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TechnoratiCorrupt Dictators and Their Friends
People have got to know whether their president is a crook. Well, I'm not a crook.
- Richard Nixon, Press Conference 11/11/1973
Herewith an introduction to Nursultan A. Nazarbayev, president of Kazakhstan.
Mr. Nazarbayev was elected president of Kazakhstan by the Supreme Soviet on April 24, 1990. On December 1, 1991, Kazakhstan being on the verge of independence, he was elected by Kazakh citizens with 95 percent of the vote and most recently was elected in 2005 with 91 percent of the vote. The 2005 election was only slightly marred by the observation of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), an organization he now chairs, that there were "numerous and persistent examples of intimidation by the authorities" and an "overall media bias in favor of the incumbent." One month before the election Zamanbek Nurkadilov, an opposition leader, was said by authorities to have committed suicide. He did it by shooting himself once in the head and twice in the chest. Two months after the election, Altynbek Sarsenbayev, one of the opposition leaders was killed, reportedly by state security officials.
In May 2007, satisfied with the way he'd been performing, President Nazarbayev signed a constitutional amendment that permits him (and only him) to seek re-election indefinitely beginning in 2012 when his current term expires.
Mr. Nazarbayev presides over what has been called one of the most corrupt regimes in central Asia. He has closed newspapers, banned or refused to register opposition parties and permitted harassment of advocacy groups. Mike Marschall, the regional director of Transparency International, an anti-corruption organization said of the president: "You don't have free elections, and the press is pretty much controlled by his family and a significant portion of assets in Kazakhstan are directly or indirectly controlled by his family." Although Mr. Marschall went on to say that the president was making some step-by-step reforms, on the Transparency International Scale of corrupt countries, Kazakhstan is ranked 2.6, 1 being the most corrupt and 10 being least corrupt.
In 2006, Mr. Nazarbayev was a guest of Mr. Bush at the White House. Welcoming Mr. Nazarbayev 9 months after Mr. Nazarbayev had been reelected with 91 percent of the vote, a slightly envious Mr. Bush said: "I have watched very carefully the development of this important country from one that was in the Soviet sphere to one that now is a free nation . . . . And I welcome you here to the White House, and I'm looking forward to buying you lunch." After lunch Mr. Nazarbayev went to Kennebunkport to visit the first President Bush.
The visit to the White House was preceded by a visit to Kazakhstan in 2006 by Dick Cheney who in response to Mr. Nazarbayev's welcome said: "I think all Americans are tremendously impressed with the progress that you've made. . . in the last 15 years. . . . I'm delighted to have the opportunity to spend some time with you here in Astana. We met 10 years ago. . . and it's a pleasure to renew our friendship."
An even more prominent visitor than Mr. Cheney, however, was Bill Clinton who visited Mr. Nazarbayev in 2005. He arrived in a private jet owned by Frank Giustra of Canada who accompanied Mr. Clinton on the trip. All that happened when Dick Cheney visited was a friendship renewed. According to a story in the New York Times, three important things happened as a result of Mr. Clinton's visit.
The first was that Mr. Clinton voiced support for Mr. Nazarbayev's bid to lead OSCE (that had been critical of the 2005 election) notwithstanding the Bush administration's lack of support for that bid, saying: "I think it's time for that to happen, it's an important step, and I'm glad you're willing to undertake it." Then the next important thing happened.
Mr. Giustra's small company, newly interested in uranium mining, signed agreements enabling it to become partners in three state-owned uranium projects, agreements that are described as worth tens of millions of dollars. Then the last good thing happened.
The William J. Clinton Foundation got a $31.3 million gift from Mr. Giustra. That gift was only publicly disclosed in December 2007. More recently the foundation received another $100 million from Mr. Giustra.
When interviewed on Fox News and asked about the Clinton visit to Kazakhstan and praise for Mr. Nazarbayev, Hillary Clinton said: "He went to Kazakhstan to sign an agreement with the government to provide low cost drugs for HIV/AIDS, a growing problem in Central Asia. . . ." Asked about his praise for Mr. Nazarbayev she said that Dick Cheney also had good words for Mr. Nazarbayev when he visited the country. That is one of the few times any Democrat has used Dick Cheney as justification for a bad decision. Should she become president one can only hope she doesn't use Mr. Cheney as a role model for other bad decisions. That would bode ill for us all.
Christopher Brauchli
brauchli.56@post.harvard.edu
For political commentary see my web page http://humanraceandothersports.com
17 Comments so far
Show AllThis is a great example that proves a Chomsky-ism: nations that do our bidding are never dictatorial, but rather bring stability and progress. Nations that are democratic but defy Washington are dictators, like Hugo Chavez.
Also an excellent reminder of the lack of morality of the Clintons.
