{"id":954,"date":"2022-01-17T17:38:38","date_gmt":"2022-01-17T17:38:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ecosocialist.scot\/?p=954"},"modified":"2022-01-18T16:58:09","modified_gmt":"2022-01-18T16:58:09","slug":"solidarity-with-the-uprising-in-kazakhstan-statement-issued-12-january-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ecosocialist.scot\/?p=954","title":{"rendered":"Solidarity with the uprising in Kazakhstan! Online meeting 22 January and updated Statement"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Around 200 activists from over 40 countries have signed have signed a worldwide statement of solidarity with the uprising in Kazakhstan – published below.<\/p>\n

The statement was coordinated by Paul Murphy,<\/a> an eco-socialist member (TD) of the parliament in the Republic of Ireland state and includes members of parliament in Ireland, Denmark and Switzerland, city councillors in Greece and Sweden, a member of the European Parliament from the Spanish State, and dozens of trade union, socialist, and human rights activists from around the globe.\u00a0 ecosocialist.scot<\/a> is delighted to sign the statement and among the other signatories from Scotland are Frances Curran, former Scottish Socialist Party Member of the Scottish Parliament and activist in Socialists for Independence, Glasgow SNP councillor Graham Campbell, members of the Republican Socialist Platform and ScotE3 organisations, and other trade union, community, independence and socialist activists.<\/p>\n

The statement rejects the idea that the uprising in Kazakhstan is a result of foreign intervention but is about the rights and demands of working people sick of a tyrannical dictatorship.\u00a0 It calls for the overthrow of this dictatorship and the rights of working people to control democratically the vast natural resources and wealth of Kazakhstan.\u00a0 The statement also rejects the intervention of foreign troops from the Russian state and condemns the hypocrisy of the EU and USA.<\/p>\n

There will be an online public meeting organised by the statement coordinators and supported by ecosocialist.scot on Saturday 22 January 6pm GMT\/UTC.\u00a0 The meeting has also been sponsored by the Republican Socialist Platform in Scotland and Anti Capitalist Resistance (England\/Wales).\u00a0 Sign up at: tinyurl.com\/uprising2022<\/a><\/p>\n

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Zoom meeting, Saturday, January 22nd, <\/strong>10am PT \/ 6pm UTC\/GMT\u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>\/ 19h CET<\/p>\n

Ainur Kurmanov, Socialist Movement Kazakhstan<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 with a report, Q&A and discussion.<\/p>\n

This meeting is organized by AntiCapitalist Resistance<\/strong>\u00a0(England and Wales),\u00a0Lernen im Kampf<\/strong>\u00a0(Germany),\u00a0RISE<\/strong>\u00a0(Ireland),\u00a0Reform & Revolution caucus<\/strong> in DSA (USA).\u00a0 Supported by ecosocialist.scot and Republican Socialist Platform (Scotland).<\/p>\n

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Solidarity with the uprising in Kazakhstan<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n
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(Statement issued 12 January 2022)<\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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We, socialists, trade unionists, human rights activists, anti-war activists and organisations have watched the uprising in Kazakhstan since 2 January with a sense of deep solidarity for the working people. The striking oil workers, miners and protesters have faced incredible repression. The full force of the police and army have been unleashed against them, instructed to \u2018shoot to kill without warning\u2019. Over 160 protesters have been killed so far and more than 8,000 have been arrested.<\/p>\n

We reject the propaganda of the dictatorship that this uprising is a product of \u201cIslamic radicals\u201d or the intervention of US imperialism. There is no evidence of that whatsoever. It is the usual resort of an unpopular regime – to blame \u2018outside\u2019 agitators.<\/p>\n

Instead, the trigger of the protests was the rise in fuel prices. This was the straw that broke the camel\u2019s back, in a country where immense oil wealth exists side by side with terrible poverty and exploitation. It is also the result of the crushing weight of a brutal dictatorship on people\u2019s backs. This regime has liquidated all opposition parties, imprisoned and tortured trade union and human rights activists, and was responsible for a massacre of striking oil workers in Zhanaozen ten years ago.<\/p>\n

The position of all the major capitalist powers is clear. Putin stands full square behind the regime. The Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) has sent 3,000 troops to Kazakhstan to intimidate protesters. Chinese President Xi Jinping also announced his support for the Kazakhstan government and claimed the unrest was the deliberate result of “outside forces.”<\/p>\n

The US administration has called for \u201crestraint by both the authorities and protestors\u201d. The EU has similarly called on protesters to \u201cavoid any incitement to violence\u201d and called on authorities \u201cto respect the fundamental right to peaceful protest and proportionality in the use of force when defending its legitimate security interests\u201d!<\/p>\n

Unsurprisingly, they all prioritise \u2018stability\u2019 for their oil companies who are benefiting from the exploitation of the natural resources and Kazakh workers.<\/p>\n

In response to the class solidarity of the capitalist regimes, we respond with working class solidarity and commit to raise the following demands in our trade unions, parliaments and organisations:<\/p>\n