The Respublika is a Kazakh citizens' organisation that was founded on 19 June 2019 in the aftermath of the 2019 Kazakh presidential elections and is led by Kazakh blogger Bella Orynbetova. The group gained its prominence during the 2018–2020 Kazakh protests which aims for a political change in Kazakhstan.

Creation and leadership

, one of the leaders of Respublika is Bella Orynbetova.

Membership

The group was founded by Kazakh-language bloggers. , Respublika had 100 members, mainly former members of the

civil service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

Ideology

At a press conference on 19 June 2019, Respublika representatives called for a review of the

2019 Kazakh presidential election Snap election, Snap presidential elections were held in Kazakhstan on 9 June 2019 to elect the President of Kazakhstan following the resignation of long-term President Nursultan Nazarbayev in March 2019.

, the release of imprisoned election protestors, and for

Nur-Sultan Astana is the capital city of Kazakhstan. With a population of 1,423,726 within the city limits, it is the second-largest in the country after Almaty, which had been the capital until 1997. The city lies on the banks of the Ishim (river), Ishim ...

's name to be restored to ''Astana'', as it was prior to March 2019. About the possible entry into the newly created National Council of Public Confidence, Respublika activists put conditions, mainly the implementation of the unconditional priority of the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

over other laws and the abolition of all articles, laws and by-laws that restrict the fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens.

Actions

In July 2019, when the National Council of Public Confidence was created by the Kazakh authorities as a compromise in relation to the presidential election protests, Respublika was not offered any seats on the 44-person council. Orynbetova stated that Respublika had communicated its "conditions for dialogue" to the authorities. The Respublika on 16 September 2019 announced its intent to form a political party according to the activist Gülim Orazbaeva by attracting 40,000 people across regions. On 9 November 2019, 24 Respublika activists protested in a park in

against the presidential system of government after gaining permission from the authorities. In early 2020, Orynbetova stated that lack of funds was the root problem of transforming the organisation into a political party. The Respublika considered the possibility of forming a

political alliance A parliamentary group, parliamentary caucus or political group is a group consisting of members of different political parties or independent politicians with similar ideologies. Some parliamentary systems allow smaller political parties, who a ...

with the opposition Nationwide Social Democratic Party (JSDP) party although because the Respublika was not fully guarantee to have representation in the national and local legislatures by the JSDP, the organisation refused to contest in the upcoming 2021 legislative elections and instead observe the electoral process with Erdindik Qanaty and Youth Information Service of Kazakhstan organisations.

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite web , last1 =Kumenov , first1 =Almaz , authorlink = , title= As Kazakhstan's activists find their voice, next comes the message , website=

Eurasianet Eurasianet is a news organisation based at Columbia University's Harriman Institute, the United States, that provides news, information and analysis on countries in Central Asia, the Caucasus region, Russia and Southwest Asia. Launched in 2000, ...

, date =2019-06-26 , url = https://eurasianet.org/as-kazakhstans-activists-find-their-voice-next-comes-the-message , accessdate = 2020-01-03 , archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20190830014335/https://eurasianet.org/as-kazakhstans-activists-find-their-voice-next-comes-the-message , archivedate= 2019-08-30 , url-status=live {{cite web , last1 =Kumenov , first1 =Almaz , authorlink = , title=Kazakhstan: Consensus-building council already generates grumbling , website=

, date =2019-07-18 , url =https://eurasianet.org/kazakhstan-consensus-building-council-already-generates-grumbling , accessdate = 2020-01-03 , archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20200103023340/https://eurasianet.org/kazakhstan-consensus-building-council-already-generates-grumbling , archivedate= 2020-01-03 , url-status=live {{cite web , title= Opposition Demonstrates For Change In Kazakhstan , website=

RFERL Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a media organization broadcasting news and analyses in 27 languages to 23 countries across Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and the Middle East. Headquartered in Prague since 1995, RFE/RL ...

, date =2019-11-09 , url = https://www.rferl.org/a/kazakhstan-opposition-protests-almaty-nursultan/30261709.html , accessdate = 2020-01-03 , archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20200103023718/https://www.rferl.org/a/kazakhstan-opposition-protests-almaty-nursultan/30261709.html , archivedate= 2020-01-03 , url-status=live Human rights organisations based in Kazakhstan 2019 establishments in Kazakhstan Organizations established in 2019

Creation and leadership

Membership

Ideology

Actions

See also

References