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This paper is based on a study which compares repatriation policies of Germany, Russia, and Kazakhstan. The choice of cases is based on a “most similar case design.” The Russian case results in unsuccessful and unsustainable repatriation, the German case exhibits a change from sustainable repatriation to a slow termination of the program, while the case of Kazakhstan is one of sustainable and relatively successful repatriation. The main argument of the paper is that in order for a repatriation program to be sustainable, the program must contain both a practical component and an ideological component. If a repatriation program lacks ideological backing which permeates other aspects of political life in a state, then the repatriation program grinds to a halt. If a repatriation program has ideological backing, but is rendered impractical and does not meet the economic, demographic and labor market needs of a state, then the further development of the program stops. The findings of this study merit further reflection on issues of changing national identities, on transnational migration pathways, and on the “post-Soviet condition” which has set the stage for all of the aforementioned processes and transformations. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Although much attention has been paid to national construction in Soviet and post- Soviet Central Asia, the field of literary and cultural analysis of the origins of current national symbols and texts in this region is yet not fully acknowledged and discovered. This article tries to shed light onto the literary construction of an ethnic identity and its historical background in Soviet Kazakhstan and its influence on the post-Soviet ideology in this multicultural country. In doing so it investigates the ways and the time when most of the important historical epics were "re-written," brought back by the Kazakh writers and intellectuals in the mid-twentieth century. The importance of investigating this period and this phenomenon is twofold. First, it provides further contribution to the Soviet creation of binary approaches to the formation of ethnic identities and the continuous attack on local nationalisms. Following the arguments of some scholars in the field (e.g. [Adams, Laura. 1999. "Invention, Institutionalization and Renewal in Uzbekistan's National Culture." European Journal of Cultural Studies 2; Dave, Bhavna. 2007. Kazakhstan: Ethnicity and Power. London: Routledge]) this asserts that the local cultural elites found ways of bargaining and re-structuring such identity contributing to its "localization" through the usage of pre-Soviet and pre-Russian historical symbols. In a way, they were able to construct their own "imagined community" and resistance to the past and existing (according to them) colonialism within the given framework of Kazakh- Soviet literature. Secondly, the historicity that became a leitmotif of most important literary works and later on a main focus of national ideology in post-Soviet Kazakhstan must be viewed not just as an instrument of legitimation in this post- colonial state but also as a strong continuity of cultural and ethnic identity lines. The very fact that a detailed and continued genealogy of Kazakh medieval tribes and rulers was the main focus of major works by such famous Kazakh writers as Mukhtar Auezov or Ilyas Yessenberlin demonstrates the importance of the "continuity" and kinship and family lines for Kazakhs. The paper raises the questions of how national and elitist these movements were before the independence and how the further post-independent projects of using and re-establishing these links and continuity formed more questions than answers for the nation-builders in independent Kazakhstan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The demographic composition of Kazakhstan after the fall of the Soviet Union presented a dilemma to the new Kazakhstani government: Should it advance a Kazakh identity as paramount, possibly alienating the large non-Kazakh population? Or should it advocate for a non-ethnicized national identity? How would those decisions be made in light of global norms of liberal multiculturalism? And, critically, would citizens respond to new frames of identity? This paper provides an empirical look at supraethnic identity-building in Kazakhstan – that is, at the development of a national identity that individuals place above or alongside their ethnic identification. We closely examine the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan to describe how Kazakhstani policies intersect with theories of nationalism and nation-building. We then use ordered probit models to analyze data from a 2014 survey to examine how citizens of Kazakhstan associate with a “Kazakhstani” supraethnic identity. Our findings suggest that despite the Assembly of People’s rhetoric, there are still significant barriers to citizen-level adoption of a supraethnic identity in Kazakhstan, particularly regarding language. However, many individuals do claim an association with Kazakhstani identity, especially those individuals who strongly value citizenship in the abstract. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To compare the frequency and healthfulness of foods being advertised to children and adolescents in four countries of WHO European region. Design: Cross-sectional quantitative study, guided by an adapted version of the WHO protocol. All recorded food advertisements were categorised by categories and as either 'permitted' or 'not permitted' for advertising to children in accordance with WHO Regional Office for Europe Nutrient Profile Model. Settings: Four countries: Russia, Turkey, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan Participants: TV channels most popular among children and adolescents Results: Analysis included 70 d of TV broadcasting for all channels, during which time there were 28 399 advertisements. The mean number of advertisements per hour varied from eleven in Turkey and Kazakhstan to eight and two in Russia and Kyrgyzstan. In all countries, the majority of the food and beverages advertised should not be permitted for advertising to children according to the WHO Nutrient Profile Model. The mean number of non-permitted food and beverage advertisements per hour was high in Turkey and Kazakhstan (8·8 and 8·5 ads) compared with Russia (5·1) and Kyrgyzstan (1·9). Turkey was the only country where nutritional information was fully available, and no values were missing that prevented coding for some product categories. Conclusions: Results revealed that children and adolescents in four countries are exposed to a considerable volume of food and beverage advertisements, including sugary products on broadcast television. As such, policymakers should consider protecting youth by developing regulations to restrict these marketing activities within media popular with children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To demonstrate the potential impact on population health if policies designed to reduce population trans fatty acid (TFA) intake are successfully implemented in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) in line with the WHO's guidelines to lower intake of TFA as a percentage of total energy intake to less than 1 %.Design: A projection exercise was conducted to estimate reductions in CVD-related deaths in countries of the EAEU if TFA policies are implemented in the EAEU. Plausibly causal, annual effects (in %) of Denmark's TFA policy on the evolution of CVD mortality rates were applied to project the potential effects of recently announced TFA policies in Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and the Russian Federation under three TFA exposure scenarios.Settings: Member States of the EAEU: Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and the Russian Federation.Participants: Data used for the projection exercise were based on estimates from natural experimental evidence from Denmark. National CVD mortality rates used were from WHO and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development datasets.Results: In all countries and in all scenarios, deaths averted were ≤ 5 deaths/100,000 in year 1 and rose in years 2 and 3. The highest projected impacts in the high-exposure scenario were seen in Kyrgyzstan (39 deaths/100 000), with the lowest occurring in Armenia (24 deaths/100 000).Conclusion: This study demonstrates the potential population health gains that can be derived from effective policies to reduce TFA in line with WHO guidance. Monitoring and surveillance systems are needed to evaluate the effectiveness of the TFA reduction policies in a national context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After the Soviet collapse, the newly independent states of Central Asia found themselves in the process of forming their own national “imagined communities.” This was done to legitimize their existing territorial integrity, their rights to their titular ethnicities, and the position of political elites. This process expressed itself through the creation of particular symbols, myths, and rituals which distinguished the nation but were also used to legitimize the nation's right to exist. The symbolic and ideological construction was influenced by the former Soviet era. For example, symbolically the country was still called Rodina (motherland), but most of the symbols of power were represented by male images, for example, Amir Timur in Uzbekistan or Ablay Khan in Kazakhstan. The tradition of representing power through a male connotation had a long history in Soviet Central Asia. Interestingly, however, some contemporary artists took an alternative view and used feminine images as strong, central symbols of their interpretation of national identity, contesting the official view of nation-building. This paper seeks to trace the development of the feminine and masculine dichotomy of representation by comparing official iconography with works of famous female artists such as Umida Akhmedova from Uzbekistan and Saule Suleimenova and Almagul Menlibayeva from Kazakhstan. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The family †Peipiaosteidae contains the genera †Peipiaosteus, †Stichopterus, †Spherosteus, †Yanosteus, and †Liaosteus, all from Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous deposits of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, and Mongolia. Although the family has taxonomically expanded since it was first established for †P. pani Liu and Zhou, 1965, the amount of detailed comparative data for many of the taxa involved is lacking. In this paper, we describe the osteology of the monotypic genus †Yanosteus from the Yixian Formation (Early Cretaceous) of China largely on the basis of a newly prepared, well-preserved specimen. †Yanosteus is characterized by a series of infraorbital ossicles (a characteristic of the family), a broad, rounded palatopterygoid, a robust dentary, an extremely small opercle and a subopercle with distinctly long and rounded anterior process and a posteriorly scalloped margin, a broad and weakly forked caudal fin, an elongate dorsal fin with more than 160–178 fin rays (diagnostic for the genus), and a short but well-formed pectoral fin spine. We use the results of this study to discuss the characters of the †Peipiaosteioidei and the diversity of †peipiaosteioids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the summer of 2009, statues stood leaning in a yard, beyond Independence Square in Astana. The situation was incongruous and constituted an enigma: Why were these monuments left alone in shambles? This paper argues that nationalistic city making is more of a resource for people involved in patron/client relationships and a contingent outcome, rather than a planned strategy. This case study, drawing on evidence gathered through qualitative methods with artists and urban-planners, hence reveals a paradox: in Kazakhstan, there surely is a state incentive to produce nationalistic symbols, but in the absence of a mid-term strategy, city-planners and the people they work with improvise in order to answer local authorities' demands, and use this opportunity to advance their own interests. Hence, the political production of space is considered a fuzzy process, contingent on the agency of multiple subjects, and treated as an outcome of Foucauldian “micro-physics of power.” But even though it is erratic, it still creates the built environment which will be reacted upon by citizens. Finally, this sociopolitical perspective on nationalistic urbanism demonstrates that Astana's scenery is a fuzzy “landscape of power” instituting an erratic Kazakhstani regime, based on the political economy of symbolic goods. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The penal legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan includes a number of crimes against the peace and security of mankind. Among these are most of the traditional "core" crimes under international law—genocide, war crimes, and the crime of aggression—as well as some other crimes. Crimes against humanity are not included in the Criminal Code so far but some of their definitional features are shared by so-called "extremist crimes". In addition to other customary crimes against the peace and security of mankind—such as deliberately attacking internationally protected persons and organizations and abusing internationally protected emblems—the Code also includes more novel crimes, such as participation in foreign armed conflicts. This paper analyses the relevant provisions of the Criminal Code of Kazakhstan in the light of corresponding treaty-based and customary rules of international law, and suggests further improvements to be made to the Code. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beremendiini is an extinct group of soricine shrews that were widely distributed during the Pliocene and Pleistocene. Their occurrence in China has been investigated, but their presence in northern Asian regions has remained poorly studied. This paper analyzes 56 fossil remains of Beremendiini collected from 16 early Pliocene to early Pleistocene localities in Russia (Siberia), Kazakhstan, and Mongolia and shows the presence of two beremendiin species: Beremendia fissidens (Petényi, 1864) and Beremendia minor Rzebik-Kowalska, 1976. Northern Asian Beremendia considerably vary in size and qualitative characteristics, although most of the different states have been identified in European or Chinese specimens. Through the application of geometric morphometric techniques, mandibular shape analyses reveal similarities between the members of the beremendiin genera Peisorex Kowalski and Li, 1963, Beremendia Kormos, 1934, and Lunanosorex Jin and Kawamura, 1996. Shape analyses and comparisons of mandibular characteristics reveal 'trophic' analogies between Beremendia and Blarina spp. and a new model of 'Mandible Swinging and Sliding' (MSS-model) accounting for the similarities in mandibular morphology with implications for the understanding of the diet of Beremendia. UUID: http://zoobank.org/ef92ee1a-3977-44b2-86d7-381665bcf78b [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we investigated the high-pressure (HP) metamorphism of the Precambrian continental crust exposed in the Zheltau terrane in South Kazakhstan (Koyandy complex) and the Chu-Kendyktas terrane in the North Tien Shan of Kyrgyzstan (Aktyuz, Kemin and Kokdzhon complexes) within the SW part of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. HP quartz–feldspar lithologies of the Koyandy complex consist of migmatized kyanite-bearing garnet–mica paragneisses, garnet–kyanite paragneisses and their derivatives associated with eclogites. Paragneisses demonstrate prograde evolution involving mica dehydration melting and producing magnesium-rich garnet, kyanite and K-feldspar at the near-peak to retrograde stages at pressures of 15–18.5 kbar and temperatures of 800–870°C. The widespread growth of micas in these rocks reflects lower stages of retrogression at P = 10–12 kbar and T = 720–770°C. The age distributions of the cores of detrital zircon grains from the paragneisses indicate a predominance of Neoproterozoic and minor occurrence of Mesoproterozoic and Palaeoproterozoic sources of their protoliths. The ages of ∼487–485 Ma obtained from the zircon rims of the paragneisses reflect the timing of their HP metamorphic re-equilibration. These age clusters are consistent with the age estimates obtained from the rims of zircons in the eclogite-bearing garnet gneisses of the adjacent Aktyuz complex in the North Tien Shan. The P–T paths and zircon ages obtained from the high-grade quartz–feldspar gneisses of the Zheltau and Chu-Kendyktas terranes are thus interpreted to indicate involvement of the crustal material derived from the Precambrian basement (magmatic zircons aged ca. 844 Ma) and its Ediacaran–Cambrian sedimentary cover (detrital zircons with maxima at 1 Ga and 800–600 Ma) in the latest Cambrian subduction processes induced by the closure of the oceanic basins assigned to the Palaeo-Asian Ocean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International Criminal Law [ICL] contains a number of general principles, which form the foundations of and conditions for holding individuals criminally responsible for crimes under international law (genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression), and other crimes against the peace and security of mankind. Most general principles of ICL have been adequately implemented in the current (second) edition of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. This paper assesses the quality of and identifies the lacunae in the implementation of Kazakhstan's Criminal Code, with a view to suggesting further improvements to this Code. