Izvestia: participant of the rally in Alma-Ata said that much more people took part in the protests
Photo: NUR.KZ / Telegram
One of the eyewitnesses and a spontaneous participant in protest rallies in Kazakhstan, in an interview with Izvestia, revealed details of a clash with security officials during the riots.
According to the young man, the information disseminated in the media cannot fully describe what is happening in Alma-Ata, “this is all done so that less information is received.” He said that many more people went to the rallies than are shown on the videos on the Web, and the security forces used more brutal measures.
The man added that law enforcement officers used tear gas in the process of suppressing the rallies, which affected not only the demonstrators, but also women, old people and children who were nearby.
Protests in Kazakhstan against the rise in fuel prices began on January 2. In some cities, protesters called on the first president of the republic, Nursultan Nazarbayev, to withdraw from politics. On January 4, protesters clashed with security forces on Republic Square in Almaty, and riots broke out in other cities of the country.
As a result, the President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Zhomart Tokayev, introduced a state of emergency and a curfew in the city and in the Mangistau region, and later accepted the resignation of the government of the republic.
