The European Parliament adopted an emergency human rights resolution on the situation in Kazakhstan on Thursday. The wave of anti-government protests in the country, which erupted in early January over a steep rise in fuel prices, has turned violent. Commenting on the vote, MEP György Hölvényi said: “Instead of prejudging the situation, we must give the opportunity to carry out an internal investigation into what led to the escalation, but above all the deaths of all 225 people must be investigated”.
The politician underlined: “The Kazakh authorities have already launched an official national security investigation, so it is disrespectful to make premature statements in a resolution that was put together in a few hours, to judge a country that has come a long way. Violations have been committed, the perpetrators of violence must be condemned, but every country has the right to settle its internal conflicts itself. We must therefore wait for the end of the Kazakh investigation”.
“The European Union’s interests in the region can only be served by a strategy based on dialogue and avoiding destabilisation. Kazakhstan is one of the most important countries in the region and its stability is the stability of the region, this series of protests cannot be compared to the Arab Spring”, he added.
Strasbourg 20th Januray, 2022
