The January 2022 police crackdown on protesters in Kazakhstan, which left at least 238 people dead, is the most violent episode in the Central Asian country’s recent history. One year on, little has changed – despite the widespead anger and desperation that prompted the unprecedented demonstrations.
Kazakhstan’s president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, has not delivered on the people’s demands for a fairer society, one in which the ruling class no longer monopolises wealth and power as it did with impunity during the 30 years of former president Nursultan Nazarbayev’s rule.
In fact, in the year since ‘Bloody January’ (Qandy Qantar, in Kazakh), Tokayev’s promised reforms have frustrated expectations and, in some cases, proved counterproductive.
