world as an example of equal rights and the freedom of all its citizens, representing more than 130 ethnic groups,” the president said. “We have 46 religions and we guarantee full religious freedom. We are improving our law-enforcement system. We believe that democracy and freedom, as they are practiced in the West and in Finland, are the final goal for us. We are following this path.”

President Niinistö said that Finland, unlike Kazakhstan, did not have a large number of national minorities. “It is the case that, owing to the financial crisis, Europe is experiencing radical movements including that of the ultra-right.

In Finland, the party of so-called ‘true-Finns’ became very popular for a short time,” he said. “Such forces do exist in Europe and they alarm us, making us worry whether the financial crisis will grow into a social crisis and then into the crisis of democracy.”

The two presidents signed agreements to boost cooperation on the green economy, education and science and to pair the cities of Astana and Oulu in Finland.

Experts See No Military Solution to Afghan Conflict

By Akbota Khamitova

Kairat Mami (left) and Bunmei Ibuki (right) agreed to futher Kazakh-Japanese cooperation on political and economical issues. teraction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, and is officially involved in the forum as observer.

No less important is the participation of Japanese spiritual leaders in the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions held in Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana. Last year, Tsuneki Tanaka, the president of Jinja Honcho, the Association of Shinto Shrines, was elected a member of the Council of Religious Leaders during the fourth spiritual forum in Astana.

One of the most recent examples of approval by Tokyo of Kazakhstan’s international initiatives is the statement made by the Japanese side to support Astana’s bid to host the international specialised exhibition, EXPO 2017.

Prime Minister Abe earlier also stressed that Kazakhstan highly appreciates the assistance of Japan in overcoming the environmental and social consequences of nuclear tests in the Semipalatinsk region, as well as the rehabilitation of the Aral Sea. No less important is the support of the Japanese government in the process of building and upgrading major infrastructure in Kazakhstan.

The dynamic political dialogue between the two countries is confirmed by healthy, pragmatic economic relations, which, according to experts, have achieved a breakthrough in the past few years as a result of enhanced cooperation in the industrial, energy and financial sectors. The signing in 2007 of a

joint declaration on strengthening the strategic partnership in the field of peaceful nuclear energy, as well as more than 20 agreements between JSC National Atomic Company Kazatomprom and leading energy companies in Japan, allowed Kazakhstan access to advanced technologies in the nuclear industry and increased the share of Kazakh uranium products in the Japanese market, including high added-value products.

The visit of President Nursultan Nazarbayev to Japan in June 2008, during which the parties identified new paths and prospects for economic partnership, gave a powerful impetus to bilateral cooperation.

Positive relations contributed to increased trade, economic and investment cooperation, intensified visits and contacts at various levels between ministries and agencies and the business community of both countries and helped to increase the interest of Japanese financial institutions in the Kazakhstan market.

Today, 26 enterprises using Japanese capital are working in Kazakhstan in oil and gas, metals and mining, finance, automotive, telecommunications and other industries.

New perspectives for cooperation have opened up to Japanese investors in connection with the guidelines of Strategy Kazakhstan 2050, which was presented during the current visit of Speaker Mami to Japan, at a forum organised

by the International Council of Friendly Exchanges in Japan and the Embassy of Kazakhstan. The event aroused great interest among representatives of Japanese business circles.

Mikio Kurokawa, son of the famous architect Kisho Kurokawa, the author of the general development plan of Astana, said that he was happy and proud to continue his father’s work with the new emerging opportunities in Kazakhstan.

“I sincerely hope that the company, which has now been entrusted to me to lead, will contribute to the development of infrastructure in the capital of Kazakhstan. Of particular interest to us are the prospects of the future construction of an innovation cluster based in Nazarbayev University,” said the president of the well-known architectural and construction company that bears his father’s name.

An optimistic forecast on the investment activity of the Japanese capital in the implementation of strategic plans in Kazakhstan was voiced by the first ambassador of Japan to Kazakhstan, Akira Matsui.

Winding up the official trip to Japan, representatives of the Kazakh delegation Chairman of the Agency for Religious Affairs Kairat Lama Sharif, Senators Erlan Nigmatulin and Lyazzat Turlashov visited the headquarters of the Shinto Shrines Association, where they met with Tsuneki Tanaka.

ASTANA – On April 11, an international conference on “Regional Security and the Situation in Afghanistan” took place at the Center for Military and Strategic Studies here. The conference was organized by the Center for Military and Strategic Studies with the cooperation of the Public Opinion research institute and the Embassy of Pakistan.

Deputies of the Mazhilis, the lower house of the Parliament of Kazakhstan, and leading Kazakh and international experts attended the conference. Government officials and representatives of the United Nations, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the European Union participated as well as diplomatic representatives from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Latvia, Russia and Iran.

The conference took place before the scheduled withdrawal of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) from Afghanistan in 2014. It discussed proposals to stabilise conditions there, economic recovery and humanitarian aid after the ISAF withdrawal.

Participants in the conference emphasized the importance of the international community’s efforts to stabilize Afghanistan and to promote its socio-economic development. Despite individual differences in approaches and assessments of the situation in Afghanistan, as well as forecasts of its future development, the participants of the conference agreed that the Afghan conflict lacked a military solution.

Afghanistan’s Ambassador to Astana Sohrab Ali Saffary addressed the conference and emphasized Kazakhstan’s important role in the economic recovery of his country. The key to resolving it remained in the hands of the Afghan people and government, Ambassador Saffary said.

A part of the so called Istanbul process, a third International Ministerial Conference on Afghanistan entitled “Heart of Asia” will be held in Almaty on April 26. It will explore issues of regional security and stability and initiatives to promote stabilization, political and economic recovery of Afghanistan.

Around 50 different delegations from countries and international organisations are expected to participate.

The author is chief research fellow of the Institute of Statehood, Security and Development at The Nazarbayev Center.

The Astana Times

А4

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

Economy

President Proposes New National Investors Council

By Yernat Mukhamadiyev ASTANA – On April 10, President Nursultan Nazarbayev addressed the Entrepreneurs Council in Astana during a session dedicated to improving the business climate and enhancing competitiveness and announced the creation of a new National Investors Council.

“It is important to create the conditions for the cooperation of business, especially at the regional level,” the president said.

Nazarbayev said private sector development was a critical component of the Kazakhstan 2050 development plan to make Kazakhstan one of the 30 most economically advanced countries in the world and one of the top financial centres in Asia.

The president said the private business sector should become the main driving force of the economy.

The country needed to double its business volume. Another wave of privatisation was essential. The state also needed to quickly develop and implement measures to allow small businesses to grow into medium-sized ones.

The president said Kazakhstan had become an international leader in making reforms to simplify conditions for setting up companies and conducting business. The law enforcement system is being reformed to reduce pressures on businesses. Inspections on them are banned in their first three years of activity. The frequency of tax

Kazakhstan’s business class has grown wide and high over the first twenty years of the country’s independence, and now wants a bigger say in business regulations. reporting has been reduced for individual entrepreneurs.

“A strong economy is dependent on the existence of a strong business sector with highly competitive domestic enterprises,” Nazarbayev said. “It is time for business to help the state.” The Entrepreneurs Council will also be transformed into a National Investors Council, he said.

The president discussed the role of the private sector in meeting the challenges of the Single Economic Space (SES) and Kazakhstan’s upcoming accession in the World Trade Organization. He stressed the need to make domestic products competitive and instructed the government to work with the Atameken Union to adopt a joint action plan to promote and

protect the interests of domestic businessmen within the SES. “The country’s legislation should be entirely revised. I have high hopes on Atameken Union activity and it will coincide with the objectives of the Nur Otan political party,” the President said.

“We must teach people how to do business. We should teach people first, not every businessman can

German Company Invests in Modular Construction in Kazakhstan

By Galiya Nurzhan

ASTANA – A major German company is investing big in modular construction in Kazakhstan. On March 28, the KAZNEX INVEST Agency and the Chandler Modu-

lar company from Germany held a press briefing on their new project at KAZNEX offices.

Markhabbat Balgabay, KAZNEX INVEST’s regional director for Europe, and Alexander Eckart, Chandler Modular’s

German constructors offer cost-effective and ecofriendly ways to build homes, school, hospitals, etc.

director general in Kazakhstan took part.

In 2012, the Chandler Group Company with the support of KAZNEX INVEST decided to build a factory in the Saryarka Special Economic Zone. The factory has been completed and is already manufacturing the modular units to construct medical centres specializing in obstetrics in the Karaganda region. They will be built as part of the 2013-15 three year state programme to expand the nation’s health infrastructure in rural areas.

The project will demonstrate the advantages of the modular construction method that is widely used in Europe. It is a cost-effective assembly of modular units.

The modular construction of operating rooms helps maintain clean air standards of only three motes per single cubic metre of air to prevent infection.

Chandler executives say their modular construction system can build schools, kindergartens, hostels and hospitals far more cheaply,

reliably and efficiently especially in remote regions that lack easy access to conventional building materials.

The new Karaganda medical centres will be built with modules made of materials that can retain their internal temperatures for three days, and that use far less energy. They may also be equipped with solar energy panels.

Eckart said that after the prototype project is completed, his company is prepared to start talks with the ministries of education and science, healthcare, and emergency situations on projects for them around the country.

The new plant has an initial capacity of producing 2,000 square metres (21,527 square feet) of modular construction material per month, later rising to 5,000 square metres (53,819 square feet) per month. The factory will produce modular buildings of any size and function adapted to extreme low temperatures.

The modular method allows the

keep an entire accounting department, a businessman should be taught to work with banks and the state.”

The Atameken Union, or National Union of Entrepreneurs, was created on March 24, 2005 at the Congress of Entrepreneurs of Kazakhstan on the instructions of PresidentNazarbayev. On June 5, 2007 the delegates of the Atameken-NEU Congress changed it into the Atameken Union-National Economic Chamber.

That body is now the leading organization of Kazakhstan’s business community and more than 90 percent of all business associations in the country are members of it. The chamber provides experts to sit on government councils and commissions dealing with business issues and uses its own experts to analyze the drafts of regulatory legal acts. It also organizes unified positions on major economic issues and government policies from the business community.

The Atameken Union is also a member of many international organizations including the World Chambers Federation (WCF), which covers commercial, industrial, economic, marine, stockexchanges, lands and customs associations, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the Union of Black Sea and Caspian Region Confederation of Enterprises (UBCCE) and other bodies.

rapid construction of up to 500 square metres (5,380 square feet) per day. In Novossibirsk, Russia a hospital with an internal area of 20,000 square metres (210,500 square feet) was completed in three months. Chandler plans to export units made inKaraganda to Siberia.

Chandler executives believe demand for their units will be high in Kazakhstan. They say the Ministry of Emergency Situations plans to construct medical aid stations using modular units every 500 kilometres (300 miles) on major roads. Outpatient clinics in towns and new school buildings around the country will also be built with them. New slaughterhouses for the country’s rapidly expanding meat export industry will also be built with them.

However, Balgabay told the briefing there was still a serious barrier for the introduction of modular construction technology in the country.

“The new product should be integrated in local legislation,” he said. “The main task of KAZNEX INVEST is to support the project and revise construction standards that haveexisted since the Soviet era. They still do not allow us to use modular construction to its full extent.

The Chandler Group is based in Hamburg and has operations in Russia, Belgium, the United States, Ukraine, Belarus and Central Asia. The company offers its customers a variety of modern, fire-safety building materials and technologies for metal and wooden structures, vinyl windows and up-to-date climate control and ventilation systems. The company transports its modules to any destination around the world using all types of transportation: sea, road, rail and air. The system permits the design of new buildings of any shape and size using standard, uniform units. Buildings constructed with Chandler’s modular technology are constructed in accordance with accepted international quality and safety standards with a warranty period of at least 30 years.

Most utilities, such as ventilation, air conditioning, heating, lighting, sockets and sanitary equipment can be installed at the plant. Usually, the modular units do not require a strong foundation.

Modules are structures consisting of a metal frame and enclosing elements. The metal is galvanized to prevent corrosion. The frame has vertical, load-bearing pillars and horizontal beams for the installation of windows and doors.

Walls can be made ofcorrugated metal sheet, sandwich panels, or other materials.

Modular buildings can function either as offices or living spaces.

Originally, modular buildings and block-modules were used as huts in inaccessible areas. Today, they can be found at major hospitals and educational establishments around the world.

Business News in Brief ● The Kazakhstan National Security Committee has made a bid to host the 22nd World Petroleum Congress in Astana in 2017, KazEnergy Association Executive Director Ramazan Zhampiisov said on April 19. Zhampiisov told a meeting of the Council of Associations of Oil-Gas and Energy Sector of KazEnergy that Houston in the United States was also bidding to host the congress. “Voting will take place in the Canadian city of Calgary in October to choose one of the two candidates,” he said.

“The voting will be secret.” He said Kazakhstan has a good chance of winning. “First, the World Petroleum Congress has never been held in the Central Asian region.

Second, Kazakhstan has experience in this kind of large-scale events,” he said. KazEnergy Association chief Timur Kulibayev said thecongress would be held in October 2017, just after EXPO 2017 in Astana. “All the exhibition centres in Astana built for EXPO 2017 will be ready to hold the congress too,” he said. The World Petroleum Congress is held every three years. Moscow will host the next one in 2014. ● The Kazakh-Turkmen section of the Uzen-Etrek-Gorgan railway will be opened on May 11, Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (Kazakhstan State Railways) chief Askar Mamin told a meeting on Samruk Kazyna National Wealth Fund investment on April 19.

“Traffic on the Uzen-Turkmen border route will start on May 11 by sending grain shipments to Turkmenistan,” he said. The new rail link will connect Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran on a route to the Persian Gulf.

Mamin said the leaders of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan would attend the opening ceremony.

The route will have a capacity to transport 10 million tons of cargo per year. ● The government of Kazakhstan will draw up a long-term plan for the country’s mining and metallurgical industry, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry and New Technologies Aset Issekeshev told a mining conference on April 19. The meeting was attended by government officials and senior executives of the Samruk Kazyna National Welfare Fund, the Atameken Union National Economic Chamber and stateowned companies. “The basis for the development of the industrial development strategyfor the future will be contained in a master plan up to 2030,” Issekeshev said. The plan was drawn up in 2012 and is 4,000 pages long. The plan will be implemented in three stages: in 2013-2014, in 2015-2020 and 2026-2030. ● Kazakhstan will advance from assembling cars to the full automobile production cycle with a high level of local manufacturing of parts, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry and New Technologies Asset Issekeshev told the first Forum of Machinery Constructors on April 17.

“Last year, domestic enterprises produced over 19,000 cars. This is six times more than in 2010.

In 2012, Kazakhstan for the first time became an exporter of automotive products,” he said. He said a plan to develop a full-scale automobile industry from scratch had been drawn up. “Automobile manufacturers have received credit and leases of state institutions worth more than 10 billion tenge ($66.18 million). The first line of painting and welding will be installed by the end of this year.

By 2017, we will increase the local content in the vehicles to 50 percent,” he said. ● On May 24, Astana will host the fourth International Investment Forum called “Astana Invest 2013” at the Palace of Independence. It is aimed at attracting investment into the city, astana.kz said. The forum will have sessions on the investment image of Astana in the world, on public-private partnership as an instrument to attract investment and Astana’s role in hosting EXPO 2017, the report said. The event will involve government officials, business executives and executives from international businesses and financial institutions.

The Astana Times

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

А5

Business

economy News in Brief ● A regular meeting of the Turkmenistan-Kazakhstan intergovernmental commission on economic, scientific and technical, and cultural cooperation will be held soon in Ashgabat, the government of Turkmenistan announced on April 20.

The meeting will discuss implementing current intergovernmental agreements and expanding bilateral cooperation. Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan have signed more than 60 agreements including an agreement on trade and economic, scientific and technical and cultural cooperation to 2020. ● Oil and Gas Minister Sauat Mynbayev said on April 19 that Kazakhstan will be self-sufficient in domestic oil needs by 2016.

“Concerning the fuel, lubricants and petroleum products, we have set more close terms for the goal of supplying our domestic market fully with 100 percent domestic products,” he told an online conference on the Kazakhstan 2050 national strategy. “This is due to the reconstruction of three oil refineries: Work on this is already underway in Atyrau and will begin soon on the refineries in Shymkent and Pavlodar. The products will meet Euro-4 and Euro-5 standards.” ● The National Economic Chamber of Kazakhstan Atameken Union and the Regional Economic Cooperation project of the U.S. Agency for International Development (AID) plan to hold round table talks with government officials and business leaders from Uzbekistan in Tashkent on April 26. They will try to establish close trade cooperation between businessmen in both countries and find ways to solve existing problems in bilateral trade. ● Investment in fixed capital grew by 8.5 percent to 852.8 billion tenge ($5.64 billion) in JanuaryMarch 2013 compared to the same period last year, Statistics Agency of Kazakhstan chairman Alikhan Smailov told a briefing in the Central Communications Service on April 15. Short-term economic growth indicators for JanuaryMarch 2013 were 103.7 percent compared to January-March 2012. ● The Ministry of Industry and New Technology (MINT) believes Kazakhstan-based car-assembling plants will be able to produce 300,000 cars a year, MINT First Deputy Minister Albert Rau told a round-table conference on the auto industry on April 16. He said that in 2012, 100,000 new cars were sold in Kazakhstan, 20,000 of them domestically produced. Rau said domestic demand was far greater and that most of the 4 million cars currently registered in the country are used imports from abroad. ● Representatives of the 40 biggest companies of Switzerland took part in a meeting on trade and economic cooperation with Kazakhstan in the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies (MINT) on April 14. The Swiss business delegation was led by Johann N. Schneider-Ammann, a Swiss federal councillor and head of the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research (EAER).