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the project Sacred Geography of Kazakhstan, launched in 2017 in Kazakhstan as part of the nationwide program Ruqani Zhangyru (Modernization of Spirituality). The officially stated goal of the project is to cultivate a sense of patriotism in the country's residents related to places and geographic sites that are important for the historical memory of independent Kazakhstan. The authors assume that the real goal of the project is national territorialization, or recoding of the semantics of space, by selecting, codifying, and articulating some symbols and practices, while leveling and "forgetting" others. The analysis, which is based on expert interviews and official documents, shows that this postcolonial process fits into the tendency toward ethnonationalization of Kazakhstan, in which discourse on the civil nation continues to be reproduced at the official level, while real activity is more focused on reinforcing the idea of Kazakhstan as the state of the Kazakh nation. The institutionalization of organizing and recoding the sacred landscape involves a wide variety of groups and actors. These factors may explain the success of the project in comparison to other projects being implemented under the Ruqani Zhangyru program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much of the existing literature on nation-building in Central Asia offers a statist top-down approach which focuses on how the nation and nationhood is “imagined” by political elites. In this special issue the contributors provide an analysis which seeks to explore the process of nation-building in Central Asia by addressing the other side of the state-society relationship. The case studies in this collection examine the “grey zone” between “imagined” and “real” differences between state-led policies and discourses related to nationhood and identity and how they are received by different audiences at different levels (regional, national and international). The authors bring to the fore the contested nature of nation-building in Central Asia as well as focusing on new or less conventional analytical tools for the study of nation-building such as cinema, construction projects and elections. This article provides the introduction to the special issue and lays out the contribution the articles make to the existing literature on nation-building in Central Asia. It also sets out the rationale and aims of the collection. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We present accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon (AMS 14C) dating results of the "Jochi Khan Mausoleum"—the proposed burial place of the oldest son of Gengghis Khan in Ulytau, Kazakhstan. The Ulytau region retains 34 burial complexes of Islamic tradition associated with the Golden Horde history (1221–1438 CE). However, there is no calendar-dated chronology of the medieval mausoleums in this region, which complicates their historical interpretation. Three 14C dates from construction timbers and burial of the Jochi Khan mausoleum are calibrated to 1220–1400 CE interval (95.4% range) with the mid-point at 1245 CE for the coffin, 1330 CE for the entry door, and 1350 CE for a masonry wall. The 14C-calibration suggests that the mausoleum was built about 100 years after the death of Jochi (1225 CE) and renovated at least once in the middle of the 14th century. Apparently, the wood for the coffin was harvested sometime in the interval 1220–1270 CE. The calendar ages of the coffin and the mausoleum are ca. 75 years apart. It is possible that the old coffin was placed into a newly constructed mausoleum. However, there is no historical evidence confirming this important re-burial of Jochi. The dating results challenge the attribution of the mausoleum to Jochi Khan. This study demonstrates that the age of the Islamic mausoleums in Ulytau can be successfully dated with 14C. While requiring further data assembly, this first 14C dataset can form the basis of the calendar chronology of the Golden Horde in Kazakhstan. Historical attribution of the mausoleums must be collaborated with the calendar chronology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kazakh (ISO 639-3, kaz) is a Kipchak (Northwestern) Turkic language with approximately ten million speakers (Muhamedowa 2015). While the majority of Kazakh speakers live in the Republic of Kazakhstan, significant Kazakh-speaking populations exist throughout Central Asia. See Figure 1 for a map of the region. Kazakh spoken in Kazakhstan is described as having three or four dialects, but many researchers agree that differences between dialects are small and largely lexical (Kara 2002, Grenoble 2003, Muhamedowa 2015; see Amanzholov 1959 for more on Kazakh dialects). