LEADER OF THE KAZAKH CIVIC PARTY DENIES ACCUSATIONS PUT FORWARD BY AZAMAT PARTY.
Azat Peruashev - leader of the Kazakh Civic Party told journalists in Pavlodar City, North Kazakhstan on September 29, that all the accusations put forward against his party by Azamat party leaders earlier this week were �groundless�. Ghalym Abilseitov said on Monday, that the Civic party, known as one of the most pro-Nazarbayev parties of the country, was supported by foreign investors. According to Azat Peruashev, the Civic party is being supported not by the foreign investors but by leaders of industrial facilities in Aqmola, Aqtobe, Pavlodar, Petropavlovsk, Qostanay oblasts of Kazakhstan.
ABOUT 20 CASES OF FIRE WITH CASUALTIES REPORTED IN THE FORMER CAPITAL IN ONE DAY.
Correspondents of RFE/RL report that in one day, September 29, about 20 cases of fire were reported in Almaty. Heating season is supposed to start in the middle of next month, but the weather is already cold in the former capital of Kazakhstan. That is why some elderly people and families with lower incomes started using the old electric ovens to make the homes warm. The ovens� being out of order or not properly switched on caused the fires. A 85 year-old lady living in Abay street died after her oven caused the fire. Meanwhile...
...REPUBLICAN ASSOCIATION OF PRIVATE APARTMENTS COOPERATIVES ACCUSED KAZAKH-BELGIAN JOINT VENTURE OF TRYING TO INCREASE HOUSING UTILITIES COSTS.
Association of the Kazakh Republican Private Apartments Cooperatives (KRPAC) held press conference at the National Press Club of Almaty yesterday, September 29 where joint Kazakh?Belgian Company called Almaty Power Consolidated (APC) was harshly criticized of �unreasonable attempts to increase the housing utilities fees for the citizens of Almaty city and Oblast�. APC controls all the energy and heating supply system of the former Kazakh capital and Almaty Oblast. Leader of Pokoleniye Movement uniting the elderly citizens of the country, Irina Savostina was given a floor and supported the KRPAC leaders saying that ordinary citizens of Almaty and suburbs were not able to pay even the current bills for electricity and heating supply.x
Sept 30 (Radio �Liberty�)
Erkanat ABENI
ALMATY, Sept 30
(THE GLOBE)
�At the Almaty Customs the total batch of the next issue of our newspaper was arrested,� the director of �SolDat� newspaper announced to THE GLOBE.
According to Argyngazy Madyarov, since September 27 the head of the control department of the Almaty Customs Kurman Aldabergenov delays the newspaper under different pretences. He is demanding payment of the preliminary customs duty, or to fill the customs declaration, or to submit the quarantine permission by the Ministry of Agriculture. Though, according to the Customs legislation, the declaration is to be filled once in a month, and according to the agreement between the CIS countries, no quarantine permission is required.
�The head of the Almaty Customs department told us that all documents were okay and he called the head of the control department. The latter promised that the newspaper would be discharged on that day,� the head of the sales department of �SolDat� newspaper stated.
After that, according to Aidar Kinayatoldin, �Mr Aldabergenov kept us till 6 p.m. in his department, and then told us, that his working day was over and he asked us to come at 9 a.m. on the following day. On the next day, September 28 he did not come to the work. On September 29 Mr. Aldabergenov wrote a report to abandon the permission for periodical declaration. The Customs department cancelled the declaration. That means that now we have to collect all documents again.�
�We are going to bring an action against the Almaty Customs department, but when this action is considered, it will be too late, as the articles will lose the urgency,� the chief editor of �SolDat� Marat Kabanbai stated.
In the weekly review �Liberty in Kazakh� in the last issue of THE GLOBE we have already informed that the Semipalatinsk Customs department arrested the whole circulation of the 9th issue of the newspaper �SolDat�. The history is going on. THE GLOBE will keep you informed, what will be the end of this story.