The meeting explored cooperation in tourism, chemistry, pharmaceuticals, engineering, ore mining, agriculture, railway transportation and logistics. The Swiss group said it would prepare proposals for cooperation. ● Kazakhstan needs to invest at least 1 percent of its annual gross domestic product in the green economy, Environmental Protection Minister Nurlan Kapparov told the Creation of the Green Economy in Kazakhstan conference on April 12. “Kazakhstan is already ready to introduce the green economy financially and psychologically. The programmes are being prepared,” he said. “After our new green economy strategy has been approved, we will begin this transition. It will be a long program implemented over 20 to 30 years.” The minister said it was still difficult to speak about the exact ways the transition would be made. “China has pledged to invest 1.5 percent of GDP in its green economy. South Korea has accepted the plan of green development and pledged to invest 2 percent of its GDP in it. Therefore, we think there are a lot of models. I think a 1 percent of GDP figure will be necessary for us.”

World’s Premier Trade Show Focuses on “Industry 4.0”

By Galiya Nurzhan HANNOVER – The premier international trade show, Hannover Messe 2013, was held in Hannover, Germany on April 7-12 to highlight the current state of the art in industry, preview key future trends towards integration and open up new prospects for expert dialogue across all aspects of Industry 4.0, one name for the current “fourth industrial revolution.”

The event is held annually. The first Hannover Messe was held in 1947. Kazakhstan participated in Hannover Messe in 2004. President Nursultan Nazarbayev attended the event. This was the first time when Kazakhstan was represented there.

This year, Russia, the world’s sixth largest economy, was featured as the show’s official Partner Country.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin opened Hannover Messe 2013 on April 7 at a function attended by more than 3,000 invited guests.

“This Messe partnership comes at just the right time. For at present a Russia Year is taking place in Germany and a Germany Year in Russia. The motto of the series of events in the two countries is “Germany and Russia – shaping the future together.” Hannover Messe 2013 provides an excellent opportunity to give substance to this concept. It enables numerous companies from our two countries to showcase their latest products and technologies, to intensify their cooperation and to make new contacts,” Chancellor Merkel said at the opening ceremony. Speakers also included Federal Minister of Education and Research Professor Johanna Wanka, Lower Saxony Prime Minister Stephan Weil and German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers’Association (ZVEI) President Friedhelm Loh. In his welcoming speech, Loh pointed out that this event served as a showcase for the latest innovations from all sectors of industry, from IT to mechanical engineering and the electrical industry.

“The show is taking place at a very exciting time, a time of revolution in industrial processes. Industry, science and research are gearing up for the next stage in the development of integrated intelligent process structures. Today we are a lot further on in technological terms, and we can rightly speak of the ‘fourth industrial revolution,’ otherwise known as Industry 4.0,” Loh said.

In conclusion, Loh stressed that the Hannover Messe continues to be a source of endless fascination for the simple reason that it opens a window onto our future.

During the opening ceremony of the event, Professor Wanka announced the winner of the Hermes Award, one of the most valuable technology prizes worldwide, which singles out outstanding innovations pioneered by individual companies. This year Bosch Rexroth AG from Lohr, an internationally successful manufacturer of high-tech products, received the award for its Open Core Engineering project.

This year’s Hannover Messe attracted 6,550 exhibitors from 62 nations, highlighting a multitude of innovative products and technology solutions, and provided a vivid showcase for the keynote theme “Integrated Industry.”

The event comprised 11 flagship fairs: Industrial Automation; Motion, Drive & Automation (MDA); Energy; Wind; MobiliTec; Digital Factory; ComVac; Industrial Supply; IndustrialGreenTec; Surface Technology and Research & Technology.

The Industrial Automation trade show put the spotlight on integrated automation processes with themes like Embedded Systems and Smart Production. Leading robot manufacturers and system providers organised a “Parade of Robots” to showcase their latest production automation technology and solutions.

The keynote theme of the event was also manifested in many aspects of the Motion Drive & Automation (MDA) trade show, including condition monitoring systems displays. Industrial automation and power transmission and control technologies are steadily converging as the industrial world goes digital. The concept of integrated industry is at the forefront of this trend. The exhibitors at this year’s MDA show focused on efficient and sustainable intelligent integrated system solutions.

The leading-edge technologies displayed by exhibitors at the Energy trade show illustrated their ability to make a real contribution to the global transition in energy systems. Exhibits covered the entire energy industry supply chain, from generation, grid supply, transmission, distribution and storage through to the latest IT and market mechanisms for smart grids.

Wind power is seen as the driving force among the various renewable energy options. Leading manufacturers, subcontractors, logistics specialists and service providers were on hand to present their new concept designs and technologies for on- and off-shore solutions, and they used the international industrial platform provided by Hannover Messe to highlight their skills for the energy transition.

The enormous potential of integrated industry was also abundantly clear at the Digital Factory show, where the spotlight was on process integration and interdisciplinary product development.

The ComVac (Compressed Air and Vacuum Technology) show outlined ways of making production processes more energy efficient. The focus was on state-ofthe-art solutions, which consumed significantly less electric power and are more maintenance-friendly, with lower noise emissions, adding up to clear efficiency gains in production operations.

At the Surface Technology show, exhibitors presented integrated surface systems and the latest innovations in a range of fields, including nanotechnology. In keeping with

the “Integrated Industry” theme, the show explored ways in which industrial companies could use surface technology to enhance the energy- and resource-efficiency of their plants and processes.

The exhibitors at IndustrialGreenTec highlighted ways of integrating environmental management systems into existing business models, identifying opportunities for developing new, eco-friendly products and streamlining complex systems and processes. Special attention was given to best-practice examples in terms of resource efficiency and the conservation of natural resources.

As well as offering eleven fullfledged trade shows where market leaders could present their innovations, Hannover Messe featured a rich lineup of supporting forums, conferences and special events.

These included the Smart Grids Forum, Industrial IT Forum, Night of Innovations, Metropolitan Solutions Forum, Efficiency Arena Forum and the Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Technical Forum.

The intelligent energy supply was a major highlight at Hannover Messe this year. Due to the holistic view and demonstration from energy generation to consumption, the Smart Grids Forum showed solutions from all point of views in the energy sector.

Information and communication technologies are playing an increasingly important role in automation. Talks and discussions about efficient, fully integrated solutions for customer-oriented applications took place at the In-

A VW stand showcased the assembly line for its cars.

dustrial IT Forum. The Night of Innovations event has established itself as a perfect platform at Hannover Messe, where top people from science, industry and the political arena get together and talk about the cutting-edge and innovative technology. Exhibitors from the Research & Technology show invited trade visitors and exhibitors from other trade fairs to experience various fascinating presentations, shows and discussions affording insights into future-focused innovations.

Hannover Messe 2013 drew to a successful close on April 12.

“Over the past several days, the world’s leading trade fair for industrial technology has underscored its role as a key driver of the fourth industrial revolution. The experts all agree that integrated approaches to manufacturing are going to have a sweeping impact on global industry over the next 10 to 15 years, and beyond,” Dr. Köckler of the Managing Board at Deutsche Messe AG said.

“Hannover Messe 2013 has been a resounding success, and has demonstratively underscored its reputation as the world’s No. 1 showcase for innovations. Under the rallying call of ‘Integrated Industry,’ Hannover Messe exhibitors are forging ahead and laying the groundwork for tomorrow’s production reality,” Chairman of the Hannover Messe Exhibitors’ Committee Dietmar Harting said.

Hannover Messe 2013 featured a powerful array of networking events, panel discussions and forums to cultivate and multiply the

myriad valuable new business contacts and concrete business deals made at the exhibition stands.

Decision makers and investors from around the world attended this event to learn about the latest trends, themes and technologies.

The next Hannover Messe will be held April 7-11, 2014.

On April 11-12, on a trip to Germany, a Kazakh delegation headed by the First Deputy Governor of the Atyrau region Goumar Duisembayev visited Hannover and Hamburg.

The visit of the delegation was held in the context of the tasks set

by President Nursultan Nazarbayev in his Strategy “Kazakhstan 2050”, the main priorities of the 2010-14 State Programme for Accelerated Industrial-Innovative Development, as well as the instructions of the president on the results of his visit to Germany in February 2012.

During his visit to Hannover, Duisembayev met with Mayor Bernd Schtrauch, and visited Hannover Messe 2013.

At the exhibition, the delegation held bilateral meetings and talks with the leaders of a number of leading German and European companies, such as Dena, SMS MEER GmbH, Bilfinger, Vestas, E.ON, BIOPRO etc. The delegation was introduced with the latest achievements in the development of innovation, technology and automation in industry, renewable energy, integrated systems, information and digital technologies.

Following the meetings, the agreements were reached on cooperation in promoting the implementation of universally recognized international standards ICEx, API in the field of oil and gas industry, monitoring and management of quality petroleum products, investment in the industry of conventional and renewable energy, as well as studying the possibility of establishing joint ventures in Kazakhstan.

With a view to the practical implementation of the agreements achieved between the Atyrau Socio-Entrepreneurial Corporation and the B.T. Innovation GmbH Company, a protocol of cooperation on the construction of housebuilding plant in the Atyrau region was signed. In addition, Gabdin Pipe LLP and SMS MEER GmbH signed a Memorandum of Understanding on implementation of the project “Construction of the plant for the production of longitudinally welded steel pipes” in Atyrau.

In order to benefit from the expertise on the application of high energy-saving technologies, the delegation also visited a number of leading enterprises in Hamburg, the leading of which is an aircraft plant of the Airbus Concern.

А6

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

The Astana Times editorial

Afghanistan Faces Uncertain Future, Needs All Assistance It Can Get

The socio-economic situation in Afghanistan has been improving gradually and slowly.

However, it continues to cause great concern to the international community, especially with regard to the upcoming withdrawal of coalition forces from that country.

The main causes of this situation in Afghanistan is the difficulty for the government, despite the assistance of many countries, to rebuild the economy, raise living standards, reduce unemployment, stop drug production and drug trafficking and, in general, stabilize the situation.

The most recent war in Afghanistan has now lasted for more than 11 years since the invasion of American troops in the country after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 9, 2001.

The conflict between the Taliban militants, to which a part of the Afghan population is sympathetic and the central government, supported by the international coalition, continues. Drug trafficking from Afghanistan to other countries of the world has not stopped and has a tendency to increase despite the presence of the coalition forces in the country. Analysts say the income from drug trafficking is used for financing terrorist groups in Afghanistan.

The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) for Afghanistan, working jointly with the Afghan security forces, has pushed Taliban out of the central provinces. However, groups of militants, sheltered in remote regions of the country, have realigned their forces, continue to carry out attacks on government troops and the troops of the international coalition, as well as governmental agencies. They launch terrorist acts across the entire country, while avoiding direct clashes with the forces of the coalition.

The efforts of the United States and other NATO countries to promote stability in Afghanistan have not yielded significant results even at huge financial costs. The long war has no realistic prospects for military victory over the militants. The realization of this eventually led to the need to discuss the presence of troops of the international coalition in Afghanistan at the forum of heads of NATO states.

In May 2012, at the NATO Summit in Chicago, Alliance leaders decided to withdraw their troops from Afghanistan. The final document of the summit defined the terms for transfer of control over security in the country to the Afghan national security forces by mid-2013. The withdrawal of the international coalition troops is to be completed by the end of 2014.

It was also decided that after the withdrawal, some U.S. and other foreign troops would remain as a limited contingent of military advisers to train units of the national security forces – the Afghan army, the police and other security forces.

Despite all measures taken, the main problems of the Afghan army and the police remain their low combat capability, high desertion rates and involvement in corruption. These problems make international coalition leaders concerned about these forces’ ability to take responsibility for security in the country.

Many experts fear the withdrawal of the coalition forces will be followed by a new round of civil war. They fear these events will be followed by the intrusion of extremist elements into neighbouring countries which could destabilise the situations in them. They also fear the expansion of drug trafficking across the region caused by an increase in production of heroin and opium from Afghanistan.

Many nations provide the Afghan government with comprehensive support in the political and economic, social, military and humanitarian spheres. International conferences around the world discuss and take decisions on assistance to Afghanistan in providing security, peace and stability. International conferences with these agendas were held in London in January 2010, Kabul in July 2010, Istanbul in November 2011, Bonn in December 2011, Kabul in June 2012 and Tokyo in July 2012.

In different parts of the world, a number of scholarly and social events devoted to the Afghan problem are also held. The Russian Institute for Strategic Studies held an international conference on April 4 titled “Afghanistan after 2014: Possible Scenario for Development of the Regional Situation and the Russian Strategy.”

At the Kazakhstan Military Strategic Studies Center in Astana on April 11, an international conference was held with the title “Regional Security and the Situation in Afghanistan.”

Why is Afghanistan so important to the world? Why, for many decades, have most countries in the world paid such close attention and provided so much support to Afghanistan, spending huge financial means for humanitarian and other assistance? After all, there are many other countries in the world with low levels of social life, where people suffer hunger, deprivation and need, and who need immediate and comprehensive assistance of the international community. This is particularly true with regards to the population living on the African continent.

The mass media has widely reported the current situation and the events in Afghanistan.

However, the answers to these questions be-

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come clear when examined from the position of globalisation.

Afghanistan occupies one of the key locations in Central Asia. The country is in a strategically important region at the crossroads of trade routes from Russia to Asia, from China to Europe and to the Middle East. Great importance also accrues to the transit potential of the region, where it is possible to implement an extensive network of transportation of energy resources, especially oil and gas pipelines.

The interests of the main world political players and neighbouring countries intersect in the region. They have clearly defined goals and intentions regarding Afghanistan.

The main objective of the countries of Central Asia and Kazakhstan is to protect their borders from the possible infiltration of extremist elements that can contribute to a destabilisation in these countries, as well as the suppression of drug trafficking. They want to encourage fair trade, the transportation of electricity, the construction of road, railways and other national economic projects and cultural exchanges between the citizens of the neighboring countries to stabilize conditions in Afghanistan.

The history of Afghanistan in the 19th and early 20th centuries was associated with repeated aspirations of the great powers to conquer the country and make it their colony. The Afghan people fought for many centuries for their independence and freedom. They repeatedly expelled foreign occupiers.

In this connection, it is appropriate to recall the words of President Nursultan Nazarbayev in 2000, “Afghanistan is a special regional problem... Kazakhstan has always maintained a solid and realistic position. It comes down to the fact that the national dialogue needs to come from the Afghan people, and the role of all the neighbours and international organizations should be limited to the search for options. Even the army of the British Empire and the military superpower of the Soviet Union did not achieve victory in the Afghan mountains. To hope that someone will be able to impose external force to solve the Afghan question means one has little knowledge of history ...” President Nazarbayev’s insights then are equally relevant today.

The main message of the international conferences and events on Afghanistan is to recognise the difficulty for its government to provide security and stability on its own. The withdrawal of ISAF could enhance these concerns.

The election of a new president of Afghanistan could play a key role in the resolution of the conflict after the withdrawal of the international coalition in late 2014.

Despite the current instability in Afghanistan, the positive initiatives of the current government should be celebrated. In November 2011, all of its government’s plans, including a programme of national development and the mechanisms for its implementation as well as the agreement between Afghanistan and the United States on strategic partnership and support for negotiations with the opposition were approved at a meeting of the Loya Jirga.

In general, participants in international conferences around the world have come to the same conclusion that the Afghan problem does not have a military solution. The key to solving the problem remains primarily in the hands of the Afghan people and government through a national dialogue with all political forces, including the armed opposition, as well as socioeconomic recovery and regional cooperation.

Kazakhstan has supported the actions of the international coalition with the adoption of the UN Security Council in 2001 of a resolution to support the entry into Afghanistan of ISAF, given the interests of the people of Kazakhstan and the international community. Our country constantly provides full support and assistance to Afghanistan in political, economic, social, military, educational and humanitarian fields.

On Nov. 15, 2011 the 12th meeting of the International Contact Group on Afghanistan (ICG) took place in Astana. It addressed issues of long-term stability and development in the country. During a recent visit to Kabul of Defence Minister Adilbek Dzhaksybekov, a new initiative was proposed to the Afghan government. Our delegation offered to train Afghan security forces troops in Kazakhstan.

Demonstrating commitment to its obligations to the international coalition in Afghanistan, the Kazakh government sought ratification of an agreement on the participation in ISAF. However, since ISAF is now going to withdraw from Afghanistan the government has decided to revoke the document.

The third Ministerial Conference on Afghanistan of States Parties to the Istanbul Process is to open in Almaty on April 26. The people in Kazakhstan, Central Asia and the wider international community expect it to provide positive results in proposing and advancing new tangible measures to address the problems of Afghanistan. Facing uncertain future, Afghanistan needs all the honest sustained international assistance it can get today, tomorrow, and in the future.

New Class of Professional Managers to Form Civil Service Elite

By Marat Daueshov

The advanced state of Kazakhstan’s civil service is recognised around the world. A clear confirmation of that positive international reputation is the United Nations Development Programme initiative to establish a regional hub of public services for the countries of Central Asia, the Caucasus and Russia at the Agency for Civil Service Affairs and the Academy of Public Administration under President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

The main activities of the hub will be the exchange of experience, research, the training of civil servants and promoting reform in the region.

A new stage of development of the national civil service system was signaled with the adoption in December 2012 of the law “On amendments to some legislative acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan for the public service.”