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article, through comparative historical analysis, examines the traditional marriage rituals of the Dungan diaspora in Kazakhstan. Dungans are Chinese-speaking Muslims who were forced to migrate to present-day Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan after the defeat of their revolt against the Qing dynasty from 1877 to 1888. The article focuses on the diversity of wedding ceremonies in three zones where Dungan settled in Kazakhstan: Zhalpak Tobe and Sortobe, two rural areas in the Zhambyl region; and Zaria Vostok, near the city of Almaty. I find that the local variations in traditional wedding ceremonies stem from their close intercultural and social cooperation with non-Dungan peoples—primarily Kazakhs, Uzbeks, Uyghurs, and Russians. The example of wedding rituals shows that, while Dungan existence in another cultural environment has stimulated the consolidation of their ethnic group, preserving many of the traditional archaic cultural features, it has also led to the transformation of the marriage ceremonies. I address a much-neglected pathway—the nature of borrowed elements in Dungan wedding rituals—and ask why the extent of borrowing varies from community to community even though the Dungan arrived from China with similar traditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes different ways Russian speakers residing in Petropavlovsk, a city in northern Kazakhstan close to the border with Russia, make sense of the place they inhabit and form a sense of belonging to it. Politically and geographically speaking, Petropavlovsk serves as a contested area divided between Russian and Kazakhstani nation-building projects. While keeping in mind the antagonistic politics of both states, this research rather focuses on the everyday practices and personal narratives of Russian speakers living in this area. With the help of empirical material collected during the interviews and dwelling alongside the participants, this article demonstrates how through symbolic practices and everyday life experiences Russian speakers differently construct their understanding of Petropavlovsk as a Russian, Kazakh, and global space simultaneously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

About 35 million people around the world speak Ukrainian (Lewis, Simons & Fenning 2016). The largest populations of Ukrainian speakers outside Ukraine (more than 32 million speakers) are in Russia (c. 4.5 million), followed by Moldova (c. 0.6 million), Canada (c. 0.5 million) and the USA (c. 0.5 million). Smaller Ukrainian communities have also settled in some other countries including Kazakhstan, Belarus, Poland, Romania, Argentina, Brazil and Slovakia (Mokienko 2002). Ukrainian, alongside Russian and Belarusian, belongs to the East Slavonic languages within the Indo-European language family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the famous novel Koshpendiler (1976) by Ilyas Esenberlin. This literary work occupies a special place in Soviet Kazakh literature because it raises important problems such as the foundation of the state and nation, the sense of territoriality, and the struggle against Russian colonizers. The authors argue that this historical novel can be considered as an example of post-colonial discourse. The novel itself is an extrapolation of the 1970s' Soviet reality when national Union republics, including Kazakhstan, were seeking greater independence. Kazakh cultural elites and the intelligentsia turned to the past history of nation-building to address the problems of the present day. Not having an opportunity to openly express their views, the Kazakh establishment preferred to express their national sentiments through the historical genre. In this work, the authors suggest their own vision of Soviet national literature from political science and historical perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated glacier changes in the Karatal river basin, the largest basin in Zhetysu (Dzhungar) Alatau, Kazakhstan, for the periods 1956–89, 1989–2001 and 2001–12, based on Landsat TM/ETM+ data analysis. In 1989, we found 243 glaciers with a total area of 142.8 km2; by 2012 these had shrunk to 214 glaciers with a total area of 109.3 km2, a decrease of 33.5 km2 over 23 years (1.02%a-1). This very high shrinkage rate is likely connected with a general trend of increasing temperatures, and small glaciers being situated at the relatively low altitude of the outer Zhetysu Alatau ranges. We also analyzed the shrinkage rate of glaciers based on their differences in size, altitude and aspect of slopes, as well as other topographic parameters, in four sub-basins where glacier shrinkage varied between 18% and 39%. Weather-station climate data showed a significant temperature increase and stable precipitation trends over the study period. We conclude that glacierized areas of the Karatal river basin are located in the most unfavorable conditions for glaciation, and as a result showed a higher shrinkage rate than other glacierized areas of the Tien Shan from 1956 to 2012. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We present the first radiocarbon dates of Early Iron Age sites of central Kazakhstan (in total, 24 dates for 16 recently excavated sites). Archaeologically, the sites have been attributed to the Tasmola culture of the Saka period and later Korgantas phase of the early Hun period. The new accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) 14C dates suggest that the majority of analyzed Tasmola sites belong to the beginning of the 8th–5th century cal BC, while Korgantas dates to the 4th–2nd century cal BC. This corresponds with the latest archaeological data for the region; however, it is somewhat contrary to the traditional perception of the chronology of the Scythian period in central Kazakhstan. The new dates suggest the beginning of the Early Scythian period in the region in at least the late 9th or 8th century BC rather than 