KZBlog

All That’s Leftsky is a poli-sci major at the University of Louisville has apparently resolved to write a letter a week to Congress either pro- or anti- a bill. Yesterday’s was S. RES. 293, 27 October 2005 which supports a free and fair election in Kazakhstan.
His reasons include the strategic resources and growing economic influence of the nation, and also the potential ripple effects on other nations badly in need of democratization, including Russia (this will warm the Slavic heart) and of course it’s geopolitical location between Russia and China.

The resolution itself can be found here: Calling for a free and fair presidential election in the Republic of Kazakhstan And was proposed by McCain, Leahey, and Lieberman, among other bigwigs. It cites Kazakhstan’s own resolutions to be democratic, warnings from the OSCE that this has yet to happen, and the April law that bans political demonstrations from the end of election campaigns until the official announcement of of results.
Also interestingly: self-censorship by the media–which is I think a key insight into the situation here.

Like so many resolutions, the actions proposed are basically to call on the government to play nice. Which is about all we can do.

It has been referred to committee.

The other big bill out there is: H. R. 3189 To promote the development of democratic institutions and full respect for human rights in the countries of Central Asia.

It is the sense of Congress that–

(1) the United States should support those governments and individuals making substantial and sustained progress to establish democracy, guarantee the rule of law, and protect human rights;

(2) the United States should use every means at its disposal to encourage the countries of Central Asia to provide greater respect for democracy, the rule of law, and human rights, thereby promoting the long-term stability and security of the Central Asian region, and ensure that all assistance programs for the Central Asian region support and communicate this goal; and

(3) the United States should seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world.

I think this is a solid resolution, and the activities proposed may step into that line that Central Asian countries traditionally view as suspicious interference in their unique path of development. The argument of course is that these are covers for revolution planning and espionage.
Overall seem to be the right direction in terms of promoting independent media, an independent judiciary, training police forces in human rights, and providing funds for these measures. I also like the fact that it includes a pseudo-punishment device ie withdrawing those funds if the nation fails to meet certain guidelines, though it might be nice to have those guidelines spelled out. I’m also not thrilled that disaster relief funds, assistance for refugees, food, and other humanitarian funds appear to be in the category of funds that can be withdrawn.

It was referred to Comittee on 30 June 2005 and as govtrac.us puts it: The majority of bills never make it out of committee.