About 2,000 residents of the city of Zhanaozen in the Mangistau region in southwest Kazakhstan gathered in the central square to demand the release of oil workers detained in Astana. Portal reports “Herd” (the organization is banned in Russia).
“Judging by the videos, the locals don’t even think about disbanding. On the contrary, more and more people are drawn to the central square. “Local activists report around 1,000-2,000 people, no police data yet,” he said.
Interfax later also reported that according to one of the protesters’ leaders, Zholmurat Ulykpanov, the detainees will be released within 24 hours and will be sent by train to the Mangistau area.
As Ulykpanov noted, an agreement was reached that the commission would then decide on the employment of oil workers with representatives of the national company Kazmunaigas.
It was noted that the leader of the protest movement thanked the demonstrators who went out and asked them to return to their homes.
At the beginning of April 11, it became known that the law enforcement agencies of Kazakhstan detained employees of an oilfield service company from Zhanaozen for holding an unauthorized rally. The detainees spent almost a day outside the Ministry of Energy building in the country’s capital.
Prior to that, Chief Prosecutor Berik Asylov said that preparations for a mass uprising were made in Kazakhstan in January last year. has been carried out throughout 2021.
At the beginning of January 2022, mass protests were held in Kazakhstan, they began with dissatisfaction from residents of the cities of Zhanaozen and Aktau, with the doubling of liquefied gas prices. The protests subsequently spread to other cities of the republic, with protesters attacking government institutions and law enforcement. Authorities declared a state of emergency across the country until January 19 and conducted a counter-terrorism operation.