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Tokayev says the unrest threatens national security at a television address as concerns about the blackout on the internet are mounting.
Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has promised to act “firmly”. national protests driven by a sharp rise in fuel prices, he took over as head of the country’s Security Council.
Tokayev’s remarks, dedicated to the nation in a televised appearance on Wednesday, came as the biggest unrest in more than a decade shocked the vast Central Asian nation.
He said the security forces had killed at least four days of protests in the town of Zhanaoz, in the western region of Mangystau, in the town of Zhanaoz, after removing price limits on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
More than 200 people have been arrested nationwide in connection with protests, and have since spread to other towns and cities.
Tokayev said he would not leave the country despite a widespread display of public outrage, and instead pledged to continue in the capital Nur-Sultan, where a state of emergency has been declared.
“It simply came to our notice then. I am confident that people will help me, ”he said, before committing to making indefinite proposals for“ political transformation ”“ in the near future ”.
Complete closure of the Internet in Kazakhstan. It is clear that he is taking it seriously. https://t.co/arf2pxAJgE
– Carl Bildt (@carlbildt) January 5, 2022
A state of emergency has also been declared in the country’s largest city, Almaty, on Wednesday by protesters. attack he seems to have taken control of the town hall and the building.
What happened in Almaty happened in Tokayev, blaming the protesters for “financially motivated conspirators” in an attempt to appease those who took to the streets after the release of the Kazakh government.
Tokayev also ordered the reinstatement of LPG price controls and the imposition of restrictions on gasoline, diesel and other “socially important” consumer goods in the former Soviet republic.
Meanwhile, as the authorities seemed to shut down the Internet as the unrest spread, the level of connectivity dropped to almost zero across the country, according to the global Internet monitoring group Netblocks.
“Kazakhstan is in the midst of a nationwide internet blackout after a day of mobile internet disruptions and partial restrictions,” NetBlocks monitor tweeted. “The events are likely to significantly limit the growing coverage of anti-government protests.”
⚠️ Confirmed: #Kazakhstan it is now in the midst of a nationwide blackout of the internet, after a day of interruptions and partial restrictions on mobile internet.
The events are likely to significantly limit the coverage of increased anti-government protests.
???? Report: https://t.co/Op5GwzXKbh pic.twitter.com/pdHJkJFe7v
– NetBlocks (@netblocks) January 5, 2022
Tokayev’s main test
Kazakhstan is tightly controlled and cultivates the image of political stability, helping to attract hundreds of billions of dollars in foreign investment in its oil and metal industries.
Public protests are rare in the country, whose parliament has no opposition, and are considered illegal unless the organizers present a prior notice.
The unrest is the biggest test of 68-year-old Tokayev, who took power in 2019 as the successor to former leader Nursultan Nazarbayev, who has been in power for three decades.
The situation has caused alarm in the wider region, with Kazakhstan’s close ally Russia saying on Wednesday that the country hoped to resolve its internal problems quickly. Moscow, which is very sensitive to the unrest in the former Soviet republic, which is part of its sphere of influence, has warned other countries to intervene in the situation.
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