Among the most important priorities of further strengthening the state, designated in Strategy Kazakhstan 2050, is continuing to reform the state through anti-corruption measures, improving transparency in the selection of civil servants and strengthening the principle of meritocracy. Provisions of the new legislation are aimed primarily at introducing modern technologies which ensure efficient and transparent procedures for admission to the civil service and the opportunity for professional development of civil servants and, ultimately, the increase of public confidence in the state apparatus.

In accordance with the law, a vertical corps of executive power has been introduced. Great importance has been given to the implementation of the strategy’s task to create a new class of professional managers: the A Corps. Representatives of the administrative body are to play a special role in ensuring the relationship between decision-making and implementation; they are also responsible for

the implementation of specific government policies.

In keeping with the Presidential Decree of March 7, 2013, “On approval of the register of civil servants’ positions,” the A Corps includes executive secretaries of the central state bodies, chairmen of committees, heads of regional governors’ (akims) administrations, governors of cities and regions and other senior officials.

The National Commission for Human Resources under the president of Kazakhstan, the main principles of which are meritocracy and openness, was assigned to form a pool for the posts in the A Corps.

The main tasks of the commission are defined in the decree of March 7, 2013 and include the development of proposals and recommendations to the president on the formation of human resources policy and its implementation with respect of administrative officials of the A Corps; examination of special qualification requirements for positions in the body, recommendations on the formation of a personnel reserve of managers and assessment of civil servants of the A Corps and planning of their careers, including rotation and making suggestions for the dismissal of civil

servants in the management body. The National Commission will conduct interviews with each candidate who passes the preliminary stage of selection.

The staff structure of the National Commission is defined by the head of state and includes the deputy head of the President’s Administration for Regional Policy, the deputy prime minister in charge of Administrative Reform and Civil Service; vice-chairmen of the Senate and the Mazhilis of the Parliament, the chairman of the Agency for Civil Service Affairs, the minister of justice, the head of the prime minister’s office, the advisor to the president and the chair of the National Commission for Women, Family and Demographic Policy under President of Kazakhstan.

The commission is led by the head of the Presidential Administration.

By analogy with the National Commission, other commissions have been formed in regional centres, cities of national importance and the capital, in order to implement a special procedure for the competitive selection of a talent pool of state servants. In accordance with the current law, the main principles in the selection and competition of candidates are fairness, professionalism and meritocracy.

In compliance with the decree of March 7, 2013, the Agency for Civil Service developed and approved special qualification requirements for the administrative positions of the A Corps.

Thus, applicants will actually justify at meetings of the National Commission their right to represent the management body of the country.

The National Commission for Human Resources Policy was tasked by the president to form the A Corps by July first.

The author is the head of the Department of Civil Service and Personnel Policy of the President’s Administration.

Protecting Teenagers on the Internet

By Alexandra Chernyavskaya Today, Internet penetration in Kazakhstan has reached almost 50 percent.

There are 49.5 internet users for every 100 citizens, compared to only 15 users per 100 in 2008. This has led to an increase in the number of underage users.

There are no official statistics for the exact number of young Internet users in Kazakhstan, but several popular local web sites provide numbers that help to make an approximate estimation.

One of the most popular web sites in the country has more than 5,400,000 visitors per month. Teenagers between the ages of 12 and 17 comprise 7 percent of all visitors, including 5 percent of all females and 2 percent of all males. Russian, European and American web sites tend to be more popular among Kazakhstan’s users, so the underage audience of those sites may be well above 400,000.

The popularity of the Internet provides young people with a whole world of opportunities for communication, education, and leisure. However, the Internet also provides a perfect environment for criminal activity directed at children and teenagers.

The Internet gives multiple opportunities, it is easily accessible to criminals and it lacks centralized and coordinated regulation. The Net also provides a level of anonymity that did not exist before.

As the popularity of the Internet among young people increases, the criminal activity directed at minors grows as well.

Although there is no solid evidence to suggest that these two phenomena are directly related, one can hardly deny the fact that sex offenders who target children actively use Internet to find their victims. According to the Committee for Legal Statistics and Special Accountancy of the General Prosecutor’s Office, the number of sex crimes against children before the age 16 increased by 48 percent in 2011 compared with the previous year, and by a further 63 percent in 2012, when they amounted to 232 cases. Also, 248 rape cases were registered in 2012.

Knowing that official statistics generally underrepresent the real state of affairs, it can be suspected that the actual numbers are higher.

Current legislation in most countries is very clear about punishments for sex offences against minors, but when it comes to similar offences carried out online, the legislation is not so unanimous. A number of countries including Australia, Canada, the United States and Britain have introduced the concept of “grooming” into their legislation as well as punishment for it. However, Russia and Kazakhstan do not have legislation covering online offences. Therefore, online offences re-

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main unpunished. Criminals can be apprehended only if they managed to take online grooming one step further and secure a meeting with a child in real life.

However, this usually turns out to be too late.

Russia recently passed a federal law “On the protection of children from information which causes harm to their health and development.” This limits the access of children to inappropriate information online, but it cannot protect them from sex offences that originate on the Internet.

A similar draft law has been created in Kazakhstan and was introduced in the Mazhilis, the lower house of Parliament, in autumn 2012. Despite the importance of this law, it only covers the question of protection from inappropriate information and like the Russian legislation it does not cover the issue of online “grooming” and online sex offences.

Recently, several measures for protection of internet users have been proposed by the government bodies. Last November, Deputy Prosecutor General Iohann Merkel proposed to add a chapter dedicated to cybercrime to the Criminal Code. In accordance with this chapter, authors of the web sites containing information related to terrorism, pornography and suicide shall be punished.

Merkel, however, acknowledged that it would be difficult to apprehend the owners of illegal websites if they live in a different country. Also, the General Prosecutor’s Office recently proposed to punish those who provide hosting services for websites with illegal content. However, despite these propositions, no amends to the law have been made so far.

When it comes to the responsibility of online community itself, the measures of protection for children are virtually absent within Kazakhstan’s segment of Internet. Namba.kz and Nur.kz are among the most popular Kazakhstan-based websites that can be classified as “social networks.” Their “Terms and Conditions” clearly state that the administration of the website is not responsible for any content posted on the website and that they are not responsible for any possible moral harm or damage resulted from the usage of the website. The terms of Nur.kz only mention that they have a right to delete illegal content. None of the websites provide guidelines for those who encounter disturbing content.

As of today, the underage online community on the territory of Kazakhstan remain unprotected while using both local web resources and the resources of other countries as well. Whereas local legislation has boundaries, the Internet does not have them and online predators know this very well.

Currently, the online safety of children

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lies within the hands of their parents or teachers who can closely monitor online activities. However, there is a problem here as well. The majority of parents and teachers simply do not have enough knowledge about the Internet, because they were introduced to it a mere 10-15 years ago. When it comes to the Internet, they may be even less confident using it than their children. As a result, the young generation of people in Kazakhstan seems to be left alone on the Internet.

In order to amend the situation, a number of measures have to be adopted by government bodies, community and individuals. The rapid introduction of relevant legislation is one of the most important measures that should be taken.

Cybercrime is often no different from real life crime and it requires the same level of response.

It is also vital to raise awareness among children, parents, teachers and the general community. Once people learn to be vigilant while using the Internet, it would be much harder for the criminals to catch them off-guard. This can be done by means of seminars tailored for each group of users. Through such specialized training, parents, guardians and teachers will be made aware of the Internet’s dangers, they will be equipped with the necessary tools to protect their children and they will be taught to discuss the issue with their children.

Community action has already become a powerful international tool for the prevention of cybercrime, especially against children. Unfortunately, community participation and involvement remains relatively low in Kazakhstan. In support of international community action, the illegal Internet content hotline was established in Kazakhstan two years ago. Via the safekaznet.kz hotline, users can report illegal content and thus contribute to its removal from Kazakhstan’s segment of the Internet. Currently, the protection of children is one of the foremost priorities of the hotline.

It has to be emphasized that there is a number of actions that can be taken to prevent cybercrime directed at children and adolescents, including control over the financial flows, creation of specialized social networks for children only and other involvement by the business and general community. However, in such a young country as Kazakhstan, we have to start from the very beginning and take initial steps in that direction first. As soon as the foundation is built, we will be able to do much more.

The author is head of the department for illegal Internet content prevention and response of the Internet Association of Kazakhstan.

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The Astana Times

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

А7

opinions

Government Fights New Age of Terror

By Yerkin Shpanov Today, no one argues that terrorism is global in scope. Kazakhstan, as part of the civilised world, can not avoid having to deal with the manifestations of this extremely dangerous social evil.

Research shows that many citizens have been alarmed by violent events in recent years. In January 2013, at a meeting with senior law enforcement officials, President Nursultan Nazarbayev said, “Stability and national security are the key conditions for implementing our new security policy.

Today, it is important to analyse the interim results of our comprehensive reforms, it is critical to assess the achievements and identify problems and ways to further modernise the law enforcement system.”

Thanks to the successful policies of the president, the government has given long-term priority to national security and political stability. Therefore, we have managed to preserve inter-religious and interethnic harmony in our society.

However, recent events have caused serious concern. Starting in 2011, after a series of terrorist attacks, our special services have carried out several special operations to destroy and neutralise terrorists. During the same period, there were more than 100 crimes connected with terrorism and extremism.

“The government and citizens should stand united against all forms and manifestations of radicalism, extremism and terrorism.

Of particular concern is the threat of so-called religious extremism,” the president said.

Concerns about the interaction of terrorism with the drug mafia are confirmed by the situation in Afghanistan, Iraq, the Balkans and the Caucasus. According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, about 90 tons of heavy drugs annually are transported through the states of Central Asia. In 2011, opium poppy production increased by 61 percent compared to 2010. Therefore, after the withdrawal of NATO forces from Afghanistan, the risk of further growth in the production of Afghan heroin looks real.

This will strengthen transnational, or cross-border, organized crime in the region.

The conditions favourable for terrorism and extremism have external and internal factors. Kazakhstan is an open country of the civilised world, and consequently it is subject to the same phenomena that take place globally. However, the decisive role in the spread of this evil is played by internal causes.

Many foreign educational institutions in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Libya, Turkey and other countries with which we do not have international agreements train and send Islamic ideologues to Kazakhstan.

Young people going to these countries as a rule on tourist visas receive in these centres a free radical Islamic education. The Spiritual Directorate of Muslims of Kazakhstan (SDMK) does not accept and does not employ the graduates of such institutions.

As a result, many graduates of foreign religious seminaries cannot find jobs and work instead in the informal Muslim environment in our country. According to official statistics, more than 600 people continue to study abroad at these centres.

A few Kazakhstan citizens have participated in the conflicts in Chechnya, Afghanistan and Iraq.

Nine of the 44 recently convicted extremists in the Atyrau region participated in the fighting on the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. In the past five years, 40 citizens of Kazakhstan involved in the activities of terrorist organisations and participating in illegal armed groups were detained on the territory of other states. In Kazakhstan, the government currently lists 68 high-risk individuals with combat experience.

Extremism and terrorism have their roots in the social sphere: Inequality, ostentation and permissiveness at one extreme, and poverty, lack of opportunities and the unsatisfied needs at the other end of the social spectrum lead to discontent, protests and aggression. Some 28 of the 44 criminals

20 Years of IFAS: Status and Prospects for Cooperation

By Erlan Idrissov Water is the foundation of life and secure access to it is essential for a country’s development. Kazakhstan faces acute water shortages in parts of the country and new methods and technologies need to be found to address the problem.

Over the past two decades we have focused heavily on addressing the problem of the Aral Sea. Once the fourth largest inland water body in the world, the Aral Sea declined spectacularly in size during the Soviet period. This was the result of the diversion of the rivers feeding it for the purposes of irrigation. This had a very negative impact on the agricultural, social and environmental situation of the southern regions of Kazakhstan.

Unfortunately, the Aral Sea today is only 9% of its historical size and its waters have decreased by 24% compared to 1965.

At President Nazarbayev’s initiative, an effort was undertaken in 1993 to reverse the consequences of this environmental disaster through a decision by the Presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to establish the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS).

The main purpose of the Foundation is to unite efforts of the countries of Central Asia aimed at financing projects for environmental improvement and socioeconomic recovery of the Aral Sea. At different times the IFAS was chaired by Kazakhstan (1993– 1997), Uzbekistan (1997–1999), Turkmenistan (1999–2002), Tajikistan (2002–2008), Kazakhstan (2008–2013). From 1995 to 2010, two programs were implemented to assist countries in the Aral Sea Basin.

Within the scope of the integrated program of the Government of Kazakhstan and the ASBP, substantial work was carried out to create mechanisms for joint management of water resources in the Aral Sea basin as well as rehabilitation of ecological disaster areas, provision of clean drinking water, health improvement for local citizens and reduction of poverty and unemployment.

In the Kazakh part of the Aral Sea the “Syrdarya Control and Northern Aral Sea” was implemented at a cost of USD 85.8 million. It achieved an improvement of the water situation in the river

and the northern part of Aral Sea was restored to the level of 42 m.

In addition, Kazakhstan’s chairmanship of the IFAS in 2008 and the Summit of Heads of IFAS member states in Almaty in 2009 brought new impulse to the activities of Fund.

The revival of the Aral Sea is only possible with the joint efforts of the peoples of all the countries of Central Asia... The Aral Sea tragedy is a test of strength of our relations of goodneighborliness, friendship and cooperation.

At the Summit, the Heads of the States gave instructions to establish closer contacts with the international donor community to improve the institutional framework of IFAS as well as to develop mutually acceptable mechanisms for the use of water resources in the region and a new program to assist countries in the Aral Sea Basin Program.

Considerable work was undertaken as a result in the newly created Executive Committee of IFAS in Almaty with the participation of the Governments of the countries of Central Asia as well as the direct support of Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs over the period 2008-2013.

In December 2008 IFAS was granted observer status at UN, which showed that the Aral Sea problem was now recognized as a global issue.

The IFAS Executive Committee developed the third phase of the assistance program to the Aral Sea basin countries for 2011-2015 (ASBP-3) in close cooperation with the UN system (Economic Commission for Europe, UN Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia, UNESCO, ESCAP), the OSCE, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and the governments of Germany, Denmark, Israel, Canada, the Netherlands, the USA, Switzerland, Sweden and other countries.

ASBP-3 has been approved by all the member countries of IFAS and is being fully implement-

convicted for religious extremism in Atyrau were unemployed and the rest were self-employed. The General Prosecutor’s Office has created a clear profile of a typical Kazakhstan terrorist: a young man under 29, unemployed, lacking a good education and a stable social perspective.

The criminalisation of the followers of non-traditional religious groups and their fusion with organised crime groups concerns law enforcement bodies. The main motive in this extremist-criminal partnership is the need of terrorist organisations to finance their activities. They have traditionally used money gained from drug and illicit arms trafficking, kidnapping and racketeering. Members of gangs involved in such activities receive from extremist religious groups ideological justification for the crimes they committed.

Analyzing the activities of law enforcement agencies abroad, we should note some effective measures to prevent extremism and terrorism. First is the application of due process in implementing relevant laws so that the organisers and perpetrators of criminal acts and those who inspire them with extremist ideology are held accountable. The 2012 law to combat terrorism was therefore timely and effective. Its provisions are essential, reasonable and are improving the efficiency of the entire legal system in countering terrorism.

Currently, task forces specialising in the fight against extremist groups consisting of 77 officers of the Interior Ministry and National Security Committee have been formed in regional operational headquarters and special training was organized for them.

This practice should be developed with regard to the international experience and specifics of our country.

The Prosecutor General’s Office reports that in the past five years, 148 people have been convicted of terrorist crimes and 160 of crimes associated with extremism. In 2012, a total of 112 crimes related to terrorism and extremism was recorded and the special services prevented 24 terrorist attacks in their preparation stages.

Law enforcement agencies are also actively fighting terrorism and extremism on the Internet.

At the request of the Prosecutor General, in 2004, for the first time, the Supreme Court clamped down

on four organisations related to international groups – al-Qaeda, the East Turkestan Islamic Party, the Kurdish People’s Congress, and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.

Since then, 15 foreign organisations have been labeled as extremist by court decisions. By judicial decree the Hizb-ut-Tahrir political party and the Senim-Bilim-Omir non-governmental organization (NGO) were declared illegal and disbanded.

Today laws on national security, on combating terrorism, on countering extremism, on preventing the money-laundering of illicitly gained income to finance terrorism are in force. In 2012, new laws were passed on state border security and to reorganise the country’s internal security forces.

The Kazakhstan 2050 national strategy calls for the drafting this year of new legal codes of criminal procedure, criminal activities, penal law and government administration. They will then be submitted to Parliament for approval and enactment into law.

Thus, the necessary legal procedures, administrative government reforms and security agency reforms to counter extremism and terrorism have already been developed in our country.

The author is a member of the Mazhilis (Lower House) of the Parliament of Kazakhstan.

G-Global Platform Brings Debates to the World ed. During 1995-2000 Central Asia saw the implementation of projects worth about USD 2 billion implemented under ASBP-1 and 2, while the total cost of the ASBP-3 projects amounts to about USD 9 billion.

ASBP-3 is the major long-term regional program for 2011-2015 and is focused on sustainable development, improvement of water management and environmental protection. The program includes four areas: integrated water management; the environment; socio-economic development; and improvement of legal and institutional mechanisms.

The participating states have sent more than 300 proposals, all of which were grouped into clusters and united into 44 major project proposals.

Given the fact that in 2013 the chairmanship of IFAS passes from Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan, our current goal within the Fund is high-quality implementation of the ASBP-3 together with our IFAS partners.