Nietzsche:
It's the concept that as soon as we leave the country to visit another, we are loyal to our home in front of others. Not that we insist we are perfect, just that we love and accept our home as OUR home. When it comes to jacka55e5 doing stupid stuff, when we are on our home turf, we can rip 'em any way we like, ya know, 1st Amendment and all.....
To address the overall class warfare comments earlier, where else in the world do you find the REAL freedom to do basically as you please to earn a living, create a home, make a difference in your community, depending on your abilities and willingness to work hard?? Sure, life is rough sometimes, but it's the people who don't whine about it and just do what it takes, with honor and integrity, to succeed, it's those people who achieve happiness and great prosperity.
We, as free-thinking people, should condemn all dictators and any leaders who place obstacles to greater freedom in our way, whether that's a revered politician or an intolerant a55hole trying to intimidate someone else online........
Earl: Yeah but... that is a version of "Our country...may she always be right, but right or wrong, OUR COUNTRY".
Sorry. I don't buy it.
"He may be a bastard, but he is our bastard!"
Ahhh, Yassss, these guys are all great men, to the one percent that controls ninety percent of the world's wealth and power. The other ninety-nine percent of us can go hang, or starve. We don't count.
I'm glad I'm an old man, but how my heart aches for the young just starting out. What a terrible world to inherit.
Christopher Brauchli,
insightful article, no habitat for humanity or nobel peace prizes for the clintons.
webwalk - thanks for the progressivehistory lead, the article about clinton repealing glass-steagall and implications for the mortgage meltdown were striking.
....peace.............
Here's a link to the Clinton photo, repealing Glass-Steagall:
www.ratical.org/corporations/DErulesUD.html
And here's a link to a photo of FDR, signing Glass-Steagall:
http://www.progressivehistorians.com/2007/11/bill-clintons-role-in-mortgage-crisis.html
Both the linked sites have more info on what it all means...
The sad truth is that huge levels of corruption are to be found the higher you go in the power structure of most countries on the planet now. I don't know... there may be a few small countries--Norway and Sweden perhaps-- that have progressed to the point of instituting protection of ordinary citizens from the depredations of sociopathic predatory capitalists and their political representatives who do their bidding. But I'm sure that the rule nowadays is a free-for-all for the aggressive types who take advantage of every opening to enhance their personal power at the expense of others.
This is such a neat encapsulation of the greed and corruption that rule our world. How is this not a major issue confronting the campaigners for President? Oh, i know...
And, this is such a neat encapsulation of the greed and corruption that the Clintons embody. i will never forget the full-color photo of a laughing Bill Clinton, surrounded by a roomful of laughing rich old white men, on the front page of the NYT the day after Clinton signed the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Acts which kept banking separate from financial speculation. Don't hear the Clintons trumpeting that move much nowadays.
Bill Clinton's foundation has accepted $131,000,000 from the delightful Nursultan A. Nazarbayev. Talk about that, "progressive" Clinton supporters. Wait, i hear... silence.
Not that i have any illusions that Barack Obama provides any real "hope" for "change" we can believe in. Obama will be perfectly happy to preside over the most militarily powerful empire in the history of the world, and make deals with the requisite corporate criminals, and consort with the requisite dictators in order to do so. Perhaps Obama will be truly "better" than Clinton or McCain, in measurable ways that affect some real people's lives, but he will be equally unwilling to honestly face the deep tragedy that confronts us all. Our country is the leader in destroying the world.
But whoever is "elected" will face the tragedy soon enough, as the facade comes crashing down in economnic and ecological crises. Reason enough i suppose to vote agains McCain, who appears most likely to respond with infinite expansion of war.
Can i vote for Gorbachev?
Uranium mining... Clinton... $100,000,000... Dick Cheney... Oh no no no no NO
This is yet more proof that, Democrat or Republican, our wonderful corporate politicos don't care a whit about reality, democracy, freedom, caring about people, or any of those high-falutin', far-flung, idealistic notions.
All they give a damn about is their bank accounts.
Did Bush ever say he wasn't a crook?
Clinton uses Cheney's behavior as an excuse for hers and people actually want to vote for her? Let's hear a Clintonite deal with this one! This is so funny! I love it.
Well,
So much for the much repeated "truth" that you can't be a dictator if you keep winning elections.
Domestic and foreign political whores pimping their way around the world. Clinton isn't above bending over for rich Europeans.
Hoa binh
What is interesting about Nazarbayev was that when the breakup of the Soviet Union occurred, and he wound up in charge of Kazakhstan, he warned the West that they needed to aid state's like his or they would fall into the hands of "gangsters." It would appear that Nazarbayev, seeing the West mouth empty platitudes and do nothing, joined in and saw to it that his own behind would safe, thus becoming what he had warned about. In regards to America's policy towards friendly dictators, the USA seems to have forgotten a powerful lesson of history: when that dictator goes, those who are seen to have been his foreign backers are in for a lot of misery (i.e., Cuba, Iran, etc.)
Clinton is a lying fraud, and always has been, just like Bush.