7th century BC according to the traditional approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nation-building is a process which is often contested, not just among different ethnicities within a nation-state, but also among the titular ethnic majority. This article explores the contested nature of the nation-building process in post-Soviet Kazakhstan through examining cinematic works. Utilizing a post-modern perspective which views nations and national identity as invented, imagined and ambivalent it identifies four discursive strands within recent post-Soviet Kazakh cinema pertaining to nationhood and national identity (ethno-centric, civic, religious and socio-economic). Rather than viewing government-sponsored efforts of identity formation in cinema as a top-down process in which the regime transmits its version of nationhood and identity, the discursive strands revealed in this article illustrate there are varying understandings of what constitutes the nation and national identity in Kazakh cinematic works. Furthermore, the strand which focuses on the socio-economic tensions of modern nation-building in Kazakhstan uncovers how film is used as a site for dissent and social critique of Kazakhstan's modern political condition. What the article illuminates is how discourses related to nation-building can be both competing and complementary and that nation-building is a fluid and transgressive process in which among the titular majority there is no fixed unambiguous understanding of nationhood and national identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article illustrates the evolution experienced by the identity-making strategies pursued through the propagandistic exploitation of Kazakhstani foreign policy. Periodical readjustments in the focus of foreign policy rhetoric led the Kazakhstani regime to reshape the identity of the population, in order to promote forms of self-perception almost exclusively associable with the leadership that ruled the country in the post-Soviet era. Identity-making, in this context, became a crucial link in (and a key driver for) the progressive subjugation of foreign policy rhetoric to the logic of regime-building, intended here as the ensemble of concerted efforts aimed to increase the population's compliance with the leaderships' authoritarian outlooks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In December 1997, the Republic of Kazakhstan officially proclaimed that the city of Astana would be its new capital. The decision to transfer the seat of government from the city of Almaty in the south to the more centrally located Astana was connected to the process of nation building in a multi-ethnic society where the titular nation represents little more than half of the population. Efforts to transform the rather remote regional center, Akmola (later renamed Astana) into a modern capital city have been underway since the late 1990s. One important component of this transformation is the idea of building a “metabolic” and sustainable “Eurasian” city. As the symbolic center of the whole country, this new capital would function as a showpiece of Kazakh culture and identity. The city would also become a symbol of economic prosperity and the regime's geopolitical vision. While the government's intensions are expressed rather openly, it remains unclear to what extent these politically verbalized leitmotivs are actually being realized through contemporary architecture and structure. This article offers a critical assessment of what has been achieved to date and argues that the production of the new Kazakhstani capital has often failed to translate rhetoric into reality. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Suicide represents the third leading cause of death among adolescents aged 15-19 years. Suicide is a very complex, multicausal phenomenon determined by the action of several bio-psychosocial factors. The stress-diathesis model was proposed to explain this complex interactions, suggesting that the vulnerability to suicide is influenced by a variety of predisposing (distal) risk factors on which stressful life events and other potentiating (proximal) factors may act as triggers. Nevertheless, the influence of these risk factors can be mitigated by the action of protective factors. Identified risk and protective factors for suicidality among youngsters are similar to those found among adults, even if they present some specificities. This presentation will discuss findings from the EU funded projects SEYLE (Saving and Empowering Young Lives in Europe) and WE-STAY (Working in Europe to Stop Truancy Among Youth), as well as data from a large epidemiological study funded by UNICEF Kazakhstan. Specific risk and protective factors for youth suicidal ideation and behaviours will be discussed in the framework of the diathesis-stress model integrating biological, psychological, social and situational factors. A deeper understanding of risk and protective factors may help to develop more effective suicide prevention interventions really able to counteract the influences of the former and strengthen the positive effects of the latter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the relationship between Kazakhstan and the USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) and the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States), examining questions of an ethnically distinct region's acceptance or rejection of "alien rule" over national independence. The Kazakhs would seem to have an extraordinarily strong cause to separate itself from a Russian-dominated union, the author states. Also discussed are ethnic groups who want to stay in a union state dominated by another group.

