Public Administration News
Share
 |
Kazakhstan: Parliament Votes Unanimously in Favour of Referendum to Extend President's Rule |
| Source: |
Reuters |
| Source Date: |
Monday, January 24, 2011 |
| Focus: |
Electronic and Mobile Government, Citizen Engagement, Internet Governance
|
| Country: |
Kazakhstan |
| Created: |
Jan 24, 2011 |
|
Kazakhstan's parliament on Friday (January 14) voted unanimously in favour of a referendum to extend President Nursultan Nazarbayev's term for a third decade, a move that would allow the veteran leader to bypass an election in 2012. The national referendum, which the United States has called a "setback for democracy", would clear the way for Nazarbayev to lead Central Asia's largest economy unopposed until 2020. Raisa Polischuk, deputy for the Mazhilis lower house of Parliament denied that the vote in favor of the referendum was any obstacle to democracy. "If you start with the fact that democracy is the will of the people, then more than 5 million votes collected in support of the referendum is more than an eloquent fact, it is the expression of this will. And we, the people's elected, cannot discount the opinion of our voting public," Polischuk said, addressing her colleagues in Parliament after the votes on the referendum had been counted. A "people's initiative" for the plebiscite has collected more than 5 million signatures backing the plan, representing 55 percent of the electorate in Kazakhstan. Some analysts see the referendum as an attempt to avert a challenge to the 70-year-old Nazarbayev from members of the political elite, who are nominally loyal to him but could produce a strong alternative candidate for an election in 2012.
The president last week initially turned down the parliamentary initiative to amend the Republic's constitution so as to extend his term to 2020. Today's vote will overrule his veto, keeping him in power. Known as "Papa" to many Kazakhs, the former steelworker is the only leader independent Kazakhstan has known. Many investors say the absence of a succession plan is the biggest threat to political stability in the world's 9th-largest country by area. Opposition groups have criticised the initiative, saying Kazakhstan has deserted principles it agreed to when chairing Europe's main security and rights watchdog, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, last year. Kazakhstan's Communist Party staged a protest and held a press-conference on Friday. Vladislav Kosarev, Chairman of Kazakhstan's Communist People's Party insisted that the country's leaders were all hand-picked by Kazakhstan's largest political party, Nur-Otan, which is headed by Nazarbayev. "I'll say this, not one of our deputies is elected by the people. They're all sent there by a decision from the political council of the party Nur-Otan," Vladislav told journalists at the press conference. Nazarbayev, once a member of the Soviet Communist Party politburo, has overseen more than 150USD billion in foreign investment during more than two decades as leader of Kazakhstan, the world's largest uranium miner and a major oil exporter. Kazakhstan has never held an election judged free or fair by international observers. Nazarbayev, as the country's first president, can stand for election an unlimited number of times.
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Tag This |
Kazakhstan: Parliament Votes Unanimously in Favour of Referendum to Extend President's Rule Kazakhstan's parliament on Friday January 14 voted unanimously in favour of a referendum to extend President Nursultan Nazarbayev's term for a third decade a move that would allow the veteran leader to bypass an election in 2012 The national referendum which the United States has called a setback for democracy would clear the way for Nazarbayev to lead Central Asia's largest economy unopposed until 2020 Raisa Polischuk deputy for the Mazhilis lower house of Parliament denied that the vote in favor of the referendum was any obstacle to democracy If you start with the fact that democracy is the will of the people then more than 5 million votes collected in support of the referendum is more than an eloquent fact it is the expression of this will And we the people's elected cannot discount the opinion of our voting public Polischuk said addressing her colleagues in Parliament after the votes on the referendum had been counted A people's initiative for the plebiscite has collected m
 Tell A Friend |
|
 del.icio.us digg this Slashdot |
| Rate: |
0 ratings
|
Views: |
135 |
| Comments: |
0 |
Favorited: |
0 |
Bookmarked: |
0 |
Tagged: |
0 |
|
|
|
|