Illustration by Daniyar Mussirov. Used with permission.

This article was written by Beiimbet Moldagali for Vlast.kz and published on August 21, 2024. An edited version is published on Global Voices under a media partnership agreement. 

The day after being elected president in June 2019, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev held a press conference in the presidential palace, or Akorda, promising that such conferences would become a tradition.

Instead, only the routine promises have become a tradition. For more than five years, Tokayev has not met with the press in this format, only appearing at short briefings, mainly after meetings with foreign guests. The president is not the only high-ranking official who does not meet with journalists. Since his appointment in February, Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov has not appeared in front of the media.

Vlast spoke with journalists working with government agencies about the obstacles they encounter with accessing information and officials. Political analysts also offered their take on why the authorities remain so closed.

Broken promises, restrictions, and propaganda interviews

Ahead of his reelection in 2022, Tokayev announced a “big press conference” in case of victory, which never took place. In February 2024, Tokayev’s press secretary Berik Uali promised that the president would hold a press conference in the first half of the year. The promise was broken again and the press conference held five years ago remains the only one.

Tokayev's only press conference on June 10, 2019. Photo from the website of the President's Office. Public domain.

The Akorda website and official social network channels are the only official sources of information through which journalists receive updates from the president. Journalists have almost no opportunity to ask the president a question directly. The Akorda press service told Vlast that during the 2022 elections there were a few briefings. Therefore, the last opportunity to ask a question was two years ago.

In an interview with the state news agency Kazinform, Uali said that in 2023, Tokayev held eight briefings for journalists after talks with heads of other states. However, he failed to mention that access to the president is restricted. Most of the accredited journalists end up being relegated to the press center on another floor of the building, watching the briefing through a monitor without the opportunity to ask questions.

Journalist Serik Ordabay, host of the ORDA LIFE YouTube channel, sees no point in being accredited at Akorda. “What is the point of going to Akorda if you can’t ask a single question?” Ordabay told Vlast.

In July, during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in the capital Astana, most journalists were placed the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation (known colloquially as The Pyramid) whereas the event took place in the Palace of Independence, across the street. “My colleagues from selected state publications were sitting in the Palace [of Independence]. They could stream a number of meetings that were unavailable for us sitting in the Pyramid,” journalist Ainur Koskina told Vlast.

Inside the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation (The Pyramid) during the SCO summit on 4 July 2024. Photo by Beiimbet Moldagali. Used with permission.

Tokayev usually gives interviews to foreign publications ahead of state visits. In March, before traveling to Baku, he was interviewed by the Azerbaijani state agency APA. In July, ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Astana, he talked to Beijing-controlled Xinhua.

Journalist and editor Ainur Shoshayeva noted that the president gives interviews to foreign media more often than to local ones. “Sure, the president gave interviews to Kazakh media, but to whom? Only to state media, essentially propaganda,” Shoshayeva said.

In the aftermath of Qandy Qantar Tokayev gave an interview to the state TV channel Khabar 24. Tokayev last gave an interview to state-controlled Egemen Qazaqstan in January. More recently, Tokayev published two op-eds, one at Euronews and one in state-controlled Kazpravda.

Busy schedules and pandemic practices

Since becoming prime minister in February 2024, Olzhas Bektenov has not once appeared in front of the media or given a single interview. The government press service noted that they would interact with the press “taking into account the prime minister’s busy work schedule.”

On July 24, in a comment to the press.kz website, the prime minister's press secretary Dilyara Alenova said Bektenov’s lack of availability was a consequence of the recent floods. Journalists, however, find this hard to believe.

“Hopefully, after the floods, there will be no ‘preparations for the heating season’ or anything else, so that in early September we will see Bektenov at least for a short briefing, as [former Prime Minister Alikhan] Smailov did. Smailov did not give large press conferences either,” Koskina said.

In an answer to Vlast, the government press service suggested that journalists can also obtain updates by sending official requests. However, state institutions can potentially delay the answer for up to 15 days. During this time, the news often loses its relevance. When journalists officially file complaints for having received incomplete and inaccurate responses, the review process can take another 15 days.

After the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions were set in place, the practice of gathering a number of ministers at press conferences was suspended, and was never restored.

A government press conference. Photo by the government press service. Public domain.

“COVID came and online meetings began. When restrictions were lifted we went back to in-person press conferences, where only the minister on the agenda showed up,” Koskina explained.

In response to a request from Vlast, the government confirmed that this practice was introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic, and later became the norm “for the convenience and time saving of government representatives.”

Perception of independent media as a threat

Political analyst Shalkar Nurseit says that the officials remain inaccessible to journalists because none of them rely on support from voters. Their attitude toward the media shows their attitude not only towards journalism, but also towards the citizens of the country.

“During Qandy Qantar, the president tried to suppress the press and pointed to independent media as a threat for the socio-political stability of Kazakhstan. If given a chance, independent media will ask questions about Qandy Qantar, [former President Nursultan Nazarbayev], and ongoing political repressions, to which the president may not have answers,” Nurseit argued.

Political consultant Dimash Alzhanov said there is a history of repression that makes room only for those journalists who demonstrate loyalty to the regime. “The state’s information policy is aimed at protecting the president and not associating him with negative events,” Alzhanov told Vlast.

Limited or no access for journalists to information and top officials occurs against the backdrop of a deteriorating situation of freedom of speech in Kazakhstan. In the Press Freedom Index published yearly by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Kazakhstan’s ranking fell from 134th place in 2023 to 142nd in 2024. In 2022, Kazakhstan was ranked 122nd.

In June, Tokayev signed into law a series of amendments concerning mass media that drew criticism from the press. The initial version proposed by the ministry of information effectively introduced censorship. After firm rebukes, the media community was able to convince the government to slash the most restrictive points of the law. Still, the current version of the law allows the government to monitor media outlets for “violations of moral, cultural and family values” and to deny accreditation to foreign media.

“It is important for the regime to create a sterile environment where independent media are toothless, marginalized to the maximum extent and unable to inform society at the proper level,” Alzhanov explained.