It should be recognized, however, that despite the fact that the IFAS Executive Committee and other countries have prepared proposals for the improvement of the institutional structure of the Fund, the basic positions of individual states in the region meant that they could not be approved.

This fact, along with the Aral Sea problem, stands in the way of collectively and comprehensively addressing the issues of water and energy cooperation and taking measures to implement the principles of integrated water resources management in the region.

Our next task is to improve the activity of IFAS under Uzbekistan’s chairmanship and to expand mutually beneficial cooperation among the founders of the Fund in order to restore the Aral Sea for the region as a whole..

The revival of the Aral Sea is only possible with the joint efforts of the peoples of all the countries of Central Asia. We are united by a common history, culture and traditions. The Aral Sea tragedy is a test of strength of our relations of good-neighborliness, friendship and cooperation.

I hope that we will be able to fulfill our obligations to restore the Aral Sea with dignity and leave behind for future generations a sea filled with life.

The author is the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan.

By Serik Nugerbekov The G-Global platform has launched a new project that will carry the debates of the sixth Astana Economic Forum and the World Anti-Crisis Conference in Astana to a global audience over the next month.

The project was organised by the Eurasian Economic Club of Scientists. It will operate from April 19 to May 19 and will allow prominent scientists, business executives, political leaders and economists around the world, including Nobel Prize laureates to hold an online dialogue on the upcoming Astana Economic Forum (AEF) and the World Anti-Crisis (WAC) Conference.

The project will carry the discussions of the WAC and the AEF to a global online audience thanks to the capabilities of the G-Global platform.

Today, issues of social and economic stability and justice and the international economic, crisis bring confusion and uncertainty to the daily lives of people around the world. Increasingly, people are searching online for discussions and solutions to these problems.

The G-Global communications platform was established on the initiative of President Nursultan Nazarbayev to attract wider circles of in the progressive world community to discuss issues of global development. G-Global is a virtual world where any user can access the activities of international organisations such as the Eurasian Economic Club of Scientists, the Astana Club of Nobel Prize Laureates and the Astana Economic Forum. All users can take part in the debates and discussions.

G-Global debates discuss the reform of the world financial and economic system and the strengthening of integration processes across Eurasia. The platform was launched in January 2012. It seeks to play a role of an electronic Bretton Woods conference, which set up the current global financial system in 1944. The platform therefore was designed to facilitate the search for answers to the fundamental questions of the modern world economy.

G-Global therefore proclaims the equality and right of every person on the planet to be a party to the process of finding solutions to the most pressing problems of modern times. This online “council” opens a new milestone in the process of creating a new global community.

G-Global is a constructive force

sharing in the process of transforming the established system of global governance. It serves to balance the interests of ordinary citizens and the financial and economic elites.

Conferences of Eurasian scientists, economists and other experts held in Astana over the past four years have introduced many pressing issues into global debate. This process has elevated Kazakhstan into a key nation in this dialogue.

The unprecedented nature of the GGlobal platform is that it functions continuously in online mode, complementing and enhancing the contributions of global experts in the Astana conferences.

The essence of this transition was also described by Lord Waverley, a member of the House of Lords, the upper chamber of the British parliament. “The Economic Forum in Astana is a significant event in the world political and business calendar,” he said. “It is very symbolic that the subject of these discussions is not only the reform of the world economy and financial system. Here, a wide aspect of problems of innovative development, nuclear and environmental safety, interethnic and interreligious tolerance, geopolitics, and other areas of development are discussed. In this case, the G-Global format is a potential unifying platform of a multi-polar world. I believe that it should be used for constructive purposes, including the establishing of a global dialogue for the sake of sustainable development. The role of Kazakhstan in this sense is difficult to overestimate. The country is becoming an increasingly prominent player on the international arena.”

The unprecedented nature of the G-Global platform is that it functions continuously in online mode, complementing and enhancing the contributions of global experts in the Astana conferences. It offers a forum for bright ideas and contributions from millions of people.

The work of the Astana conferences magnified by the services of the G-Global platform has already gathered scientists and

other experts from more than 100 countries thanks to the initiative of President Nazarbayev. It will be presenting and discussing new proposals to reshape the global financial system and prepare the way to introduce a single world currency that were developed by the Eurasian Economic Club of Scientists.

Anatoly Spitsyn, an academician of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences said the Astana Economic Forum in contrast to similar forums including Davos, presents fundamentally important questions of modern economic development for discussion. It also gives the leading role to the scientific community, led by a group of Nobel laureates. This exclusive feature gives the Astana Forum the intellectual potential to generate new ideas and solutions for global issues.

Speaking at the 12th session of the Boao Forum for Asia, President Nazarbayev said Asia was now the centre of global economic activity which set the tone for global markets. The next stage, he said, would be the rise of Asia as a key source of ideas and models of development. As a result, the international agenda in economics and many other areas would be set on this continent.

“In May 2012, Kazakhstan proposed the idea of creating the G-Global dialogue platform,” the president said. “The need to transfer debates on key issues of the world economy to a global audience appeared because neither the G8 nor the G20 had proposed any new major model for further economic development. This is our initiative to support a systematic dialogue to search for the ways to overcome the global crisis, which now involves 140 world countries [...]”

President Nazarbayev also spoke of the need to carry out a gradual transition to a more efficient global financial system. “The development of international trade and investments requires the strict coordination of financial and monetary policy around the world,” he said.

“This will help minimise risks and unite efforts to prevent future crises. Many experts support the idea of reforming the international financial structure, in particular the world monetary system, which has shown its particular weakness during the latest crisis.”

The author is a member of the Senate of the Parliament of Kazakhstan.

The Astana Times

А8

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

Eurasia and World

European Commission Proposes Simplified EU Entry for Foreign Students

By Rufiya Ospanova ASTANA - The European Commission proposes to simplify the procedure of entry to the European Union (EU) for students and young researchers from non-EU countries. The European Commission considers it necessary to improve the application of the existing EU Visa Code.

Annually, more than 200,000 students and academics from nonEU countries come to the EU to study. However, the procedure for the enrolment of foreign students in EU territory is not unified.

In order for the EU to remain attractive to talented youth and academics from other countries and not fall behind the U.S. and Australia in this respect, the European Commission wants to reduce the entry rules for students and scholars to a common denominator. In particular, the Commission considers it necessary to introduce a 60-day deadline for a decision regarding issuing student visas to students from third countries.

It is proposed to replace the two existing EU regulations on students and researchers with one new regulation, changing the number of rules governing the process.

Currently, each EU country has its own rules about how foreigners can access its universities, and transitions from one university to another are complicated. In the future, it is planned for visa applications, regardless of country, to be ruled upon within 60 days. It is also planned to facilitate transition rules from one institution to another across the EU territory, so foreign students can more easily change from, for example, a Swedish university to a German one.

Liberalisation shall also cover

students’ side jobs. There are plans to provide foreign students and researchers with the right to work for at least 20 hours a week, so that they can independently support themselves and contribute to the economic development of EU member states. From the point of view of the European Commission, foreign interns, students and au-pair programme participants will also benefit from the planned measures because the European Commission’s proposals provide additional protection to them. Currently, they do not fall within the scope of the European legislation.

The new proposals suggest that opportunities for foreign students and researchers to move within the EU during education and research will be simplified. Ulrich Grotus from the German Academic Exchange Service shares the position of the European Commission on increasing the attractiveness of Europe for students from third countries. He also encourages remembering other pressing issues.

“In Germany, demand for Englishlanguage master’s programmes is greater than their offering,” he says. It is in this direction, in his opinion, that improvements are needed.

Sandra Gazeloff, head of one of the units of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation engaged in scientific cooperation programmes, welcomes the EU’s intentions. She expressed the hope that the mobility of young scientists involved in graduate programmes at various universities will increase. New proposals also involve allowing students and young scientists from third countries to stay in the EU for a year after completing their term of study to find a job or establish a business.

The proposals will be forwarded for coordination to the European Parliament and the EU Council.

In November 2012, the commission approved a Communiqué for the European Parliament and the EU Council on these issues. The document discusses how visa support can contribute to economic growth in Europe.

The European Commission press service noted that in 2011, foreign citizens spent 330.44 billion euros within the EU and that the total number of Europeans in the tourism sphere in 2011 was 18.8 million people. According to the latest estimates, by 2020 the number of people employed in the tourism sector will increase to 20.4 million and foreigners in Europe will spend 427.31 billion euros.

The communiqué noted permanent growth of the number of visas issued to citizens of third countries; however, it stressed the need for more effective application of the existing rules in the sphere of visa issuance.

Overall, according to data from the European Commission, 12,638,750 visas were issued in 2011. Leading among visa-seekers are Russia, Ukraine and China.

Proposed changes will also affect students from Kazakhstan, including many who study in EU countries under the Bolashak programme. Many Kazakhs study in Manchester University, City University London, as well as in Glasgow and Dundee, which are also among the more popular ones. The list of higher educational institutions recommended by the Bolashak programme includes more than 100 universities from 33 countries.

From 2010 up to date, the Bolashak programme provided 3,194 students with scholarships, 46 per

Simplified entry to the EU will allow Kazakhstan’s students to implement their knowledge in exchange for the best international experience. cent of them study in the UK and approximately two per cent in the rest of Europe.

Another scholarship programme, which becomes more popular among the Kazakhstan students, is Erasmus Mundus. Erasmus Mundus is a cooperation and mobility programme in the field of higher education that aims to enhance the quality of European higher education and to promote dialogue and understanding between people and cultures through cooperation with non-EU countries. In addition, it contributes to the development of human resources and the international cooperation capacity of tigher education institutions in third countries by increasing mobility between the European Union and these countries. This year, ac-

cording to the scholarship statistics, about 200 students from Kazakhstan study in EU for Masters and PhD programmes.

The European Commission noted that proper use of existing visa rules will maintain Europe’s attractiveness to foreign tourists and promote economic growth.

“Taking into account the current economic decrease, we need to fight for the increase of tourist flows to Europe [while] simultaneously providing our cross-border security,” EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs Cecilia Malmstrom noted on the issue.

Thus, according to the Commission, consulates shall provide that interviews be appointed no later than in 15 days after application and decisions on visa issuance

Afghans Appreciate Kazakhstan’s EXPO 2017 Planning “Very Honest” Approach Has Begun I think, as President Karzai said many times, and also as our security institutions such as the ministry of defence, ministry of internal affairs, and the national security council indicated, that after 2014 the situation will be not bad, as it is today. But we cannot expect that in 2014 everything will be ok. There will be some problems, and it takes time to be better. We hope that our neighbours will be honest with us to try to bring the Taliban around the table to talk for peace, and it will be of benefit to our neighbours and also to Afghanistan. Otherwise our neighbours will also not be secure.

445 Afghan students in Almaty, Astana and Karaganda study medicine, economics, engineering, agriculture, and law.

From Page A1 This year about 150-200 more students will come again. Our first educated cohort to finish will be in 2015, I think. One year they study Russian or Kazakh and then 4 years or more than 4 years for the medical students, and the engineering students will finish in 2015 and will go to Afghanistan.

When the students finish here and go there they will have the opportunity to have a good job and will serve Afghanistan. At the same time those people will be a bridge between Kazakhstan and Afghanistan. They will make the relations between our two countries much, much better as a hundred years ago when there was a good relation between Afghanistan and Central Asia.

It’s good for Afghanistan because for about 40 years Afghanistan has been at war, and civil war and then came the Taliban, which is a dark chapter in our history. There was no opportunity for young Afghanis to study. The girl schools were closed, educated women couldn’t work, they were sitting at home.

So there is a gap for scholars, for educated people in Afghanistan of 40 years. Those who were educated 40 years before are still working. But orphaned were not schooled, or, if they were, the level of education was very low. Professors, teachers were out of Afghanistan or were killed by the Taliban.

Now we have 10 million students and pupils in Afghanistan, 35% of

them are girls, which is significant for us.

What are the priorities of the Kazakh-Afghan relations? How important are the economic ties and in which area?

Afghanistan is a country where until now we don’t have anything that is extracted out of the country, such as mining. So there are lots of opportunities especially for Kazakhstan. We appreciate that Kazakhstan is very honest with Afghanistan, and are waiting for investors to come into the mining sector. We have iron, we have oil and gas, we have gold, we have many things and we are waiting.

We need investors for roads, construction, and agriculture because in central Afghanistan we have the same climate as here. For 40 years the agriculture sector, like the others, was not developed.

We need cooperation for hospitals, buildings, small city-towns and so on. When President Karzai was here and talked with President Nazarbayev he also asked to send investors, but the problem is that Kazakh investors cannot decide because of the security situation in Afghanistan. But about 3 months ago, I heard that one Kazakh company wants to make a joint venture with an Afghan company in Herat for exploring oil and gas and I’m very glad for that.

What are your expectations of the situation in Afghanistan post 2014?

How important are international organizations in helping develop Afghanistan?

I can tell you generally, if I may.

You know, 11 years ago Afghanistan was totally destroyed. Of what we had had before, nothing has remained. As I told you, no educated people, we have about one million disabled people. Two million, more or less, were killed.

With the coming of NATO and the withdrawal of the Soviet Union we have a constitution, and an elected president, we have cabinet, a judiciary. So before, during the Taliban time, 3 countries recognized Afghanistan – Saudi Arabia, the Emirates and Pakistan. Just three.

Now we have embassies in more 70 countries and everybody recognizes Afghanistan as an independent country. I think the situation will be better.

Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers?

What I can say is that I wish all the best for Kazakhstan, the Kazakh people. I have been here before, one time with Ahmad Zia Massoud when he was first vice minister and one time by myself to Almaty as a minister. Because they were official visits it was very difficult to see anything, but now I have come as Ambassador and have gotten to know Astana. It is really very difficult to accept that in 15 years such a beautiful and modern city is built. I think it’s due to the hard work of President Nazarbayev and the whole cabinet and the people Kazakhstan who are willing to develop their country. I wish for a prosperous Kazakhstan with very clear future.

From Page A1 Yermegiyaev said the government will recruit the talents of young people in its preparations for the exposition. “This will involve a lot more than volunteer work. What we are looking for is new ideas,” he said.

“Since the project is truly national, all of the society should be involved in it, especially young people.”

Kazakhstan expects to welcome at least 2 million tourists during the EXPO. “We will design a tourists’ kit which will include information on essential destinations to visit in our country and information to facilitate travelers. Special transportation fares will be introduced to cut the costs of travel and living,” Yermegiyaev said.

On April 22, at the meeting on the development of Astana held in the Palace of Independence, President Nazarbayev criticized the lack of progress in government preparations, however, ordering the dismissal of the EXPO 2017 organization committee.

“Analysis of the first three months of the current year showed that we have started to make the same mistakes our predecessors did. I have defined the body responsible for the organization of EXPO, the Astana EXPO 2017 national com-

shall not exceed a 15-day term. In addition, the Commission considers it important to make available forms for receipt of visas in languages of those countries where the consulates operate, as well as consider the possibility of issuing multiple visas.

In addition, in the long term, the Commission considers it possible to change the rules for visa issuance, including reducing terms for the procedure of consideration, simplifying application forms, specifying the rules for issuing multiple visas and harmonising visa practices in Schengen area member states.

The plans will be discussed in the European Parliament and the EU Council. They hope in the European Commission that new rules will enter into force from 2016.

pany,” President Nazarbayev said at the meeting.

The president noted the duplication of functions in connection with growing number of superiors.

“I believe the organizational committee has to be dismissed, let the company do it on its own,” he emphasized.

On December 6, 2012 the President tasked the Government with ensuring the transparency of financial support provided within EXPO preparations.

“With the substantial allocation of funds, the mechanism of the funding should be considered. The use of money both from the budget and beyond budgetary sources should be as transparent as possible,” Nursultan Nazarbayev noted.

In January, the President appointed Talgat Yermegiyaev as chairman of the specially created JSC “National Company Astana EXPO 2017”.

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The Astana Times

Nation & Capital Wednesday, 24 April 2013 Kazakhstan’s Knights Prepare for Medieval Battle of Nations Page B2

Scientists Develop Kumis Products for Export Page B5

Gymnastics Championship Discovers New Talent Page B7

“Destiny” Forum Reaches Second Stage

The forum in the Almaty region on April 11 launched the second phase of the nationwide forum.

By Altynai Sultan ASTANA – On April 11, the second regional phase of the national project “My Country’s Destiny is My Destiny!” started in the Almaty region. The second national forum kicked off in February in the Akmola region.

During the first stage of the national programme, all districts sent their best representatives to regional events.

Speakers have become the real heroes of the day: prominent public and political figures, representatives of state agencies, creative and scientific intelligentsia, ethno-cultural associations, veterans of war and

labour, soldiers and internationalists, sportsmen and youth leaders have shared their stories. The most worthy speakers will be delegated to Astana for the second national “My Country’s Destiny is My Destiny!” forum to be held as part of the Day of the Capital celebrations.

In Kaskelen, the forum began with a ceremony of laying flowers at the Nauryzbai Batyr Monument.

Afterwards, participants and guests were met at the Shapagat Museum at Karasai Batyr school and the historical museum of Kaskelen.

After watching the documentary film, “My Country’s Destiny is My Destiny!” with residents of the Almaty district as the main heroes,

Deputy Akim (governor) of the region Serik Mukanov opened the official part of the forum.

“In the most difficult transition period, the first president of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, took responsibility for the destiny of the people and the country. Today the experience of our reforms is recognised worldwide as the Kazakhstan Way,” Deputy Akim Mukanov said.