Sept 29
(PRIME-TASS)
Political stability observed in the republic and the growth of the world oil prices allowed Kazakhstan to place for the last 48 hours the biggest issue of bonds in the world financial market. Experts from London City emphasise, thus Kazakhstan has become the first CIS republic, which managed to return to the world�s market of private loan capital after the crisis of August 1998.
Kazakhstan issued bonds nominated in US dollars for the total amount of US$ 200 million. Interest rate of the securities is 13.6%. The reimbursement term is October 2004.
This decision was prepared in June 1999, when the representative international conference �Astana invest-99� was held in London. Business London positively reacted to bonds issued by the Kazakhstan government. From the point of view of a number of London City experts, placement conditions of the Kazakhstan securities �are rigid enough�, but this proves the devotion of the republic to the most favourable regime for foreign investors.
ITAR-TASS was informed that the American investment group Salomon Smith Barney was interested in the Kazakhstan bonds. For the time being it is unknown, in what volume and who purchased the securities. This proves investors� carefulness.
Analysts and experts from City are mainly concentrated on the negotiations regarding credits between the government of Kazakhstan and International Monetary Fund, as well as on the evaluation of the economic situation in the republic at the eve of the Parliamentary election to be held in October. According to ITAR-TASS, at the present time the negotiations between the representatives of the Kazakhstan authorities and IMF are held in Washington. Experts are confident that any development of these discussions positive for Astana will arouse the growth of rating of the bonds issued by the republic.
Experts, including Salomon Smith Barney emphasise that a number of factors are of great importance for the perspective development of Kazakhstan. These factors are the improvement of tax legislation, and the tempo of realisation of structural reforms. Astana should make other sectors of the national industry so attractive as the oil one. Otherwise, according to analysts of City, in a year or two Kazakhstan will face shaper problems, than it faces now.
Gulbanu ABENOVA
ASTANA, Sept 29 (THE GLOBE)
�The role of intelligentsia in Central Asia in explanation of all the range of consequences of political terrorism is extremely significant,� Nursultan Nazarbaev announced on September 29 in Astana speaking before the representatives of culture and science from the four Central Asian countries.
The President of Kazakhstan illuminated in details the three important for the region moments: historical unity of the Central Asian peoples, economic integration and the role of intelligentsia in the cultural unity.
Beside the lessons of history, there are also lessons of the modern period, the head of the Kazakhstan state emphasised. �Unfortunately, one of the lessons of the modern period is the threat of political extremism and terrorism. Central Asia is not a field for terrorist experiments. This is the land, which has seen to much blood to be indifferent to the first sounds of the coming chaos,� he said.
In his opinion, political terrorism is the most terrifying thing, which might be done in the 21st century. Political terrorism, against which even the most powerful countries of the world are unsuccessfully struggling for decades, may become one of the main threats to the national security of all countries of the region.
�That is why we have to treat events happening in Tajikistan and in the southern Kyrgyzstan in the most serious way,� the President of Kazakhstan believes. �We are so busy with our internal problems, that sometimes we do not think about the economic potential of the integration, about joint or common economic strategies and plans on development at all. Why should each of the countries go along the difficult way of self-provision with everything, when it is cheaper to exchange products. Today we borrow to construct similar plants and factories, and tomorrow we will face problems of sales, hence, the problem of reimbursement of these debts. Only the uniting strategy will allow to economise and use effectively our resources,� Mr. Nazarbaev stated.
As far as the role of intelligentsia in uniting the peoples is concerned, in Mr. Nazarbaev�s opinion, today intelligentsia has a choice (either to install a bomb of a delayed action, having sent our peoples to different historical ways, or to create premises for the spiritual and cultural integration, which will allow to save cultural individuality of Central Asia in the new century of the informational revolutions, artificial intellects and gene engineering.
