An outspoken critic of Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev was accused yesterday of colluding with a billionaire fugitive to overthrow the government in a trial the United States says will test democratic reforms in the oil-rich former Soviet state.
Prosecutors accused Vladimir Kozlov, leader of the unofficial political party, Alga!, of helping to orchestrate dissent among striking oil workers in the prelude to deadly rioting on December 16th-17th that shattered Kazakhstan’s reputation for stability.
He denied the charges and, as the trial began in a packed courtroom, about 30 of his supporters shouted for his release.
At least 15 people were killed in western Kazakhstan when police opened fire on protesters in riots that followed months of protests by sacked oilmen, posing the most serious challenge to Nazarbayev in his more than two decades as president. Kazakhstan’s leaders are particularly wary of dissent following mass protests in Russia, which shares a language favoured by millions of its citizens. – (Reuters)