Veteran of World War II and former teacher of Kazakhstan’s president Seytkhan Isayev; Chairman of the Karasai Board of Veterans Sailaubek Kydyraliev; Chevalier of the Kurmet Order, Honorary Citizen of the Balkhash region,

Deputy of the regional Maslikhat, Director of the Balkhash district Birlik agricultural firm Abdizhappar Kystaubayev; Deputy of the Alakol District Maslikhat, Chairman of the District Council of Grandmothers, Honourary Education Worker of Kazakhstan Ulzhalgas Dyusenbayeva and Chair of Panfilov’s Irada Farm Suriyam Izimova shared their life stories.

“The power of the people is in unity!” Izimova said. “In fact, we, the representatives of different ethnic groups living in Kazakhstan, are convinced that the most important achievement of the country is an individual. Together we represent Kazakhstan.

Student Volunteers Help Police

By Anel Adilbayeva

In a practice restored from the past, young volunteers are now helping police patrol their own campuses and ensure law and order.

ASTANA – Students from several universities in Astana have volunteered to help the police on a regular basis. And already these teenage Sherlocks have helped to solve hundreds of offences.

The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) of the city government has launched a new volunteer programme to recruit ordinary citizens as part time auxiliary police officers. Since February 2013, 87 university students have joined it. They are paid 15,000 tenge ($99.20) but there is no strictly defined payment date, the amount could be paid monthly, quarterly etc.

Students of Seifullin Kazakh Agriculture and Technology University, Gumilyov Eurasian National University, Kazakh Humanitarian and Law University, Kazakh University of Business and Technology, Kazakh-Russian University,

University Turan-Astana have responded by signing up to support the police in the protection of law and order.

So far, since April 1 of this year, these volunteers and non-student volunteers who were also recruited have helped to solve 332 offences.

In February, Astana DIA officials met with officials from nine higher educational institutions in the city to discuss the involvement of students to help in public law in accordance with the Law on the participation of citizens in the maintenance of public order. The legislation is being used to increase legal awareness of young people and foster respect for the laws of the country.

The programme is not limited to students. Some 21 retired police officers and 136 concierges have also joined it. Another 88 members of security agencies participate in their spare time.

Continued on Page B8

German Writer Created In-Depth English Guide to Kazakhstan

By Galiya Nurzhan

ASTANA – Larger than all of Western Europe, Kazakhstan’s vast expanse encompasses the Great Steppe, the heights of the Tien Shan Mountains in the south, the exquisite lakes and valleys of the Altai Mountains in the northeast and the archeologically rich desert coast of the Caspian Sea in the far west.

Now, this land of rich history, welcoming people and whirling bazaars shares its wonders with a curious world. Kazakhstan, the ninth largest country in the world, with 17 million people, has great potential to develop ecotourism. The country has huge amounts of open space and opportunities abound for tourists to visit snow-topped mountains, deep forests, cool lakes, vast steppes and rich wildlife. Thanks to idealistic people like Dagmar Schreiber, ecotourism is slowly becoming more popular.

Schreiber, a German living in Kazakhstan, has devoted the last 20 years of her life to helping rural villages in Kazakhstan explore opportunities in tourism. Schreiber studied philosophy in Leningrad (St. Petersburg and Moscow before joining the World Bank study project on living standards in Kazakhstan in 1994.

During this three-year project, she

The unity of the people is the unity of the country... This country has given me every opportunity for a full life; there are all the conditions for growth, development and prosperity. We should be grateful to this land.”

A concert by artists from the regional philharmonic underlined the event.

On April 19, the regional “My Country’s Destiny is My Destiny!” forum was held in Petropavlovsk. A thematic exhibition was organised in the Pogodin Regional Drama Theatre. Special attention was paid to the stand devoted to the life and work of the speakers of the regional forum.

Deputy Akim of the Northern Kazakhstan region Farkhad Kuanganov opened the ceremony by honouring those who by knowledge, daily labour, creativity and dreams have been committed to ensuring that Kazakhstan will achieve its ambitious goals.

“To be a true citizen, a patriot, it is not necessarily to be a superhero.

You just have to love your earth, to learn, to work, to do good to people – which means towards the country as well – to be responsible for yourself and relatives, to create a decent family and to bring up good people.

An example of this is the life of Head of the Asyl Mura Cultural and Educational Centre, member of the Union of Journalists of Kazakhstan, Honourary Citizen of Zhambyl district Tanat Sugurbayev, who was awarded with a diploma and a statuette in the category “For Active

Civic Position,” Kuanganov said at the forum.

Speakers at the forum focused on the need to maintain peace and harmony and called on all people of good will to support the ATOM Project, an international anti-nuclear initiative begun by President Nazarbayev. Actors of the Pogodin Russian Drama Theatre presented the play “Against Nuclear War.” Meanwhile, forums were also held in the districts of Zhambyl, Kyzyl-Orda, Akmola, Almaty, Aktobe, Western Kazakhstan, Pavlodar, Eastern Kazakhstan, Karagandy and Atyrau regions. A petition supporting the ATOM Project was signed within the forums. In the Almaty region alone, the petition has collected 4,000 signatures.

Forums across the country are held in two stages: the first at the district level, the second at the regional level and the level of Astana and Almaty cities. The first “My Country’s Destiny is My Destiny!” national forum was held in Astana on the eve of the Day of the Capital last year. The initiator and organiser of the event was the Nazarbayev Center, a multifunctional scientific, analytical, humanitarian and educational state institution. The national forum attracted wide publicity, after which it was decided to hold it in all regions of the country annually.

The objective of the forum is to identify and showcase the success stories of people across the country who have made a worthy contribution to the establishment and ongoing development of their region and independent Kazakhstan in general.

HackDay to Gather Top IT Creatives for Innovation Competition

By Manshuk Bekentayeva ASTANA – On May 10-11, Almaty will host hundreds of top IT professionals and creatives from around the region for a 24-hour completion of creativity and innovation known as the 3rd International HackDay at International IT University.

In Kazakhstan, Hackday was first held in April 2011 at International IT University, which is the main organizer of the event. More than 500 people attended the first Hackday in 2011 with that number nearly doubling to 900 in 2012. This year’s competition is expected to draw more than one thousand participants from all regions of Kazakhstan and abroad: young developers, emerg-

ing directors and professional media producers.

Over 24 hours, participants will create IT projects, applications, services, commercials and movies in what has become known as an effective platform for discovering new talent. Participants generate ideas and implement them as team projects in a matter of days.

“Hackday is a creative laboratory for participants with an appetite for victory. We channel that creative impulse. We anticipate a creative boom and to attract a large number of professionals,” said International IT University Public Relations and Marketing Director Mayrash Taykenova.

Continued on Page B4

Things to Watch in April – May

Russian Drama Theatre named after Maxim Gorky April 24 at 19.00

April 28 at 18.00 May 2 at 18.30

The St.Petersburg operetta theatre with “Maritsa” by Emmerich Kalman “Pannochka” by Nina Sadur “The Master and Margarita”

by Mikhail Bulgakov

National Theatre of Opera & Ballet named after Kulyash Baiseitova April 25 at 19.00 “Abay” (opera in 2 acts) April 26 at 19.00 Concert of symphonic music with

the French artists May 28 at 17.00 An Evening of Ballet Kazakh National University of Arts April 25 at 19.30 The Instrumental Concerts of Johann

Sebastian Bach May 10-16

Palace of Peace and Reconciliation The 1st International Festival of Classic Music “Astana Piano Passion”

Equestrian School “Tulpar” (micro district Koktal) May 1 at 11.30 Spectacle Equestre Café Chekhov (Shopping Centre Sary-Arka) May 7 at 20.00 Poetry Reading Wild poppy fields against the backdrop of majestic Tien Shan mountains near Almaty have since long attracted nature lovers. fell in love with the country and decided to dedicate the rest of her professional life to it. During numerous far-reaching trips, she became aware of its enormous potential for tourism and formed a small, Berlin-based tour agency in 2003, specialising

in environmentally friendly tours of the real Kazakhstan to reveal the country at its best as a fascinating and rewarding destination.

Schreiber, an expert with over 14 years of experience in the country, has written the unique 568-page vol-

ume “Kazakhstan – Nomadic Routes from Caspian to Altai,” which has already become one of the most definitive English language works about Kazakhstan.

Continued on Page B6

From 25 April Мау 2-4

The Astana Metropolitan Circus The Great Moscow Lilliput’s Circus Exhibition Complex “Korme” The Exhibition “The Kazakhstan’s auto salon”

Shopping and Entertainment Center “Mega” May 1 at 13.00 Exhibition-fair “Children’s handmade”

The Astana Times

B2

People

NGOs Helping Build Civil Society in Kazakhstan, Swedish Expert Says government. In the best way, the government is listening to the argument of NGOs and considers them. Of course, it is important that the NGOs are reliable and that they have well-functioning organisations.

By Manshuk Bekentayeva ASTANA – Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are playing a constructive and important role in helping foster the development of civil society in Kazakhstan, human rights expert Anki Wetterhall told The Astana Times. Wetterhall is also the wife of the Swedish ambassador to Kazakhstan.

How long have you been living in Kazakhstan?

Just over a year. It is always interesting to come to a new place.

Kazakhstan is quite new for me. It is interesting to learn more about its culture, religion and politics so I try to follow as much as I can.

Borovoye is very nice in winter time. It’s a wonderful place with rivers similar to my own country.

What is your experience in working for NGOs? I do not usually use the term ‘NGO.’ It is better to say ‘civil society.’ It is very important to have bodies independent from the state such as political parties, trade unions and other organisations of different kinds such as women’s organisations and bodies working for children’s rights and for the environment.

I have worked in this field all of my life. I have worked professionally for Amnesty International in Sweden and for the International Federation for Human Rights in Vienna and the International Red Cross in Moscow.

For the last seven years, I have worked for the Swedish Forum for Human Rights. I have also been active in other human rights organisations. It is very important that people should be aware of their human rights. People everywhere should be familiar with the UN Declaration of Human Rights to which Kazakhstan is a signatory. There are many United Nations treaties on the subject such as CEDAW - the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

It is very important that people in every country should be educated about this.

What projects on human rights are you engaged in Kazakhstan?

I assist poor people through dif-

Anki Wetterhall sees an important role for NGOs to play in developing Kazakhstan’s civil society. ferent organisations; I am involved in the annual winter bazaar organized by the diplomatic and international community. I am always searching to find more reliable and well-functioning NGOs with important project ideas, especially concerning children, the elderly and the disabled. It is important not just to fund these groups but also to support them in their activities as well.

I keep in touch with a student group that works as volunteers to teach English and music to poor children on Sunday mornings. This is also very good for the children.

It builds their self-confidence, they learn more about life and society and they come to believe more in themselves.

I am mainly interested in human rights issues and humanitarian law.

What kind of initiatives do you recommend for dealing with child homelessness, violence against children and their exploitation?

There are discussions within the government to find new ways to support young poor mothers so they can keep their babies instead of having to give them up to orphanages and also to find foster families for children without parents. Even if many orphanages are good, in most cases it is probably much better for children to stay with a family.

I think it is very important to make the United Nation’s Con-

vention on the Rights of the Child well known to all parents, teachers, medical staff, jurists, social workers as well as among children and teenagers. Training about this convention is of great importance.

There should not be any homeless children at all. There should be a social welfare system which prevents this from happening.

How do you compare NGO work in Kazakhstan with the countries you worked before?

In Sweden, we have a long tradition of working with NGOs and of voluntary work. You could be active in an organisation or just support it as a member. As a member you contribute with your annual fee and you can attend its annual meeting where you can be part of important discussions about policy and strategy etcetera and make your voice heard.

In Kazakhstan, the tradition of independent NGOs is very young.

NGOs are important. They should work independently from the government, give assistance to people in different ways, work as an advocacy and monitoring body, put pressure on government, informing people about important issues and try to get them more involved and take an active part in different important issues. NGOs can be important partners for the government. In Sweden, the NGOs play an important role and often have serious discussions with the

Kazakhstan’s Knights Prepare for Medieval Battle of Nations

By Asemgul Bakytova ALMATY – Would-be Medieval warriors from Almaty, Pavlodar, Petropavlovsk and Stepnogorsk are preparing to defend the honour of Kazakhstan at the fourth international medieval Battle of the Nations competition to be held in France in May. The sport and its competitions are relatively new and involve full-contact battles with the use of armature and offensive armaments typical of the Middle Ages. The fighters recreate their armour and armaments according to historical patterns. The Battle of the Nations

event has recently become the main competition between fighters practicing historical medieval battle and includes participants from Russia, Ukraine, Poland and Belarus.

According to Kazakhstan coach Yaroslav Alexandrov, who is also going to France with the national team, the Kazakhstan club was established three years ago and has since sought opportunities to compete.

The majority of Kazakhstan medieval warriors are from Pavlodar and Almaty cities and are members of the club Order, organized six years ago. The boys

train together three times a week and meet in the mountains on weekends in full battle gear. They pay a lot of attention to physical training and testing their equipment. They also study medieval battle techniques in addition to modern forms of combat sport.

Battle competitions are fights, so there is monitoring to ensure the use of legal techniques and hits.

As Kazakhstan’s sportsmen cannot train together, everyone prepares for competitions in their native regions and communicate and share training information through the Internet.

Back to Medieval times... Kazakh warriors will show their combat skills at the international tournament in France.

What is important for a wellfunctioning NGO? First, it must have a clear policy: it must have a clearly-defined purpose, aim and know what it wants to achieve. It must have a board that takes the main decisions about its activities and sets its policies. It must have a membership base, both active and passive. The members should pay an annual fee.

The NGO should organize meetings for members where important issues can be discussed. At the annual meetings, the members of the board should be elected and the main policy and strategic questions be discussed.

The training of members is a vital issue. They should be familiar with the group’s organisational issues and about the social problems the NGO is working with.

The NGO should also build up a group of volunteers that can assist in publicising the issues the NGO is working with.

What is necessary to get the women of Kazakhstan more actively involved in the political and economic life of the country?

I understand that the women here take most of the responsibility for the children and the household. If you look at women in high positions and compare their salaries, there is no equality between men and women. It is very important for women to be involved in political and economic life. For this, I think they have to organise themselves and work together to improve their status.

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

Triplets Boom in Mangystau Regional Perinatal Center

Happy parents Zhanar and Kanat Zhumagaliyev are proud to show their newborn children.

By Olga Berezhnova AKTAU – Zhanar and Kanat Zhumagaliyev are the happy parents of three: the first daughter weighing 2.1 kg was given the name Mekke, the second was named Medina (1.7 kg) and the boy was named Miras (2 kg).

“The childbearing went well.

But the babies spent some time in the perinatal center under medical supervision in order for them to grow up a bit and gain weight,” said Aliya Uteulenova, head of the department of second phase nursing at the Mangystau Regional Perinatal Center. The couple had wanted to have children for many years. After many unsuccessful attempts, they decided to take a step and applied to the in-vitro fertilization center in Astana. Soon, Zhanar Zhumagaliyeva learned she was finally pregnant.

“The doctor said that analysis

proved that there was not just one child. At first, I was a little embarrassed by the news, but then I was delighted. After all, I may have not one, but two or three small blessings! Doctors offered to remove one embryo, but I refused and decided to give birth to all of them!” said Zhanar Zhumagalieva, mother of the triplets.

“It’s hard to put into words how happy I am. I am insanely grateful that I have such a wife, and such a big family! I received a lot of congratulations from my friends and colleagues who are also happy for me,” said the father, Kanat Zhumagaliyev.

Just recently another set of triples was born: three daughters were born to the Dzhalgasbaev family. The girls were given the names Gaukhar, Kausar and Inkar.

They already have an older brother who met the sisters together with the happy father of the family.

The Astana Times

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

B3

Culture

Spring Festival Celebrates Japanese Culture

Ayako Shirasaki performed on the stage of Astana Music Hall as part of Japanese Spring Arts Festival.

By Maral Zhantaykyzy ASTANA – On April 10-11, a Japanese Spring Arts Festival was held in Astana.

Popular jazz pianist Ayako Shirasaki starred in a concert on April 10 in the Astana Music Hall. She performed alongside famous jazz musicians drummer Gene Jackson and virtuoso bass player Noriko Ueda.

In 2010, Shirasaki won international acclaim with her album “Falling Leaves – Live in Hamburg.” She founded the Sakura music school in New York City and gave a master class for young Kazakh musicians.

On April 11, famous Kazakhstan performers baritone Sundet Baygozhin, soprano Zhupar Gabdullina, pianists Timur Ormanchiev and Arman Tleubergenov, organist Saltanat Abilkhanova, violin

cellist Yermek Kurmanaev and Damir Burkitbayev on the clarinet presented European, Japanese and Kazakh classics at the Organ Hall of the Kazakh National University of Arts. They played European, Japanese and Kazakh classics.

Master of sand art Catherine Jackie has created a breathtaking background for the beautiful music, the audience saw the blooming sakura, the boat on the water surface, a Japanese hut on a shore.

The festival celebrated the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival which is being held in Kazakhstan for the fourth consecutive year.

On April 19, the Japanese cultural festival will move to Almaty with events celebrating the art of origami, calligraphy, kimono dressing and kirie (the Japanese

art of paper cutting).Sakura blossoms will be in bloom in the city’s Sakura Alley.

In March, the 13th Japanese Film Festival was held in Almaty and an oratory competition in Japanese was held in al-Farabi Kazakh National University.

Twice-yearly Japanese cultural festivals are now held every year in both Astana and Almaty in spring and autumn. The Japanese Autumn Festival will be held next in November. The festivals are organized in cooperation with the Embassy of Japan, the Degdar Humanitarian Fund and Japan Tobacco International. The festivals have the goal of strengthening bilateral cultural relations, and introducing the people of Kazakhstan to the traditional and contemporary art of the Land of the Rising Sun.