The President of Kazakhstan said that he was speaking on behalf of all presidents of the region and �we have the right to count on the creative elite of our states, which traditionally owns brains and thoughts of the population.� He also affirmed that now in every country there were politicians who were eager to lead the population aside from the main course, the course to strengthen the independence.
�Intelligentsia has no right to become a toy for politicians. Intelligentsia should see more than politicians,� the President emphasised.
As far as widening integration in the field of art, literature, education, healthcare, press, radio, cinema and television, tourism and sport, the President of Kazakhstan proposed some new ideas. In particular, to introduce the system of grants to be allotted by the heads of the Central Asian states to outstanding figures of science, literature and culture. He proposed to establish the Central Asian Presidents� premium. This premium is supposed to have a high social status and be of a serious amount (two premiums of US$ 100 thousand are to be awarded once per two years and handed out by the heads of the states.)
Nursultan Nazarbaev believes that the Union of rectors of Central Asian Universities is necessary at this phase. He proposed to establish the Central Asian Innovation Fund and to create the Central Asian Institute, the main aims of which would be to co-ordinate and to conduct scientific researches on the most important economic problems of our region.
NOTE
In the last issue of THE GLOBE in the rubric �Liberty in Kazakh� in the material �Manufacturing waste products or domestic rubbish?� there was a misinterpretation due to a translator�s error.
After the direct speech it was written: �the representative of the company, a famous oil industry worker Kenzhebek Ibrashev stated. Probably, he as a citizen of Kazakhstan does not care of the ecological situation in the country.� In fact, the material of the Radio �Liberty� included the following: �a famous oil industry worker, a Kazakh citizen Kenzhebek Ibrashev, who works at the international consortium OKIOC, stated.�
On September 30 the republican conference of scientists-designers and constructors devoted to the problems concerning the reduction of hazards and loss caused by strong earthquakes, was opened in Almaty.
Kazbek BAIMYSHEV an expert on construction;
Nikolai DOMBROVSKY
ALMATY, Sept 30
(THE GLOBE)
�In Turkey the mass construction began approximately ten years ago, when the situation in the agriculture was worsening and the rural population have to move to towns,� a representative of the Institute KazNNIISA announced. The similar situation is observed now in Kazakhstan.
According to the instruction of the Kazstroicommittee, the commission of the Institute KazNNIISA visited Turkey, where it studied the consequences of the earthquake. On September 30 the meeting devoted to the tour was held. According to one of the spokesmen, the chief of the laboratory of the Institute KazNNIISA, the candidate of Technical Sciences Igor Itskov, Turkey has probated and qualitative constructional standards, but only serious constructional companies observe them. Companies setting up cheap houses for poor people may not observe any standards at all. However, we saw some buildings, constructed according to high standards, falling. The reason is simple: constructional companies forced by the constructional boom began to set up buildings on the weak soil. The force of the earthquake came to 10 balls here. Specialists were absolutely against construction in such territories, as they consider approved constructive decisions doubtful. But the public opinion was warmed by politicians and nobody considered specialists� opinion. In the results, whole blocks of houses were ruined, some territories went down below the sea level and were flooded.
The absence of the state control, simplified procedure of designing and approval of the documents required for the construction caused the low quality of the erected buildings and mass victims. The country with the developed capitalistic relations was not ready to protect interests of its customers.
According to other spokesmen, the same parallels and negative trends are being observed in the constructional industry in Kazakhstan. Today there are practically no state project organisations, and numerous �market� organisations, such as Limited companies, Small Companies, etc. fulfil the project works. These organisations do not have enough equipment to conduct accurate research works. And striving for profits, they promote products of a low quality to our market. The present quality control system does not guarantee the required level. This is especially dangerous under the conditions of high seismic activity in the region, and dangerous weak soils. It is known, that these are territories of Almaty, Taraz, Southern Kazakhstan and a part of Eastern Kazakhstan regions.
Scientists, designers, constructional specialists and representatives of the regional Akimats spoke on September 30. The conference is expected to sum up the results and approve the resolution on October 1.
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