Protests in Kazakhstan started quietly this week. A sudden increase in the price of liquefied petroleum gas, popular as a secondary fuel for its low cost, sparked public meetings in towns in western Kazakhstan, the home of the country’s natural resources sector.
But five days later, and the system built since the 1990s by Kazakhstan’s first family, the Nazarbayevs, and their associates, looks to have been shaken.
The government has resigned, former leader Nursultan Nazarbayev has been stripped of his role as chairman of the country’s Security Council, and protesters have attempted to storm government administration buildings amid a state of emergency. After a request by president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Russian troops have now entered the country. Dozens of protesters have allegedly been killed by law enforcement in the city of Almaty, according to a local police spokesperson.
