Bloody January

As expected, following last summer’s constitutional referendum dropping references to “elbasy,” many of the First President’s other special privileges are ending.

Almaty’s journalists witnessed Kazakhstan’s largest city roil with protests, peaceful at first, then become engulfed in deepening anger and shocking violence. 

The legal battle for justice for those arbitrarily detained and those who were brutally tortured during Kazakhstan’s Bloody January imploded before it started.

In two southern Kazakhstan cities, the January protests devolved into shocking violence, from the use of live ammunition against protesters to police beatings of those detained. 

The government’s version of events highlights a high-level conspiracy, but provides few details on motives and methods.

Journalists and others faced questions, fines, and jail cells after covering protests in Kazakhstan.

What began as peaceful protests in both Uralsk and Kyzylorda diverged sharply.

As protests persisted in early January 2022, police began to crack down on protesters and summon journalists for questioning.

As 2022 began, unrest sparked in a familiar cauldron in western Kazakhstan’s discontented oil towns.

The time has come to re-evaluate Kazakhstan’s social contract. Is President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev up to the challenge?

Protests, unrest, war, and worry defined 2022 in Central Asia.