People Uprising in Kazakhstan Against Inequality, Price Hike and Unemployment

On the morning of 2 January 2022, two days after the world entered into a new year, hundreds of people began gathering in the city square of Zhanaozen in the Central Asian country of Kazakhstan. Overnight more people began to gather in this oil-rich region and in other parts of the former Soviet republic of Kazakhstan, including in the capital city of Almaty. The main demand of the protesters was the reduction of fuel prices, which had been increased by around 100 per cent. The increasing fuel prices in recent years has further caused a steep increase in food prices and deepened the income inequality that has plagued the nation for decades. 

Facing severe police repression and government silence, the protests soon enlarged into a peoples’ uprising, with trade unions and workers embarking on general strikes demanding an end to rampant crony-capitalism, inequality and autocratic rule. More than 200 people were killed in the state repression that followed the protests. In a statement, Aynur Kurmanov, co-chairman of the Socialist Movement of Kazakhstan said that workers in the oil/natural gas, metallurgy, mining sectors, as well as from unemployed youth constituted the main forces behind the protests and it was these groups who were leading the protests.  

Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country was ruled by Nursultan Nazarbayev from 1991 to 2019. After the breaking of the Soviet Union, Kazakhstan ventured into the path of privatisation and austerity, with oligarchs close to Nazarbayev profiteering immensely. Nazarbayev was forced to resign after the 2018-2019 protests that reflected the anger against appalling socio-economic conditions and the deteriorating human rights scenario. Nazarbayev was replaced by his ally Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, but Nazarbayev still holds a considerable hold over the affairs. 

The persecution of workers, trade union activists and democratic activists are widespread in the country. Earlier in 2011, the Zhanaozen region had witnessed a massive oil workers’ strike demanding better working conditions. The Nazarbayev regime responded with violence, killing more than 16 workers in police firings. 37 oil workers were criminally charged for participating in the strike, and several thousands of strike participants were dismissed and never reinstated.

During the 2022 protests, President Tokayev portrayed the striking workers and protesters as terrorists and bandits, attempting to organise a coup. As the labour strikes intensified along with the protests, Tokayev called for troops from the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) to protect the interests of wealthy oligarchs and foreign businesses. The Russian role in Kazakhstan seems to stem directly out of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s playbook to protect the capitalists and oligarchs in the region, and weaken the working class movements.