Tag Archives: politics

Turkmen president sacks Prosecutor for bribe-taking

MAY 4 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Turkmen president Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov fired General Prosecutor Amanmyrat Halliyev and 10 junior prosecutors for bride-taking.

Last month, Mr Berdymukhamedov sacked his energy minister in one of his semi-regular government reshuffles which his opponents say shows his insecurities.

It is unclear what bribes Mr Halliyev, 43, is accused of taking.

He had been General Prosecutor since 2013 and before that had been head of the Supreme Court. The day before Mr Halliyev was sacked, the 51-year old deputy PM for industry, Batyr Ereshov, died from unknown causes. He was one of the more prominent members of Mr Bedymukhamedov’s cabinet.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 327, published on May 5 2017)

Kazakh president’s daughter backs health boost

Leave a Reply

APRIL 27 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Dariga Nazarbayeva, the eldest daughter of President Nursultan Nazarbayev and tipped by some analysts as his successor, has proposed boosting state investment into sport by 30%, media reported. Ms Nazarbayeva is now a senator. She had previously been a deputy PM.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 327, published on May 5 2017)

Kyrgyz president admin. files another law suit against media group

Leave a Reply

APRIL 28 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Independent Kyrgyz news website Zanoza.kg said that the Kyrgyz Presidential Administration had filed a fifth lawsuit against it for allegedly offending the dignity of Pres. Almazbek Atambayev. Media campaigners have said that press freedom is being squeezed in Kyrgyzstan, once held up as a bastion of free press in Central Asia.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 327, published on May 5 2017)

Presidential candidates in Kazakhstan need health test

Leave a Reply

MAY 4 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — In a draft law to be voted on by Kazakhstan’s parliament, candidates for future presidential elections will have to undergo a medical test. Pres. Nursultan Nazarbayev pushed through a raft of tweaks to the constitution earlier this year which he said were designed to shift power to parliament from the presidency in a move that makes Kazakhstan more democratic. His detractors have said that the changes tighten his control over power.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 327, published on May 5 2017)

Kazakhstan’s drug purchasing overpays for medicines

Leave a Reply

APRIL 28 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kazakhstan’s state-run drug purchasing company SK Pharmacia paid nearly four times more than it needed to for various medicines in 2015 in a corruption scheme that cost the Kazakh taxpayer millions, the state’s anti-corruption unit said. SK Pharmacia has been the focus of a major corruption investigation since the end of last year.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 327, published on May 5 2017)

Kazakh president goes walkabout

Leave a Reply

APRIL 25 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Surrounded by burly bodyguards, Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev went for a rare walkabout around the area close to Astana’s train station. Official media showed pictures of a relaxed looking Mr Nazarbayev talking to people. Unusually, Mr Nazarbayev decided to go for a dressed-down tie-less look. The 76- year-old likes to portray himself as a man of the people.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 326, published on April 28 2017)

Georgian committee approves constitutional changes

Leave a Reply

APRIL 23 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — A committee, dominated by the ruling Georgian Dream coalition, convened to study ideas for a new constitution in Georgia voted overwhelmingly in favour of proposals to strip the presidency of power. Opponents of the proposed new constitution, lead by President Girorgi Margvelashvili have accused the Georgian Dream government coalition of trying to undermine its rivals by tinkering with the constitution and pushing the country towards a one-party rule. The Georgian Dream has a large enough majority in parliament to push through any constitutional changes. A date for a vote in parliament on the proposed changes has not yet been set.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 326, published on April 28 2017)

Uzbekistan’s Mirziyoyev sidelines rival

Leave a Reply

APRIL 26 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Uzbek president Shavkat Mirziyoyev has demoted his longtime colleague Rustam Azimov, sources told the Reuters news agency.

The move appears to be an attempt by Mr Mirziyoyev, in power since the death in September of the cantankerous Islam Karimov, to consolidate both his power and his reputation as Uzbekistan’s moderniser.

Mr Azimov, a deputy PM, had been considered one of the two most influential figures propping up Mr Mirziyoyev. He had previously been finance minister but has now, according to Reuters, been given the job of reorganising the rural economy. The other figure considered powerful in Uzbekistan is Rustam Inoyatov, head of the security services.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 326, published on April 28 2017)

Corruption unfolds in Georgian football

Leave a Reply

APRIL 19 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Georgia’s domestic football is often plagued by illegal betting, media reported quoting European gambling watchdog officials. The oocrp.org website, a part-US funded anti-corruption website, quoted the head of FederBet, Francesko Baranca, as saying Georgia’s second division matches were often targeted for illegal bets.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 325, published on April 17 2017)

Azerbaijan tries to bribe Council of Europe

Leave a Reply

APRIL 20 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Azerbaijan has tried to bribe members of the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (Pace) into helping it improve its human rights record, the Guardian newspaper reported citing various officials it had interviewed. Similar claims have been made before against individual members of the Council of Europe which has influence over the human rights lobby.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 325, published on April 17 2017)