“While it is undeniable that Mirziyoyev’s Uzbekistan is less paranoid, much freer and tolerant than Karimov’s… the very nature of the system remains unchanged.”
Almaty’s journalists witnessed Kazakhstan’s largest city roil with protests, peaceful at first, then become engulfed in deepening anger and shocking violence.
In two southern Kazakhstan cities, the January protests devolved into shocking violence, from the use of live ammunition against protesters to police beatings of those detained.