Zhanseit Tuimebayev: There Is No Term ‘National Minority’ in Kazakhstan
NUR-SULTAN – Zhanseit Tuimebayev, Deputy Chairman – Head of the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan’s Secretariat held a meeting with the permanent delegation of participating countries of Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. The delegation to the meeting included representatives from Afghanistan, Albania, Austria, Belgium, Estonia, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and other countries.
The Permanent Representatives of the OSCE participating countries came to Kazakhstan to get acquainted with the living standards of Kazakhstan and Central Asian countries. In addition, one of the main reasons was to become familiar with the structure of the Assembly's activities and the unique model of public accord and national unity of Nursultan Nazarbayev, First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan is the first country in the CIS and Asia, which was given the opportunity to be the Chairman of the OSCE in 2010. The Republic has long been interested in its peacefully directed foreign policy of the participating countries of the Organization. During its presidency, Kazakhstan focused on four unshakable principles: trust, tradition, transparency and tolerance. As you know, one of the main resources of international relations is trust. Kazakhstan has openly stated that it will adhere to the fundamental principles of the OSCE. This has underscored the commitment to tradition. One of the fundamental functions of trust is openness and transparency in domestic and foreign policy. The third principle, transparency, played a role here. Of course, there can be no intercultural and intercivilizational dialogue without tolerance.
A unique institute for building inter-ethnic relations, friendship, accord and unity between ethnicities has been established in Kazakhstan. More and more countries are interested in the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan today. The main purpose of the Assembly is to implement national policy, ensure social and political stability in Kazakhstan and increase the effectiveness of cooperation between state institutions and civil society in the field of inter-ethnic relations. The legislative body, Mazhilis of Parliament, has a parliamentary group of 9 deputies. The supreme body of the Assembly is the annual session, which is chaired by the President of the country. Its decisions are binding on State bodies. The Assembly's Council, which includes representatives of national ethnocultural associations, public figures, members of Parliament, ministers and regional mayors, works between sessions.
Kazakhstan's ethno-social policy has been highly appreciated by the United Nations, the OSCE and other authoritative international organizations, as well as many countries. This was emphasized by Zhanseit Tuimebayev, Deputy Chairman of APK.
Zhanseit Tuimebayev, Deputy Chairman of APK:
— In the speech at the 27th session of the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan in April 2019, Nursultan Nazarbayev, the First President of Kazakhstan, said that support for the development of ethnic languages and cultures is an important priority of domestic policy of our country. The current President of Kazakhstan, Qassym-Jomart Tokayev, in his Address to Kazakhstanis on September 2 this year said that he would continue to strengthen inter-ethnic accord and inter-religious understanding, as well as create conditions for the development of languages and culture of all ethnic minorities in our country. Kazakhstan seeks to promote the values of peace and accord in the international community. Kazakh land has become a place of dialogue among civilizations. We do not have such term as ‘national minorities’. In our country, everyone has the same rights and freedoms. In the CIS space, Kazakhstan has practically become the only state where there were no interethnic or interreligious conflicts. Peaceful resolution of conflicts, harmonious coexistence as a conscious choice – all this is a part of our national values embodied in the Kazakhstani model.
During the meeting, a presentation on the structure of the Assembly was made. It described all the peculiarities and advantages of the organization. In turn, the guests thanked Kazakhstan for its hospitality and commitment to peaceful policy.
Alessandro Azzoni, Chairperson of the OSCE Permanent Council:
—I would like to express my gratitude to Kazakhstan for its warm and hospitable welcome. Today, we have come to you with 20 people representing different countries. I can confidently note the positive dynamics of the growth of living standards in Kazakhstan. In addition, I would like to note one very important detail. As it was mentioned earlier, the concept ‘national minority’ is not used in Kazakhstan. This is good news. This attitude inside the country deserves great respect and attention from the international community. We believe that Kazakhstan will continue to adhere to such priorities.
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