Festival Shares Kazakh Films with Chinese Audience

By Marzhan Imanbayeva

Kazakhstan’s Cinema Week dedicated to the 21st anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Kazakhstan and China was held April 17-22 in Beijing.

The event was organized by the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan jointly with the State General Administration of Press, Publishing, Radio, Film and Television of China. The event, which drew 300 participants, sought to promote modern Kazakh cinematography among Chinese filmgoers to deepen cultural and humanitarian cooperation between the two countries.

The film “The Sky of My Childhood,” by Rustem Abdrashev, which tells the story of the childhood and youth of Kazakhstan’s first and current president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, and which was based on Nazarbayev’s own works, opened the festival.

Welcoming the audience, Kazakhstan Ambassador to China Nurlan Ermekbayev said that the rapidly developing cultural and humanitarian cooperation between Kazakhstan and China promotes a good-neighbourly relationship and a comprehensive strategic partnership.

Deputy Chief of the Films Division of the State General Administration of Press, Publishing, Radio, Film and Television of China La Peikang noted that these films allow Chinese viewers to get to know Kazakhstan and the Kazakh people’s lives and this event plays an important role in strengthening the friendship between the peoples of both countries.

The organizers selected for the Chinese audience films that tell the story of the history, development and modern lives of Kazakhstan’s people. These films have been shown at international film festivals and have received awards.

Among the films selected were “Zhauzhurek Myn Bala,” (One Thousand Young Warriors in Kazakh) and “The Liquidator,” directed by Akhan Satayev, “Shal,” (An Old Man in Kazakh) by Yermek Tursunov, “The Irony of Love,” co-directed by Russian Alexander Chernyaev and Kazakhstan’s Yerzhan Rustenbekov, and “Virtu-

Kazakh artists and officials pose for a group photo at the launch of the festival in Beijing on April 17. al Love,” by Amir Karakulov. The films were shown in their original language with Chinese subtitles in the cinema network Broadway Cinemas and in cinema complexes Oriental Plaza and Grand MOMA. After the films were shown, the Chinese audience was given the opportunity to meet the films’ actors and directors. The Kazakhstan delegation to the event was led by Ermek Amanshayev, the president of Kazakhfilm named after Shacken Aymanov. A press conference was held in Beijing on April 17 on the opening day of Kazakhstan’s Cinema Week with actors Berik Aitzhanov, Farhat Abdraimov, Erbolat Toguzakov, Ayan Utepbergenova, Baykenzhe Belbayev and film director Satybaldy Narymbetov. Ambassador Ermekbayev also attended.

Earlier, on the eve of President Nazarbayev’s visit to Beijing, Ambassador Ermekbayev gave an interview to the Xinhua agency. “I would like to praise the cultural and humanitarian cooperation between our countries. In line with the agreements reached in June 2012 between the heads of states, the preparations for the Days of Kazakhstan Culture in China set to take place in November 2013 are in full swing. The Days of Chinese Culture in Kazakhstan are planned for 2014,” the ambassador said.

China and Kazakhstan regularly participate in cultural exchanges and increasing cooperation in the field of cinema, including the coproduction of documentaries and feature films, has the potential to deepen that relationship. In addition, youth organizations in each country also interact regularly.

There is also cooperation in the field of education with young people from Kazakhstan studying in China and Chinese youth studying in Kazakhstan. Today, about seven thousand Kazakhstan students study in China, including more than two thousand in Beijing. “And they all go back to Kazakhstan with a strong knowledge of the Chinese language, culture and history. They go back as true friends of China,” said Ermekbayev.

According to Ermekbayev, Kazakhstan and China are actively cooperating within the framework of international cultural organizations, such as UNESCO. Kazakhstan, along with China and Kyrgyzstan, is also working on an application for recognition of the Great Silk Road as a worldwide cultural heritage monument.

China and Kazakhstan have established a comprehensive strategic partnership and have achieved significant results in bilateral cooperation. The two countries maintain close cooperation in the international arena, jointly promote the development of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

Ambassador Ermekbayev, Deputy Secretary of the State General Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television of China Zhang Pimin and Deputy Director of the Chinese Film Bureau La Peikang attended the opening ceremony of Kazakhstan’s Cinema Week. In addition, two young Kazakhstan artists provided a moving dombyra performance for the audience and Chinese actor Wang Xuebing was selected as the ambassador for Kazakhstan’s Cinema Week.

Young Fashion Designers Bring Tradition up to Date

By Lyubov Dobrota

TURKESTAN – Students of the Design and Fine Arts department of International Hodja Akhmet Yassavi Kazakh-Turkish University are engaged in designing stylish 21st century clothes that reflect national traditions.

“Against the background of faceless dresses, which are sold in great quantities in our shops, an ethnic style captivates with its uniqueness

and individuality,” said Professor Dinara Yessenalieva. “Many Kazakh designers come back in their collections to the history of national costumes of Turkic peoples, combining ethnic motifs and colours.

Kazakh clothing should enter into every home and be widely used in daily life. It should become an indispensable attribute of festivals and celebrations.”

Teachers at the university try to inspire their students, increase

Young kazakh designers presented their view on ethnic clothes. their interest in the ethnic roots of their ancestors, and encourage them to bring, along with the national dress, a piece of the “Kazakh soul” into every home.

In the Tengri student club, which has existed under the auspices of the university for three years, students are fully involved in the world of fashion. Here, under the tutelage of experienced masters, they create Turkic peoples’ costumes. Specialists from Turkey Professor Denise Bekir and Ebru Temurleng help the young designers in the decoration of the national clothes.

Celebrating state and religious holidays in the national Kazakh dress has become a tradition in many families in Kazakhstan, but it’s not easy to find or buy a unique, colourful and beautiful national outfit. That may soon change as these young designers begin to practice professionally. In theses and diploma papers, students develop new projects based on national costumes, including traditional wedding dresses, outerwear, hats or the suits of Kazakh khans and warriors. They use a variety of materials, including felt.

Each year, students take part in

various competitions, displaying their collections. They have won numerous awards and certificates from prestigious competitions, including from contests held in Moscow and Turkey. The young designers boldly experiment with different fabrics and finishes, including wood beads, soutache, silk and metallic thread. The design techniques of the novice stylists are full of colour and expression.

Graduate Nurgali Ospanov has now become a popular expert in ethic design. He has participated in international exhibitions of eth-

nic clothes in Russia, Uzbekistan, Turkey and India, every time winning the hearts of the juries with his accessories for national costumes. Details that show his touch include “kapsyrma” (flat inlaid or embossed silver clasps), “beldіk” (belts), “syrga” (earrings), “bilezik” (bracelets), “shashbau” (ribbons with ornaments), all of which add charm and originality to traditional designs.

Students past and present of this Design and Fine Arts department are building a rich collection of unique modern clothes with traditional influences.

The Astana Times

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Wednesday, 24 April 2013

Country

Business Leaders Urged to Increase Charitable Activities

By Marina Parkhomenko American billionaires are setting a global example for generous philanthropy that should also be followed by wealthy business moguls in Kazakhstan, a leading expert says.

In 2012, billionaire Warren Buffet donated $3.1 billion to charity.

Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan donated nearly $500 million, mainly to healthcare projects. The Facebook founder is one of the richest people in the United States and signed a donation pledge to give most of his money to charity.

Prof. Kenneth Alibek, the famous microbiologist who had worked for a long time in the U.S., and who currently is the chairman of National Medical Holding, discussed the issues of social responsibility and private charitable contributions in an interview with The Astana Times.

Why is business social responsibility so relevant for the healthcare system?

Every year, state funding in Kazakhstan’s healthcare system is increasing. But, we should understand that there is no country in the world that can fully maintain the healthcare system only through state financing. Even the United States cannot afford to do this: It runs the national health insurance system as

well: There is funding from the individual state governments. Enormous contributions from business flow in. Large charitable contributions support the development of a variety of clinics. This is the only way to manage healthcare issues.

These examples should also be followed in Kazakhstan.

In our country, there are many examples of business leaders showing social responsibility in the field of sports and entrepreneurs also render assistance to social institutions such as orphanages, hostels for the elderly and disabled people. But, as far as the healthcare system goes, it is hard to think of any large-scale charity events. Can more be done in this area?

It is necessary to conduct more outreach to make the business community face social problems. I have talked to many businessmen and I know that the situation in Kazakhstan is not hopeless. Entrepreneurs contribute to the development of sports. In that area returns are fast. In the healthcare system too, the results of philanthropy come quickly: if you help a patient with a serious illness by contributing money for surgery, you have saved his or her life.

To my mind, the problem is often related to the fact that a businessperson is not always sure how, where and how transparently the money will be used. There are different options. It is possible to

support patients with serious or rare diseases, who need treatment abroad. It is possible to help them by transferring funds. It is also possible to purchase and supply the necessary equipment or offer to build a facility, or repair the premises.

Boards of trustees created by medical institutions also monitor the expenditure of funds. Do they have a role to play in this process?

Hospital boards need to develop new concepts to thank donors and encourage many more to contribute. In the United States, the hospitals and universities have memorial plates with the engraved

names of sponsors on them to create enduring legacies. In Kazakhstan too, we can build new centres for surgery, or lecture halls for medical schools and they will bear the name of the person who contributed the funds for them.

Sponsors can also create their own funds and use them to directly pay the salary of an outstanding professor, doctor or researcher and the position they fund will include the name of the sponsor. There are a lot of options.

This is a noble and grateful endeavour. There are lots of rich people in this country and each of them within their own resources can do something for their fellow citizens.

This is the work that should be started now.

Who should launch these initiatives?

They must come from the heart of society. It is a matter of public figures setting the example. It is necessary to raise the prestige of charity and change attitudes towards it in society.

Being a citizen of another country, I do not feel entitled to say what the Kazakhstan Parliament should do. That would be wrong and unethical on my part. But, it would be good for the legislative bodies to establish a system of preferences in taxation for businessmen who invest in the development of different spheres, including in healthcare.

How does one encourage and persuade wealthy people to share their wealth with others?

A: There is an old proverb that says, “If you want to do a bad deed to your children – leave a lot of money to them.” Children who are

Kenneth Alibek was born in 1950 in Kazakhstan.

He graduated from Tomsk medical institute and specialised as a military medic. In the Soviet Union, Alibek worked in different secret fields of biology and biotechnology including medicine development and biological defense research. He earned a PhD in biological science.

Alibek began to work in the United States in 1992 and became a U.S. citizen. He became a professor of medical microbiology and immunology at George Mason University. He has taught courses at Harvard, Princeton, George Washington University, Georgetown, The Sorbonne Columbia University, Rochester

born in such families often lose the ability to live a useful life. They lose the possibility of becoming people able to independently create something. Big money often corrupts. Man does not live to save lots of money and then not to know what to do with it. Life is short, they say: a man comes to this world alone and leaves it alone. Every individual should think about what he or she will leave behind.

There is one fact that must not be forgotten: Big money is earned by the efforts of hundreds of thousands of people who work in the mines, factories and other unhealthy environments. Wouldn’t it be right to spend some finances to better their health? When a man realizes that, everything might change and the question about social business responsibility might lose its edge.

Technological Institute and at universities in Tokyo and Singapore. He has been involved in developing new cancer medicines and for other chronic diseases. He has published about 100 scientific articles, books, and manuals in different fields of biology and medicine.

Prof. Alibek manages cancer research projects and the development of new drugs to treat pathological diseases and new vaccines at Nazarbayev University. He is the chairman of National Medical Holding, and treats terminal cancer patients. He heads a working group to build a National Cancer Research Centre in Astana.

HackDay to Gather Top IT Creatives Karaganda Fights Back against for Innovation Competition Hazardous Waste From Page B1

Many of the projects produced during last year’s competition were very interesting. For example, the winner of Hackday 2012 in the IT section was the team that produced a project called “Interactive Video – Application for Windows.” They came up with an application for the deaf, which, with the help of the Kinect, scans their body movements and gestures and translates those into words. They showed that it is possible to use the Kinect not only for entertainment and games, but also for more productive purposes.

“Five out of twelve projects that we have displayed at the innovative projects exhibition in Astana received serious interest and fund-

ing from investors. We hope this year we will have more investors to realize other useful projects,” continued Taykenova.

Hackday’s motto is “24 hours without sleep” because contestants often work through the night. Organizers help keep them going by supplying plenty of food and coffee.

As was done in 2011 and 2012, Hackday 2013 will include three sections. The first is “From the Idea to the Prototype.” This is a large section with more than 70 projects, which have been developed in the past. The second section, “Content and Media Development” is for those who want to open a website or to think up any new service. The third section, “Cinema and Video,” is where participants demonstrate their directorial skills

as teams produce innovative video products. This year, teams will start to produce their videos from scratch without premises prepared in advance. Last year more than 50 videos on a variety of topics were created.

Guests of the event will be wellknown bloggers from America, Russia and Kazakhstan, as well as the famous Internet-development team “Courage Bombay.”

The Yahoo Company developed the Hackday format in 2005 to stimulate creative ideas among its employees. The first public Hackday was organized in St. Petersburg by Yury Lifshits from Yahoo in September 2009. Today, the leading organizer of the Hackday format is a web development studio of Michael Kechinov.

By Natalia Ryzhkova KARAGANDA REGION – The Karaganda region has declared war on the 2.7 billion tons of hazardous waste, or hazmat (hazardous material) on its territory.

The Karaganda region covers one sixth of the territory of Kazakhstan, and it has accumulated more than eight billion tons of waste, one third of which is hazardous.

Much of the waste is not hazardous and can be recycled or used for projects like road construction.

However, pollutants dangerous to human health and the environment generated by steel, manufacturing, mining and energy activities are growing rapidly.

“Every year up to 160 million tons of waste are added and only one third is disposed of,” Karaganda region Ecology Department Director Zulfuhar Zholdassov told a conference on integrated waste management and the introduction of low-waste technologies.

“New technologies allow us to use many waste materials in production processes,” Zholdassov said. “The Kazakhmys Mining Corporation recycles 67 percent of the waste generated by its industrial processes ArcelorMittal Temirtau recycles 9 percent to 40 percent.”

In the city of Temirtau, the Vodokanalstroy Company uses blast furnace slag as additives in the production of construction materials, including cement.

Industrial waste accumulates in warehouses, ponds and construction sites. Karaganda regional officials estimate that 35 percent of their industrial waste on average can be recycled but they only have facilities in place to process 1 percent. In developed countries, the figure is usually above 30 percent.

In Europe, 60 percent of the waste generated by power stations is recycled but these processes have not yet been introduced in Kazakhstan.

The most difficult problems are caused by persistent organic pollutants (POPs).

Ecologist Dmitry Kalmykov, a United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) expert on waste disposal and director of the Karaganda Regional Ecology Museum told The Astana Times that the region still does not have any agency or system to effectively recycle hazardous wastes.

For 15 years, Kalmykov and his colleagues have studied the problem. In 2012, they established the Promotkhody Kazakhstan (Industrial Wastes Kazakhstan) Company. It currently employs 20 people.

“We want to recycle and neutralize hazardous wastes,” Kalmykov said. “I mean acids remnants, alkalis, expired reagents, petroleum products and mercury lamps.

These materials are much smaller

in volume than the waste generated by mining enterprises, but environmentally they are highly dangerous.”

Environmentalists have focused on processing hazardous wastes such as expired reagents, acids, electrolytes, alkalis, chemicals, resins and paints.

The problem of collecting and recycling mercury lamps has always been difficult. The city of Karaganda never had an office or agency to collect or store them, even though mercury is a dangerous liquid metal that can cause serious health problems. The regional medical epidemic centre stores two tons of mercury gathered from broken appliances, enterprises and abandoned areas. But it has no facilities to neutralize or recycle it.

Many industrial enterprises face similar problems: They would be happy to recycle the remains of chemical reagents, but there is no

company or state agency providing such services. Until recently, all waste material was abandoned or just dumped out on the open steppe.

Steppe regions around Karaganda city are full of such sites. Five years ago, a box containing vials of deadly anthrax was found near a residential district.

To prevent such incidents, environmentalists have focused on processing hazardous wastes such as expired reagents, acids, electrolytes, alkalis, chemicals, resins and paints. For each problem, industrial chemists develop a specific technology which is then approved by state agencies.

Promotkhody Kazakhstan has already received major orders to process many hazardous wastes.

No one knows the full extent of the problem. Until recently, companies routinely concealed the waste byproducts generated by their activities. Now they are required to report on the waste by state law.

The government now imposes serious penalties and steep fines for environmental violations. They also inform industrial producers about Promotkhody Kazakhstan and similar services so now it is more profitable to be responsible towards nature.

The Government imposed a series of penalties in order to prevent ecological catastrophe in Karaganda.

The Astana Times

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

society

Scientists Develop Kumis Products for Export

By Galiya Nurzhan Kumis, a mildly alcoholic drink made from fermented mare’s milk, is the popular national beverage of Kazakhstan. Now experts are working to make it an export success in Europe as well.

Kumis has been widely known since ancient times. Avicenna (Ibn Sina), the 11th century great philosopher and physician praised its therapeutic effects a thousand years ago. Today, the beverage is enjoying a new wave of interest across Europe and it is being brewed in Germany, Austria, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Ukraine, Mongolia and Yakutia in Siberia.

