Kazakhstan: Venezuelan union leader supports Kazakh opposition activists

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Kazakhstan

Venezuelan union leader supports Kazakh opposition activists

26/09/2011 Ainur Kurmanov and Esenbek Ukteshbayev to address OSCE Human Rights Conference
CWI Reporters

A Venezuelan trade union general secretary and a human rights organisation, also in Venezuela, have written to the Kazakh authorities in opposition to their apparent plans to move against the leaders of the Socialist Movement Kazakhstan - Ainur Kurmanov, Esenbek Ukteshbayev and others. This threat is an attempt to behead the movement being built in opposition to the increasingly dictatorial regime of Nazarbayev (see ‘Kazakhstan: “Kurmanov to be jailed?” http://www.socialistworld.net/doc/5284). The movement’s lawyers was told by police on 14 September that Ainur and Esenbek, along with two other activists - mother and daughter, Kulzhan and Nuosulu Sailybaeva - are to be charged by the end of this month with “arbitrariness” or “despotism”, which can carry charges of up to two years in prison, with further charges likely to added, once the case comes to court.



The campaign in protest at this repression has received support from all around the world. Support from Venezeula has come from Melvin Brito, the General Secretary of the union, Sindicato de Trabajadores de FOGADE, and also from the human rights’ organisation, Asociacion Civil de Derechos Humanos: Programa de Particpacion Social ASOPROPAS AC (Caracas, Venezuela). The CWI in Venezuela, Colectivo Socialismo Revolucionario, also sent protests.



From all across the world, from Australia, where Anthony Main, Socialist Party Councillor, in Yarra, Melbourne sent protests, to the Netherlands, where Patrick Zoomermeijer, leader of the Socialist Councilors of the Socialist Party in Zaanstad sent protests, workers, youth and public representatives are taking action against the Kazakhstan regime’s repressive measures and threats.



Lobbies have been organised, including this week at the Kazakhstan embassies in Berlin and London. A resolution, passed by the Socialist Party (CWI England and Wales) National Committee on 24 September, condemning the repression against the Kazakhstan opposition activists, will be presented to the London embassy staff.



As well as this, Ainur Kurmanov and Esenbek Ukteshbayev intend to travel to Warsaw, this week, where they will speak about repression against opposition activists and oil strikers at the invitation of the Organisation of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Human Rights Conference in Warsaw.



We call on supporters across the world to step up their campaign in protest at the actions of the Kazakhstan Authorities (to view a model protest letter and for details of where to send protests etc, see ‘Kazakhstan: “Kurmanov to be jailed?” http://www.socialistworld.net/doc/5284).

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Kazakhstan

Venezuelean oil workers’ support striking Kazakh oil workers and condemn repression

28/09/2011
Protesters lobby Kazakh embassy in Germany
CWI Reporters

José Bodes, Francisco Luna, Robert Gonzalez and Ivan Frites, Secretaries of the Executive Committee of the United Federation of Petroleum Workers of Venezuela (Fop), wrote to the Kazakh authorities, strongly condemning threats by the regime to arrest and imprison Aynor Kurmanov and Esenbek Ukteshbayev, and other leaders of the Socialist Movement Kazakhstan and the Leave People’s Homes Alone (LPHA) campaign.
The oil workers’ leaders also supported the ongoing strike by oil workers in West Kazakhstan, now in its fourth month, despite threats, repression, the arrest of its leaders and the suspicious and unexplained murder of two relatives of strikers. The strikers’ lawyer, Natalia Sokolova, has been given a heavy prison sentence on trumped up charges.
A protest letter was also sent by the Partido Revolucionario de los Trabajadores (PRT), in Venezuela, to the authoritarian regime of Nazarbayev.
Berlin embassy picket

Earlier this week, several protesters went to the outskirts of Berlin to the Kazakh Embassy. They showed solidarity with both the oil workers’ strike and the Leave People’s Homes Alone (LPHA) campaign in Kazakhstan.



They requested to see the ambassador to hand over an official letter from the German section of the CWI (SAV), but instead they sent a deputy to see the protesters.



The deputy denied that there is repression in the west of the Kazakhstan, the oil workers’ region, but he was taken aback by the facts of state repression the protesters listed. The deputy assured the protesters that he would hand their letter over to the ambassador and that he would also inform his superiors in the capital, Almaty.



The protesters warned that there will be more international protests if the Kazakh repression continues.
We call on supporters across the world to step up their campaign in protest at the actions of the Kazakhstan Authorities (to view a model protest letter and for details of where to send protests etc, see ‘Kazakhstan: “Kurmanov to be jailed?” http://www.socialistworld.net/doc/5284).