The article discusses the social, political, and economic changes in Kazakhstan in the 1990s, highlighting the lives and influence of Russian minorities in the area. During that time, a Russian minority group was highly influential and occasionally urged secession. While the Kazakhstan government encouraged nation-building and a strong national identity, the Russian minority population viewed Kazakh culture, language, and history negatively. Kazakh society had been significantly influenced by the rule of the Soviet Union, making Kazakh nation-building difficult and increasing the political influence of Russians in the nation.

In this article, I investigate the processes of the discursive construction of the identity of Kazakhstan as a sovereign and non-nuclear state, and show how the construction and performance of these identities are both productive and the product of Nuclear Weapons Technology (NWT) as a threat to the national security of Kazakhstan. I argue that both practices – the production of the state identity and the abolition of the ex-Soviet nuclear arsenal from the territory of Kazakhstan – are instrumental ways to secure the values of Kazakhstan, in this case the existence of Kazakhstan as a sovereign state. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Objective: To investigate the comparative effect of social, economic, health and environmental characteristics on the nutritional status of children aged <3 years in Central Asia. Design: Cross-sectional analysis using data from Demographic and Health Surveys. Setting: Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. Subjects: Information on demographic health was gathered by Macro International Inc., Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan governments from a random sample of 14 067 households in the three countries. Anthropometric measurements were performed using standardized procedures on all children <3 years of age (n 2358). Only children with plausible Z-scores (n 1989) were selected for subsequent analyses. Results: The main results indicated that country of residence, number of people in household, household wealth, birth weight, age of child, knowledge of oral rehydration therapy, maternal education, number of children <5 years of age and source of drinking water were strong predictors of child nutritional status in these countries. Furthermore, chronic malnutrition was most prevalent in all three countries but at varied levels. An unexpected finding was that fully vaccinated children were more likely to be malnourished than children who were partially vaccinated. A further unexpected finding was that breast-feeding especially in children <6 months old had a strong negative association with stunting and underweight. Conclusions: In summary, the results from both the descriptive and binary logistic regression analysis are similar in terms of the explanatory variables and the statistical significance in the models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We studied a breeding population of pallid harrier Circus macrourus in 2000 and 2006 in north-central Kazakhstan to evaluate the relationships between breeding parameters and breeding habitat in the species' core breeding range. Pallid harrier nests were found in a wide variety of vegetation types and heights belonging to three main types: steppe, riverine and agricultural. The proportion of nests found in each habitat type (corrected for search effort) differed between 2000 and 2006, with agricultural habitats being more used in 2000, when fallow land was abundant, than in 2006. Highest densities were observed in riverine habitats but hatching success seemed to be lower there because of greater predation. There was apparently lower productivity (smaller broods) in agricultural than in other areas. Laying was spread over 2 months, with a bimodal pattern of laying dates. Birds laid earlier in agricultural and steppe habitats and later in riverine habitats. These differences may be linked to spatio-temporal habitat heterogeneity, and possibly to intra-population heterogeneity in wintering areas implying different arrival dates on the breeding grounds. We discuss the implications of the findings for the conservation of this Near Threatened species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on territorialization, transnationalism, and multiculturalism in Kazakhstan, a country which has over 100 ethnic groups. The history of German settlement and Korean migration in their respective kin-state and host-state is presented. Data shows German and Korean attitudes about homeland, nationality, community of belonging, stigma, socioeconomic factors, and ethnicity.

The article discusses the complexity of diaspora nationalism with a focus on the Crimean Tatars in Turkey and the Korean ethnic minority in Kazakhstan. Diaspora involves a triadic relationship of homeland, host country, and the diaspora community to create a transnational, hybrid group structure. Factors that make diaspora distinct from migrant communities and ethnic minorities include a collective memory or myth about the homeland.