Kumis has significant nutritional value and a pronounced antimicrobial effect thanks to the presence of antibiotic substances produced by microorganisms during fermentation. Its combination of alcohol, carbon dioxide and lactic acid excites the activity of gastric glands and improves digestion. Its antibiotic substances boost resistance to infection and its lactic acid bacteria create favourable intestinal microflora.

The dry mare’s milk is first mentioned in the accounts of the conquests of Genghis Khan. The Mongolian conqueror ordered each of his warriors to always carry dried meat and dried kumis in his traveling bag.

Kazakh scientists have developed methods to pasteurize kumis and deep-freeze it.

Professor Urishbay Chomanov of the National Academy of Sciences and National Research Institute (NRI) believes kumis can be converted into tablets and powders for export.

Some experts believe kumis should be stored for at least a year before drinking it. The NRI has developed a new sublimation method using microwave technology to produce seven to eight kilograms (15.4 to 17.6 pounds) of concentrate from 100 kilograms (220 pounds) of kumis. In this method, the alcohol is evaporated from the kumis, but all other useful substances remain.

The NRI technique dehydrates objects at very low temperatures of minus 20 to minus 30 degrees Centigrade and final drying takes place between four to 40 degrees Centigrade.

Kumis made from mare’s milk powder is identical to natural kumis in its taste and medicinal qualities.

Scientists at Asfendiyarov Na-

tional Medical University have developed a form of kumis in tablet form that makes a natural healing drink after being dropped in a glass of mineral water for an hour with similar qualities to aspirin.

But it is still far from the production stage.

Freeze-drying kumis has been developed in Germany. This freezedrying, or lyophilization process, takes place at low temperatures of minus 40 to minus 70 degrees Centigrade.

This technique was pioneered by Rudolf Storch in 1959. He learned its basic principles from an old Kazakh peasant when he was a prisoner of war in a Soviet prison camp.

He started milk production in the Laar district of Germany with five Gafling-breed mares to produce kumis for patients at a sanatorium and started the first production of mare’s milk in Europe.

Brack Zollmann was another pioneer of the treatment. After World War II, he too spent many years at the Karaganda Corrective Labor Camp (Karlag) as another German prisoner of war. When his term ended, he was dying of tuberculosis, and probably would have died if a Kazakh shepherd had not treated him with kumis.

Zollmann then opened a kumis farm with 400 horses. Today, his children are successful horse breeders. They also manufacture popularcosmetics with mare’s milk in their products.

The Zollmann farm in the town of Waldbrunn in the Odenwald mountain forest is the largest and oldest kumis factory in Germany.

Brack’s son Hans married the daughter of Rudolf Storch and today they run the Kurgelstut Hoher Odenwald Company.

According to Hans Zollmann interest in the curative properties of kumis grew in the 1960’s after scientists discovered its positive effect in the treatment of lung diseases, digestive problems and weakened immunity.

Zollmann said kumis is best taken from horses raised in a natural and organic environment, without the use of chemical fertilizers.

Zollmann’s products include dry concentrate additives for baby food, cosmetic products, bactericidal body lotion, soap, shampoo and shower gel, all using kumis substances. His family drinks mare’s milk every day to ensure the quality of the product.

Today there are 30 to 40 farms in Germany that produce and sell kumis.

Aytugan Mukashev, Ph.D., an ag-

By Rufiya Ospanova ASTANA – A charity concert was recently held at the Radisson Hotel to help 25-year-old Miss Scuba Kazakhstan Kamilya Aukenovapay for expensive surgery in her fight against acute leukemia.

Kazakhstan celebrities urged those who came to the concert to buy a 2,000 tenge ($13) ticket to help raise money.

Dinara Satzhan and Ruslan Sultanov were the anchors of the concert and liaisons between the attendees and the mother of Kamilya, who was sending messages and made a video-call from the hospital during the concert.

Kamilya was able to watch the programme live and see performances by famous and young Kazakhstan dancers and singers like

Rustem Zhugunussov, Kulaim Kairbayeva, the TERRA dancing group, Son Pascal, Dilshat Akhmadiyev, Ivan Breussov and many others.

Yedil Kussainov, a well-known player of Kazakhstan’s national instruments, gave a wonderful performance. And before he started playing, he performed a shamanistic ritual, asking God to help Kamilya get better.

“The event was absolutely great. I found an amazing group of friends united for our sister Kamilya. They were able to raise that much money in just one night and that’s a stunning fact. This is a demonstration that the youth of Kazakhstan has skills, power and style and that gives me bright hopes for the future of this country. I was invited by the Angels for

Kazakh Science Students Head to Arizona for Science Fair

By Manshuk Bekentayeva

Kumis, the Kazakh national drink, is thought to have numerous curative qualities. ricultural consultant for the World Bank said Japan too is interested in dried milk based on kumis.

Mongolian scientists have developed a new mobile kumis manufacturing machine that produces the fermented beverage in a single procedure using a mini-computer.

Kumis powder is poured into the device and it is then automatically mixed with water and decanted into plastic cups.

The Mongolians say the Kazakh sublimation method to dry freeze kumis is too expensive, because the dehydration process requires energy and therefore increases costs.

KAZNEX Research Director Raushan Kazbekova believes powdered kumis is not a realistic export product. Kumis and shubat, (fermented camel’s milk) are listed as dairy products like yogurts and still have not been accredited as distinct items for sale.

Nursila Akhmetbekov, president of the Sarzhaylau kumis centre said the first step in this process would be to register a brand of kumis as

Charity Concert Touches Hearts of People

Son Pascal, the Kazakh-singing darling of Kazakhstan's fans, was one of the concert's headliners.

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Kamilya and I was happy to give my effort for a good cause. As a singer, I have the privilege to be the loudspeaker for the youth and using my voice was the minimum I could do. But these young guys did much more than me by organizing such an event with that number of guests and in great fashion,” said Son Pascal.

The attendees included people from various spheres, such as civil workers and students, as well as guests from the diplomatic corps.

Ambassadors and representative of the embassies of Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, the Republic of South Africa, Afghanistan and others watched the concert and were sympathetic to Kamilya’s disease. This was really touching and was another confirmation that people in Kazakhstan are helping each other.

Money collected from the sale of tickets will be sent to Kamilya’s account for urgent bone marrow transplantation surgery. Over 1,000 tickets were sold, and, together with money donated in boxes installed in the hall, the total amount raised was more than 2 million tenge ($13,228).

The organizers of the event were close friends and relatives of Kamilya. They created an online group called Angels for Kamilya and used social networks Vkontakte and Facebook to gather many people for the concert. The group Angels for Kamilya was created for those who cannot remain indifferent to the suffering of others.

a distinctively Kazakh beverage, comparable to Swiss cheese, Irish whiskey and Italian spaghetti for the global market.

Akhmetbekov said the product had a potential export market worth millions of dollars. He said a ton of kumis can be produced for one third the production costs of the same amount of oil. But it could generate five or six times higher profits.

ASTANA – Four high school students from Kazakhstan will fly to Phoenix, Arizona as finalists in an international science and engineering competition for teenagers.

Senior high school students from Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Moldova and Belarus have qualified as finalists in the 64th Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) to be held on May 12-17 in Phoenix.

Twelve regional competitions were held in each of the 12 Commonwealth of Independent States CIS) countries.

The Daryn Science and Engineering Competition in Kazakhstan received 16,837 applications, from which 500 finalists were selected.

The winners included two seniors from the Zhautykov Specialized Physics and Mathematics Secondary Boarding School. Serikzhan Raushan from Almaty presented a project proving “the existence of a calculated sequence, not described by finite state automaton.”

Ayman Zhumakaeva from the Daryn Regional School for Gifted Children in Karaganda will present her project on the use of electrical technology to create exchangers for heat recovery in shallow soil.

The finalists with the third project are Balzhan Bekenova and Zere Smailova from gymnasiums No. 159 and No. 148 in Almaty. Their project researched ionic modification and plasma treatment of aluminium on titanium surfaces.

“The projects presented by school students in the final of Intel ISEF are characterized by their serious fundamental approach and high applied meaning. We hope their performances will be successful and will be a starting point for further research,” said Natalia Myakova, director of Intel ISEF in Russia and Kazakhstan.

Intel ISEF is a programme run by the Society for Science and the Public. It holds the largest world international pre-college science competition.

The competition is open for students in grades 9–12. It provides an annual forum for more than 1,500 high school students from 70 countries to display their research. More than 20 winners later became Nobel laureates and three have won Fields awards, one of the highest awards in mathematics.

In 2012, Kazakhstan student Assiya Kussainova from the Daryn Specialised School for Gifted Children in Almaty won a category in the competition. It was the first time anyone from this country had. She received a prize of $5,000.

Kussainova designed a wind turbine that could work efficiently at low speeds and won first place in electrical and mechanical engineering. Most wind turbines do not generate power efficiently at wind speeds below 10 metres per second and cannot operate at all when wind speeds drop below 5 metres per second. However, Kussainova demonstrated that substituting long, rotating cylinders for the more-aerodynamic blades found on most standard wind turbines could enable the turbines to generate power at wind speeds as low as 3 metres per second.

The first place winners in each of 17 categories received cash awards worth $5,000. Second through fourth place competitors received cash awards of $500 and higher. Other awards included scholarships.

Russia will present 20 projects at the ISEF fair, Ukraine six, Moldova four, and Azerbaijan and Belarus three each.

The finalists will present projects in mathematics, chemistry, physics, informatics and programming. The competition judges include professors from major American scientific institutions and senior officials from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and the Association for Computing Machinery) and some Nobel laureates. The ISEF fair has been held annually since 1950.

In 1996, the Intel Corporation became its sponsor.

The Astana Times

B6

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

Tourism

German Writer Created In-Depth English Guide to Kazakhstan From Page B1 Lavishly illustrated with over 300 colour photographs and 19 maps, the book contains everything from travel information to sections on Kazakhstan’s Silk Road and nomadic past to chapters on business, natural resources and commerce. The book is an invaluable resource for business visitors to Kazakhstan who seek to better understand the country’s culture and potential. It also highlights the enormous potential that Kazakhstan has for tourism and the country’s great beauty, culture and diverse history, right up to the achievements of the present age.

In her book and travel guide, Schreiber describes many attractions of the country for the intrepid and less-intrepid traveler. According to her, all sorts of pastimes are available, including trekking across the boundless steppe, adventure skiing in stunning mountain scenery, seeing lakes and wildlife of the lush Tien Shan and Altai Mountains, visiting ancient mosques and caravanserais of the Silk Road or viewing the amazing treasures of the museums of Almaty and its graceful Bauhaus architecture.

The work was produced with support from the Embassy of Kazakhstan in the United Kingdom.

It also contains a foreword by the Duke of York in his capacity as patron of the British-Kazakh Society. In it, he stresses Kazakhstan’s great promise in the areas of business and tourism, writing: “Kazakhstan now features increasingly on business people’s travel itineraries; but the riches and beauty of its vast and varied geography have yet to be discovered by more than a relatively small number of intrepid travelers. I have been fortunate enough to have seen at first hand some of Kazakhstan’s imposing mountain scenery, the beauty of the steppe and the majesty of its desert, rivers and gem-like lakes.

The country truly offers travelers a unique combination of adventure, history, culture and legendary hospitality – all set against a backdrop

Dagmar Schreiber of pristine landscapes.” About Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital, the book says the following: “If you want to get some idea of what Akmola, Tselinograd or Akmolinsk was like, you should do it now. Many old houses on the right bank of the river are still standing, mostly in the area between the railway station and Moscow Street, but also east of Pobeda Avenue. There is little hope, however, that many of them will survive the coming years, since systematic neglect has left them in such state that razing them seems to be the only practical solution. Curiously, and in contradiction to the norm, this city’s most interesting sights all date from very recent times.

As you drive from the airport towards the city, the first thing that stands out from a distance is a very tall structure on the right, crowned by a golden, glittering globe. This is the Baiterek observation tower, the “Tree of Life.” It was President Nazarbayev’s idea, and he also has a clear view of it from his living room, for his new residence is located in full sight of the 97metre-high structure. According to legend, the magic bird Samruk would lay a golden egg on the top of every tree that was out of reach to humans.

All the secrets of human desire and passion were hidden inside the

egg, as well as the answers to all their dreams for the future. With the building of Baiterek the egg is no longer out of reach, since two elevators whisk visitors up to the golden, gleaming globe set within the opening concrete “branches” of the white-trunked tower.

From this vantage point, looking out through the gold-tinted glass, you may not grasp the secret of life’s passions and desires and the key to their satisfaction – but at least you can admire how the president’s vision of the future is rapidly taking shape.

Baiterek occupies the centre of a huge quadrangle, the showpiece of Astana’s recent development. Occupying the eastern end of this long rectangle is the marbled splendour of the Presidential Palace, while facing it, albeit from a considerable distance, is the glass-fronted facade of the KazMunayGas building in the west.

Between the country’s political focal point on one side and the headquarters of the country’s most powerful business corporation on the other, two rows of impressive buildings – housing top government and business offices – make up the remaining sides of this elongated rectangle. It makes a powerful statement of economic wealth – no doubt the intention – but it also happens to be a pleasant place to walk, since the quadrangle’s inner space has been made into an attractive park, with flowerbeds and modern bronze statues of stylized traditional figures.

Walk towards KazMunayGas and on your left you’ll see the Islamic Centre and country’s largest place of worship, the Nur Astana Mosque, completed in 2005 and a gift from the Emir of Qatar to the citizens of Kazakhstan. [The newly opened Hazret Sultan mosque on the right bank is now even larger than the Nur Astana Mosque.

– The Astana Times.] With space enough for 7,000 worshippers, its 40-metre height symbolizes the age of Mohammed when he first had revelations from God, and whose gleaming, 63-metre-high minarets symbolize the Prophet’s

New Book Uncovers Oskemen’s History

By Svetlana Abenova EAST-KAZAKHSTAN REGION – A new book chronicles the history of Oskemen, also known as Ust-Kamenogrosk, for more than 260 years to the beginning of the 20th century.

The book, released by the Heritage private publishing house, is called “Annals of Ust-Kamenogorsk: 1654-1918.” It documents many previously unknown or forgotten events in the city’s history.

It is the product of several years of research by its three authors.

The book starts long before the founding of the fortress of Ust-Kamennaya in 1720 and ends with the Communist Revolution of 1917.

“For a long time I have been collecting scattered material in various archival sources. The first references to the region date back to the middle of the 18th century,” Galina Kush of the Regional Mu-

seum of History, the book’s editor, told The Astana Times.

The book quotes materials in the museum and documents and photographs from private collections that have never been published before.

“Since childhood my visits to museums have been my most vivid memories. I always wanted to unravel the mysteries of antiquity and to revive the history of artifacts and documents,” Alexander Kharlamov, chief editor of Heritage Publishing, told The Astana Times.

He is one of the three authors of the “Annals” and the owner of the Retro antique shop.

Kharlamov said the book tells the stories of the remarkable personalities and important events in the city’s history.

The records of the times of Tsar Peter the Great 300 years ago were studied and cited. Maps and photographs from that time were restored with the help of modern technology.

The third author, local historian and designer Dmitry Cherepanov said that weeks were spent on processes to restore some of the photographs used in the book.

“The publication of our own chronicles is a big victory and a breakthrough for Ust-Kamenogorsk city,” said researcher and writer Boris Shcherbakov, who recently published his own folio “Eastern Kazakhstan - the Heart of Eurasia.”

The book contains the five municipal coats of arms in the city’s history and reveals new details about the founder of the fortress of Ust-Kamennaya, Russian Army Major Ivan Vasilievich Likharyev, who was leading an expedition looking for Yarkenda gold.

Heritage Publishing plans to publish two more volumes on the city’s history bringing the story through the Soviet period, and its current era in independent Kazakhstan.

An artistic rendition of how one of the squares in Ust-Kamenogorsk will look like after its renovation.

age when he departed from the world of man. You can enter the mosque on any day except Friday.

A wide road leads north from here towards the river and the right bank of the city. On a green hill to the left of the road, a colossal Kazakhstan flag waves in the steppe wind. This is the Independence Memorial, built in an area which was long-considered untouchable.

(Previously this was the site of the Victims of Totalitarism Memorial, which is now in the village of Malinovka, west of Astana.)

Closer to the river is another grand dome supported by pillars.

This is the Saltanat Reception Palace, where state and other official receptions and banquets are held. Nearby is the Atameken Ethnic Memorial Park (6 Kabanbay Batyr Street), which features a 1.7-hectare model of Kazakhstan, highlighting many architectural and other interesting sites around the country.

It is open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. The large Central Park occupies the wedge of land created by a 90-degree bend in the Esil River; it is very popular with the city’s residents, offering peace, shade and shelter from the dustiness of the streets – the constant construction and perennial winds of the steppe often combine to make walking around town unpleasant. Within the park are cafes, a Fantasy World with carnival rides, ponds and many nooks and crannies where people relax on benches or picnic under the trees.

Cross the bridge over the Esil River and the large building facing you is the Presidential Cultural Centre on Republic Avenue, a large, white building shaped like a giant yurt with a blue dome, which houses a large library, a concert hall and a museum of Kazakh history.

The Presidential Cultural Centre, with its blue dome in the shape of a yurt, was completed in 2000; a new national university was opened, the Eurasian Gumilyov University, named after the spiritual father of the notion of a united Eurasia; and many modern archi-

tectural gems have followed. The mix in building styles gives an impression of a capital where Western and Eastern cultures meet. Turkish and domestic construction firms have built – and continue to build – colourful skyscrapers of many different designs on the right bank of the Esil River, seating a skyline worthy of a new metropolis.

