Angela Garipova: The Internet Promotes Peaceful Dialogue in Kazakhstan · Global Voices
Dasha Kondrateva

Screenshot from the Bloggers program
Angela Garipova (a photo provided by Garipova)
The program Bloggers [ru], which appeared on state-controlled television channel 24.kz [ru] early in October last year, has raised awareness [ru] of the Kazakh Internet space among non-Internet users while covering some of things that don't always appear on TV newsreels. For many, the program is the Kazakh government's attempt to reach out to more independent voices in the growing segment of the local Internet space dominated by users of foreign websites, including Facebook and Twitter, as well as anonymous comments on local media platforms.
Kazakhstan, is ranked 160 out of 179 countries in Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index and is “not free “ in Freedom House's press index.
Presented [ru] by Angela Garipova, Bloggers explores popular conversations – from the trivial to the profoundly important – through the views of users of social media and blogs. Today, in an interview with Global Voices, Garipova shares her views on the program, the Kazakh Internet space, and changes occurring in Kazakh society.
Global Voices (GV): How did you get the idea to create Bloggers? What is its primary goal?
Angela Garipova (AG): Modernity itself dictates the means of delivering information to our audiences. Bloggers is a kind of a snapshot of all society's most important and exciting issues. Our society is generally divided into two groups: those who are completely immersed in the Internet space, and those who are resisting the trend of transition to online communication and prefer the televised formats. In our program, we combine people online with those offline. Internet users tend to have a greater freedom in terms of expressing their points of view because the Internet makes people more courageous and sincere. Often, what is expressed online is closest to the opinions of our neighbors, aunties, colleagues or dance partners…By taking comments from Internet users on popularly discussed topics and airing them via a television program broadcasted across the republic, we allow the voices of the people to be heard. But from the beginning of the project our main goal was to become a bridge between the government and citizens of the country, between private individuals and state officials. We want to understand the problems of the country, to report on them, to discuss them and work together in solving them.
GV: Your program covers very different spheres of social and political life in Kazakhstan: one issue of the program is dedicated to a comedy football tournament while in another issue you discuss domestic violence in Kazakhstan. Why is your program's approach so varied?
AG: Life consists not only of problems, but wonderful moments that can be recorded, and we love to share these positive moments with our audience, too. There are also many bright people who deserve to be better known, so we organize interviews with our guests, often bloggers with interesting philosophies on life. Sometimes we invite people that are completely unknown, but who have done good deeds. We want people to know about such people. Everyone gets tired of the stress and tension [of daily life], and this is the reason why the program has such diverse content. It also reflects the changing moods of the Networks. One day people are talking about the price of petrol, tomorrow they are collecting aid for refugees somewhere in Asia; and after that, they are creating profiles for their pets on Instagram.
GV: How different is the Kazakhstani Internet space from the Internet in other former Soviet countries?
Как отличается Казахстанское Интернет-пространство от Интернет-сферы других постсоветских стран, а в частности, России?: Главное отличие нашего интернет-пространства в количестве пользователей. И эта цифра имеет решающее значение. У нас есть небольшая группа активных пользователей Фэйсбука и Твиттера – и это не больше 5-7 процентов всех пользователей страны, которые действительно популярны и их слово имеет значение.
AG: The main difference between the Kazakh Internet space lies in the number of users, and this figure is crucial. We have a small group of active users of Facebook and Twitter – not more than 5-7 percent of all Internet users in the country.[Internet penetration is around 62 percent, says the country's Ministry of Transport and Communications]. This small group of Internet users have a lot of popularity and their word carries weight.
GV: What problems did the program encounter in cooperating with the Internet space in Kazakhstan? Were there any problems when trying to establish a two-way communication model between your sources and your audience?
AG: On the contrary – now the level of confidence of [Kazakhstan's] population in the Internet has risen, and our program has contributed to that. Increasingly, we are beginning to highlight problems through the medium of social media, posts on the official pages of the state agencies and so on… a peaceful dialogue is being established via the Internet and online discussions are leading to the quicker resolution of issues. Citizens, bloggers and non-bloggers alike, get in contact with us, sometimes people come to us with a specific problem, and ask to report on certain issues in our program.
GV: One of the problems of the Central Asian Internet space is that the local authorities control the Internet. For example, certain sites are still banned in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. What can you say about the freedom of the Internet space and freedom of speech and press in general in Kazakhstan?
AG: In our country, we have access to virtually all of the world's resources, and we have the opportunity to receive information from various sources. [Editor's note: Kazakhstan has blocked the blogging platform Live Journal several times in the past]. Recently the country has adopted a new law on defamation and insults online, which has caused many debates in Kazakhstan. One thing I can say for sure: we are glad that the issue of obscene language [online] is being solved
GV: One popular topic of discussion in Russia, Central Asia and Kazakhstan itself is that of 73-year-old Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev’s succession. After more than two decades under him, how do Kazakh people imagine “Kazakhstan without Nazarbayev”?
AG: President Nursultan Nazarbayev is in a good health and we are confident not to worry about this issue for a long time. If the President will no longer be in position, the people of Kazakhstan are free to choose the next head of the state on their own. He must be elected in accordance with the constitution in a secret ballot by citizens of the republic [under conditions of] universal, equal, and direct suffrage.