Kazakhstan's Democratic Institutions

Seventy years of Soviet rule and 150 years of Tsarist autocracy do not provide the ideal tutelage for those building a system of parliamentary democracy. But while Kazakhstan's political system, based on universal adult suffrage, remains in its infancy, it has withstood the strains caused by extraordinary economic and social change. The system is defined in the Constitution of 1991 ? amended in 1995 to reinforce presidential powers - which also sets out the rights and liberties of individuals. In the amended version, Kazakhstan is defined as "a democratic, secular and legal state whose highest values are an individual, his life, rights and freedoms."

Compared to those in Britain or America, the Kazakhstan political system is highly centralised, the most comparable model being the French Fifth Republic. A powerful presidency has the responsibility for the broad outlines of domestic and foreign policy, for represent-ting the country at home and abroad, and for appointing Prime Ministers and cabinets. The appointment of Prime Minister, but not of cabinet members, is subject to Parliamentary approval. The President, who does not play a role in party politics, also appoints judges, senior court officials and regional governors and has control of the security and armed forces. After centuries of authoritarian rule, Kazakh citizens do not quarrel with the notion of strong leadership; they give credit to Nursultan Nazarbayev for having shown dynamism and purpose in steering the country from a communist toward a free market democratic future, but in a way that respects the country's ethnic and cultural diversity.

President Nazarbayev was elected to a seven-year term on 10 January, 1999. He received 79 per cent of the popular vote, compared to the 11.7 per cent achieved by his closest rival, the Communist Party leader, Abdil'din Serikbolsyn. The election, in which 87 per cent of voters took part, was witnessed by 15,000 observers, including 250 from outside the country.

Parliament, the supreme representative and legislative body of the Republic, consists of two chambers: the Senate (47 seats) and Mazhilis (77 seats, of which 67 are filled by majority voting and ten on a basis of Party lists). Election to the lower chamber is conducted by direct, secret ballot, and to the upper house by secret ballot of oblast and city parliaments. The remaining seven senators are appointed by the President.

Parliament has the power of approval over the government programme, the budget, and a number of appointments on the basis of presidential recommendation. A two-thirds majority against a government measure counts as a vote of no confidence.

Initially very weak, the role of political parties has been enhanced by the addition of the ten members selected on the Party-list system. There are now 16 political parties in Kazakhstan, of which four ? Otan (Fatherland), the Civic Party, the Agrarian Party and the Communist Party - are currently represented in Parliament. Of these, Otan is the largest, with a membership of more than 100,000 and 30 per cent of the vote in the October 1999 elections to the Mazhilis. Second largest is the right-of-centre Civic Party, which has 63,000 members but achieved only 11 per cent of the vote. The Agrarian Party, with 52,000 members, achieved 12 per cent of the vote and is third largest. Fourth largest is the Communist Party, which won 17 per cent of the votes and has 51,000 members in the country.
In June this year Nazarbayev appointed a new government when the Prime Minister, Ismangali Tasmagambetov, resigned abruptly, after a long stand-off with Parliament over land legislation. The Bill, which was forced through by means of a vote of confidence, will establish land rights, thereby facilitating the sale and purchase of agricultural property. This is a vital reform in a country in which agriculture employs 40 per cent of the work force and accounts for around ten per cent of GDP.

Tasmagambetov's successor is Daniyal Akhmetov, the Governor of the Pavlodar region of Northern Kazakhstan and a former deputy Prime Minister. Following his appointment, the President said that the fundamental aim of the new government, which contains several members of the outgoing administration, was not to switch direction but to step up the tempo of reform.

The previous government's difficulties with the Land Bill suggest that the Parliament is less passive than some critics have suggested, a trend which may become more marked as political parties come to play a larger role in the country's political life.