Astana is neatly split down the middle by the Esil – but it wasn’t always this way. The old town of Akmola was situated almost entirely on the river’s right bank, with only the city’s central park and a few roads on the left bank acting as a buffer for the open steppe to the south.

This area, however, was designated as the site for a brand-new city that would rival the ultramodern metropolises of Dubai and Hong Kong – and so it has turned out to be. In fact, one could say that the fantastic city development plan drawn up by Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa has in fact been overtaken by the reality and successes of the achievements so far.

The new Presidential Palace, the Baiterek observation tower – a landmark for the city and the country – Kazakhstan’s largest mosque, the modernistic KazMunayGas building, many more government and business complexes with glass and steel facades, gigantic residential complexes in imperial styles, massive hotels, an exhibition centre, a monumental leisure centre, an oceanarium, a national library and archives, a special zone for diplomats. There is no end in sight to the building boom on the Esil’s southern bank.

In 2006, Sir Norman Foster’s architect firm completed an inspirational glass pyramid named the Palace of Peace and Harmony that has garnered praise around the world; it was created to be a meeting place for the leading representatives of world religions.

Such was its success that Foster’s company has been commissioned again, this time to build an even bigger construction, a colossal 150-metre-high, tent-

shaped cone named Khan Shatyr, which will – when it opens in 2010 [which it did – The Astana Times] – provide 10,000 of the capital’s residents and visitors with a massive recreation centre protected from the elements by a transparent plastic compound that absorbs the sun and regulates the temperature inside, allowing people to sip coffee and even sunbathe by an artificial lake while it is well below freezing outside (during the cold steppe winter).

Meanwhile, flowers, shrubs and trees planted on spacious greens throughout the city attempt to reduce the effects of the extreme weather caused by Astana’s continental climate. With Astana, Kazakhstan is presenting a completely new, ultra-modern face to the world, one that shows its ambitions both within the region and on the global stage, and also its economic and financial power.

Economists say that the President has allocated over US $10 billion for the construction of his new city – and that’s without taking foreign investment into account.

The original plan was for the President’s dream of a true capital to have come to fruition by the year 2030, but the actual growth in population puts these expectations in the shade (the 500,000th resident was born in 2002, a milestone originally forecast for 2007).

In 2010, the metropolis should already have a population of a million people, and the city’s area is now three times larger than it was in 1997.

Wander down the river promenade and you’ll be part of a vibrant scene as people go walking, skateboarding and jogging by; across the river the aqua park is full of life. Everywhere, businesses, cafes, restaurants and hotels are emerging. A lively nightlife has developed, and most foreign embassies have now moved from Almaty to their new home. The new metropolis is being accepted, and all those banks and enterprises who initially refused to move from Almaty to the steppe have had to reconsider.”

The Astana Times

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

B7

Sports

Kazakhstan Equestrians Prepare for 2014 Astana Arlans Qualify World Championships for World Series of Boxing Finals

Horses of Adai breed are among the most treasured by Kazakhstan’s racers.

By Yuri Lifintsev ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s equestrian team is hard at work preparing for the prestigious World Equestrian Games to be held in France in 2014.

“It’s like the World Football Championship or the Olympics, for which people wait four years.

It is extremely difficult to get into the World Equestrian Games for the participants and spectators as well. Even now, all tickets have already been sold in France. There were fifty thousand spectators in the dressage competitions in which

I participated. People in France like equestrian sports no less than in Germany. More than one thousand horses take part in competitions in different disciplines!” said Sergey Buikevich, vice-president of the Equestrian Sport Federation of Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan equestrians plan to participate in these competitions in the long distance and dressage categories.

Today, long distance races are the most popular discipline of equestrian sports and teams must submit applications demonstrating certain qualifications if they hope to par-

ticipate in the World Equestrian Games. Long distance race teams include five athletes, six horses and about 20 support personnel such as veterinarians and assistants.

The Kazakhstan national team is currently training and testing riders, and, in March, twice visited Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates.

During those visits, Kazakhstan riders participated in equestrian festivals, including strong finishes in a 120-kilometre race. Three of Kazakhstan’s six athletes, Esenaman Koyshiev, Abish Etirekov and Sergey Buikevich, qualified for

the World Equestrian Games. One hundred and thirty seven horses participated in these races and only 46 horses finished. Among teenagers and juniors Azat Koyshiev won an honourable 15th place in the 120-kilometre races. Total professional prize money at the event was more than $1 million. However, for the athletes, the most important aspect of the competition was to qualify for the World Equestrian Games.

The event provided an opportunity for the Kazakhstan team to use the Arab system of horse training, which is more appropriate than the previously used American system for horses in the Kazakhstan region. The Arab system has proven successful in the past with numerous Arab riders winning world championship long distance races.

The Kazakhstan team’s horses include exclusively local horses, particularly of the Adai breed.

Whether or not Kazakhstan is able to win at the World Equestrian Games, participating will allow the country to showcase domestic horses and to establish their quality in major competitions. However, with proper preparation, Kazakhstan can win within the Commonwealth of Independent States and at a higher level.

After a success at the festival of equestrian sport in Abu Dhabi, the Kazakh team was invited to participate in other competitions at the 240 kilometre distance. Valuable competition and training experience was also gained as a result of the United Arab Emirates races.

By Yernat Mukhamadiyev ASTANA – The Astana Arlans, Kazakhstan’s professional boxing club, recently hosted and beat the visiting Mexico Guerreros team 5:0 to qualify for the World Series of Boxing (WSB) finals.

In the competition held April 20 at the Almaty Towers Business Center, bantamweight (50-54kg) Bagdad Alimbekov won over 19year-old Mexican Aaron Alameda with a score of 3:0 (50:45, 50:45, 50:45).

Kazakhstan lightweight (5761kg) Samat Bashenov, who is undefeated this season, also confidently beat Belarusian Vazgen Safaryants. The score was 3:0 (49:46, 50:45, 49:46).

Middleweight (68-73kg) Sergiy Derevyanchenko led the team to the final in a victory over Irish Conrad Cummings. This third victory of the night ensured the Astana Arlans its spot in the WSB Team Finals, regardless of the outcome of the night’s two remaining bouts.

Derevyanchenko won the fight 3:0 (50:45, 50:45, 50:45).

Next up at light heavyweight (80-85kg), Iran’s best boxer Ehsan Rouzbahani, who fights for the Kazakhstan team, left no hope for Mexico’s Guerreros Bojan Miskovic after a number of powerful combinations forced the referee to stop the contest before the end of the first round.

Astana Arlans team captain and Best Asian WSB Boxer of 2012, heavyweight (91+kg) Ruslan Myrsatayev was also too strong for Serbian Milutin Stankovic from the Mexico Guerreros team. Myrsatayev was declared the winner by a score of 3:0 (50:45, 50:45, 50:45).

All Kazakhstan fighters were in fine form during the competition and were backed by a fervent crowd as the fighters delivered a resounding victory.

All Kazakhstan fighters were in fine form during the competition and were backed by a fervent crowd as the fighters delivered a resounding victory.

Reaching their second WSB Team Finals in three seasons, the Arlans will face Ukraine on May 10 and 11in Astana.

Considered since the beginning of this WSB season as one of the favourites for the title, the Kazakh team has won eight of the ten bouts of this semi-final. Their team finals against the Ukraine Otamans promises to be an extraordinary spectacle.

Kazakhstan Off-Road Rally Drivers Win in Abu Dhabi

By Miras Abykov

April 4 - 11 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and represented the second stage of the FIA World Cup (International Car

Source: Vesti.kz

ASTANA – Off Road Kazakhstan, a rally team consisting

of Denis Berezovsky and Alexey Nikizhev, won the Аbu Dhabi Desert Сhallenge 2013 in the T2 class. The race took place from

Denis Berezovsky and Alexey Nikizhev won the Аbu Dhabi Desert Сhallenge 2013 in the T2 class.

Racing Federation) and the first stage of the FIM World Championship (International Motor Racing Federation).

The Kazakhstan racers, driving a Nissan Patrol SUV, completed the final stage of the 266kilometre race in four hours, nine minutes and 22 seconds. Another Kazakh team, consisting of Bauyrzhan Issabayev and Stanislav Podolyanyuk, came in second.

“We are very satisfied with the race. This is a great result for us. We already were on the podium five years ago, and now we’ve repeated that; it has multiplied our success. The race was tough. Before the podium, technical commissioners ‘gutted’ the car again. The first places are not gifts. The winners of the three classes passed a detailed check… They had no questions for us [then], as well as during the entire race. So we received the official medals; we were the first in the class,” said driver Denis Berezovsky.

Navigating mate Alexey Nikizhev has just experienced his first success at such a level. “For me, this is the first such podium, the most valuable achievement. I believe this is a leap forward for our whole Kazakhstan team.”

In the overall classification for cars, Berezovsky and Nikizhev took 11th place. Winners of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge 2013 in the cars classification were Nani Roma of Spain and Michel Perin of France.

Another Kazakhstan representative, Alexander Linnik, was ranked 36th in the moto classification. Linnik, the first in the history of Kazakhstan to take part in such a big race on a quad bike, was 11th in his class.

“Everything was great, even though it was hard. This awesome race taught me a lot. I was here for the first time; I hope to correct all errors and physically train more for the next race. And I think we will succeed,” Linnik said.

Kazakhstan racers Kanat Shagirov and Alexander Moroz, who were 17th in the overall car classification, shared their impressions.

“Abu Dhabi Desert Сhallenge 2013 was over, the official finish was passed. The most important thing for us is that we made it, we reached it. There were some problems, of course, we expected better results from ourselves.

The race was hard, but interesting,” driver Shagirov said after finishing.

Moroz, Shagirov’s navigator, underlined that the race was one of the most complicated stages of the world championship. “The race is very complicated, one of the most complicated stages of the world championship. We are satisfied with the race. We experienced a lot. We will work on our errors, change tactics.

On the whole, this is one of the most complicated stages, where to make the finish is already a victory.”

Gymnastics Championship Discovers New Talent

By Oleg Taran ASTANA – The Kazakhstan national rhythmic gymnas-

tics championship was held in the capital on April 13, and gathered young athletes who demonstrated their skills and

gained experience in major competition.

Seventy gymnasts from Astana, Almaty, Karaganda, Kostanai, Pavlodar, Almaty, and the north, south and east Kazakhstan regions took part in the competition.

“It was a big event for the capital because for a long time the competition did not receive such a considerable number of participants,” said the State Coach of Kazakhstan Yelena Panchenko.

The competition was organized to determine the champion in the individual programme, in the group exercises and in team competitions. In turn, candidates for the national team honed their skills and senior coach of Kazakhstan in rhythmic gymnastics Aliya Yussupova selected the most promising young athletes who will soon take part in major international competitions.

The Astana Times interviewed and got her opinion on the status of gymnastics in Kazakhstan.

What was your primary goal going into the April 13 competition?

My primary goal was to raise the level of gymnastics in Kazakhstan in general, including at the international level. I wanted to bring special attention to the youth team and to the girls who have just come into the programme. They have not yet participated in major competitions, such as world or Asia champion-

ships, but they are very promising athletes.

In what region of Kazakhstan has this sport most successfully developed?

The leaders are the cities of Astana, Almaty and Shymkent.

Also, there are promising girls in Pavlodar, Ust-Kamenogorsk, Semipalatinsk and Taraz. Recently, a good school opened in the Kyzylorda regional center. Thus, we have good prospects. At the beginning of June, our athletes will take part in the Asian Championship in Tashkent and in late August through early September in the World Championship, which will be held in Ukrainian capital.

Also, we will do our best in order to represent the country at the next Olympics in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro.

At the April 13 national competition, Victoria Gorbunova from Almaty was named overall champion. She also won a silver medal in the team competition (individual programme). Winners in the team contest include Akbota Kalimzhanova, Akbayan Aytzhanova, Nazgul Abduali, Jannet Zhaboeva, Yelena Maryasova, Ardak Kumisbayeva, Yekaterina Skorikova and Alia Asymova.

Alia Asymova and Yekaterina Skorikova took second and third place respectively in the individual championship.

Kazakhstan's gymnasts are aiming high for victories at international cometitions.

The Astana Times

B8

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

Capital

India Gate Offers Classic Dishes on Right Bank

Guests from Kazakhstan and beyond enjoy India Gate’s charming atmosphere and spicy food.

By Anel Adilbayeva ASTANA – Astana does not have many restaurants specialising in Indian cuisine, but India Gate on the Right Bank of the Yessil River is a good place to start.

IndiaGate has a very rich menu that focuses on Indian cuisine but also includes some Thai and Chinese dishes. The restaurant is always customer friendly and provides a high quality dishes.

It provides an ideal venue for romantic dinners, corporate lunches, birthday celebrations, anniversaries and wedding receptions.

The décor is atmospheric. Dark lighting maintains the exotic atmosphere with paintings display-

ing Hindu teachings and traditional art on display. The restaurant attracts diplomats from Pakistan, Malaysia, Canada, the United States and Britain. Half its guests are foreigners, 20 percent from Kazakhstan and 20 percent visitors from the Middle East and 10 percent from India.

The Astana Times interviewed chief chef and owner Nandha Kumar.

How did you come to open this restaurant?

It was originally called the Tandoori, but its previous management had some problems and that’s when I took over and renamed the place.

What are your specialties and where do your chefs come from?

I have three cooks from India for each of our three specialized cuisines. We serve Indian, Thai and Chinese cuisines. I have one cook for our Indian dishes, one cook for our traditional Indian bread, the naan kulcha. It is a stuffed flatbread baked in a very hot tandoori oven, and one cook for Thai and Chinese dishes. Our Indian chef comes from the region of Gadwal in Andhra Pradesh state in southeast India. He has been working for a decade in the business. Our bread chef comes from Nepal. Our Thai and Chinese cuisine chef was originally from Nepal too, but for 20 years he lived in Delhi.

Do all your ingredients come from India?

Yes, I travel to India every six months especially to buy cooking spices and other ingredients because here in Kazakhstan we only buy the basic vegetables and meat.

As you know Indian ingredients are unique.

What does restaurant cooking mean to you?

Cooking is an art. Just working for a living will not give you real satisfaction. I have many customers from all walks of life. Everyone in Astana knows my restaurant and they know I love my work. I love to prepare their meals. My chefs share my philosophy of life. They love to cook. It is the meaning of their lives.

Indian cuisine is famous all around the world. What is the demand for it here in Astana?

Astana is a young and rapidly growing city with a strong international flavour. There was no real

tradition of Indian cuisine here before we opened, but the popularity of it is growing rapidly. Our clientele is growing and our profits are rising.

We find advertising is important but it is very expensive in Astana.

When I took over, at first business was poor. We did not have many customers. Now we are doing good business and we are much more popular. We plan to open a new, high profile branch in the food court of the Khan Shatyr Entertainment Centre. I believe that the hosting of EXPO 2017 in Astana will be a golden opportunity for us.

I will have far more guests and will have the opportunity to expand the business.

Ramazan Abilov (c), a student at Kazakhstan Agriculture and Technology University, is one of the best volunteers working to preserve order on his campus.

From Page B1 The programme is working. In 2012, its volunteers helped to report or solve 184 crimes and 5,871 administrative offenses. Since the beginning of this year, another 39

crimes and 1,412 offenses have been reported. In 2012, the Astana DIA rewarded some of its volunteers with 13 million tenge ($86,980) in reward money.

“Each year, new members are recruited. They wear special uniforms

and are involved in various raiding operations. In carrying out preventive operations, assistants actively participate and monitor their territories. Young volunteers help to preserve public order on campuses and in dormitories. They work with

What dishes do foreign guests prefer?

For our foreign visitors, the most popular dishes are lamb vindaloo and lamb rogan josh.

What is the most popular dish you serve?

Our chicken tikka and chicken pokora are very famous. Our main dish is chicken masala which is

Do you like the Kazakh national dish beshbarmak (boiled meat mixed with boiled noodles and onion sauce)? (laughing) Yes, I do. I do not like beef, but I like konina (horsemeat in Russian). Sometimes my friends and guests bring it to me.

volunteers told The Astana Times about his service.

“We usually work in the university, where we investigate all the violations we discover,” he said. “They are usually petty offenses such as smoking, consumption of alcohol, appearance in the university or in residence hostel drunk, and fights.

The KazATU campus is very large.

Fights often occur in public places.”

Abilov does not work alone. “I am part of a team of eight people,”

he said. “We work in shifts. We always wear uniforms on duty. We work every day and we are having a deterrent effect. Students are stopping smoking or appearing drunk in hostels. We are making progress.”

Abilov said he enjoyed his public service. “I do it from the heart, not to get 15,000 tenge ($99.28).

I guard our own people and help young people like myself,” he said.

Another volunteer, Anuar Nurgaliyev, is a second year student. “I like my job,” he said. “I dreamed of becoming a community volunteer. I actively take part and try to do well. The young people we deal with learn to behave better and they respect our work.”

Student Volunteers Help Police local police officers. Naturally, especially distinguished assistants are encouraged quarterly,” Major Svetlana Imambayeva, a senior Astana police officer, told The Astana Times.

Some 27 of the student volunteers come from KazATU. The police prefer to recruit students who have successful sports backgrounds.

Ramazan Abilov, a first year student at KazATU, is one of the

popular. Our guests like vegetable jalfrezi, a mildly spiced curry and sizzling vegetable recipe in a mildly spiced gravy. For vegetarians we offer vegetable pulao, dal makhni, mixed vegetable curry.

Dal makhni is a rich lentil sauce.

Rice comes with every major dish.

Our briahni, or spiced rice, is similar to the Kazakh beshparmak. It can be cooked with vegetables.