TEHRAN (Iran News) – Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Tehran on Wednesday said that peace has been restored in Kazakhstan after Kazakhstan President Kassym-JomartTokayev vowed to carry out some economic and political reforms in the country which brought hope among the protesters.
Speaking in a press conference on Wednesday, Askhat Orazbay briefed Iran reporters of the latest developments in Kazakhstan which had witnessed one of the bloodiest protests last week.
Mr. Orazbay said that around 8,000 have been arrested during these protests which have been engineered by terrorists, adding that the Kazakh government has started probe and it will release those who have not been terrorists.
The ambassador said that the security forces collected arms and ammunitions which had been distributed among some protester which was aimed at bloodshed and revolt against the legal government.
He then pointed to President Tokayev’s speech which was delivered on Monday addressing the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit. He pointed to some excerpts from President Tokyev’s speech as follows:
*All the events since the beginning of this year are linked, they fall under a single destructive plan, the preparation of which went on for a long time.
*The organizers of the protests used the discontent of the population due to the rise in gas prices as a pretext.
*The attacks simultaneously covered 11 regions but the main hit fell on Almaty. If the city fell to the perpetrators, it would have led to the capture of the entire south of Kazakhstan and then the whole country.
*We saw a gathering of militants around the presidential residence it was a terrorist war against Kazakhstan.
*There are 2,030 peacekeepers and 250 pieces of equipment that form part of the CSTO peacekeeping mission in Kazakhstan and they will leave the country now that peace has been restored in the country.
*What took place will be remembered as the Almaty tragedy”.
The Kazakh Ambassador then pointed to the promises of Mr. Tokayev for carrying out economic and political reforms which welcomed by the protesters and the Kazakh people.
“The task now is to rebuild the city in the shortest possible time (…) I have no doubt the city will be restored,” President Tokayev has said.
Mr. Orazbay then pointed to some promises of President Tokayev for implementing in the country to reduce the economic gap among the people.
He said the president has vowed to strengthen enforcement and security forces as well as borders but he has reiterated that economic development will be his priorities. The president has vowed to help those people and businesses which have been hit and suffered damages during recent protests and to reduce inequality in earnings of the people by adopting new economic plans. He pointed to the launch of a special fund to help the people and giving grants to the young people in the deprived areas to study.
Orazbay noted that Mr. Tokayev has vowed to fight with economic corruption as well as fair distribution of wealth in the country. The diplomat reiterated that the main theme of Mr. Tokayev’s speech was that he is determined to bring justice in his economic reforms which have been welcomed by the Kazakhs and he has noted that the government has learned a lesson from these protests to not let it happen in the future by spreading economic justice and reforms in the country.
Orazbay added that now people in Kazakhstan have pinned hopes on fulfilling the vows of Mr. President, adding that the government has guaranteed the foreign investors not to be worried because they have the government’s support and guarantee. He added that now peace has been restored in the country and life goes on in the country and the government has cleaned the unrest-hits areas and foreign peacekeepers are to leave the country.