The article discusses the interpretations of the Kenesary Kasymov Rebellion in 1837-1847 in Kazakhstan. The interpretation of the inclusion of Kazakhstan as the forceful occupation of the Kazakh lands by the Russian Army and the Cossacks seeks to achieve two aims. The depiction of the revolt and as a national-liberation movement cannot exist without the national aspiration of its participants. Furthermore, another interpretation of the rebellion depicts Kenesary’s uprising as a protest of conservation and a protest of restoration.

The article discusses the interplay between personal and national interests as motivating factors in the foreign policy of Nursultan Nazarbayev, President of Kazakhstan. According to the author, it is wrong to base analyses of the foreign policy of Nazarbayev exclusively on either national interests, or on personal and factional interests. Nazarbayev probably wants both to remain in power, and to be seen by himself and others as a respected international politicians and a symbol of independent political leadership. Although political survival comes first, he does not use every opportunity to cater to factional interests in order to secure this survival.

Independent Kazakstan, driven by politically sanctioned nationalism, presents the conditions for rigorous historical re-examination as Kazaks seek to reclaim their past. Classic texts from the canon of pre-Soviet and Soviet Kazak intellectuals have been republished in both Kazak and Russian. Kazak historians, such as Zhulduzbek Abylkhozhin, Dma Amanzholova, and Manash Kozybaev, are cunently forging new paths between their historical materialist training and their contemporary nationalist agenda.4 Parallel to this national endeavor, international scholars also utilize the once restricted Kazak archives to extend the body of research on Kazak history.

The Eurasianist ideology is coming back on the Russian political and intellectual scene but also among the Turkic and Muslim elites in the Russian Federation and in Kazakhstan. The political, economic, social and identity difficulties of the transition invite Russians and other post-Soviet citizens to think about their relations with Europe and about the relevance of taking the West as a model. In this context of destabilization, Eurasianism proposes a geopolitical solution for the post-Soviet space. It presupposes the existence of a third continent between East and West, called "Eurasia," and supports the idea of an organic unity of cultures born in this zone of symbiosis between Russian, Turkey, Muslim and even Chinese worlds.

The Pugachev incident occurred in 1999, when authorities in Kazakhstan arrested 22 individuals, 11 of whom were citizens of Russia, on charges of an attempt to violently overthrow local organs of government in Ust-Kamenogorsk in order to create an autonomous Russian Altai Republic in the East Kazakhstan oblast. Evidence suggests, however, that the "Rebellion" was most likely an attempt by members of Rus, a watchdog group in Russia that seeks to defend the interests of Russians in the near abroad, to raise controversial issues about the treatment of Russians in East Kazakhstan, rather than to violently seize power. Yet the significance of the Pugachev incident does not concern the motives of these individuals; instead, it concerns the disproportionate reaction of the authorities to the incident.

Objectives: To investigate the prevalence of anaemia and iron deficiency and vitamin A status among school-aged children in rural Kazakhstan and identify factors associated with anaemia in this population.Design: A cross-sectional design.Setting: School-aged children in rural Kazakhstan.Subjects: Socio-economic and anthropometric information was collected from 159 school-aged children living in the Kzyl-Orda region of Kazakhstan. Blood samples were collected and the concentrations of haemoglobin (Hb), serum iron, serum ferritin (SF), erythrocyte protoporphyrin (EP), serum retinol and β-carotene, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), transferrin saturation (TS) and other haematological indices were measured.Results: Among the 159 children, the prevalence of anaemia and iron deficiency defined by the multiple criteria model (SF, TS and EP) was 27% and 13%, respectively. Nine per cent had iron-deficiency anaemia and 21% had serum retinol value <1.05 μmol l−1. Mean SF and serum iron concentrations and TS were significantly lower in anaemic children than in their non-anaemic peers, while TIBC and EP were significantly higher in children with anaemia. Hb was significantly correlated with serum iron and retinol concentrations. Serum retinol and SF concentrations and mean corpuscular volume were significantly correlated with Hb by multiple regression analysis.Conclusions: Anaemia among school-aged children in rural Kazakhstan appears to be related to iron indices and vitamin A status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this essay is to focus on the Kazakhs of post-independence Kazakhstan and discuss the role that Islam and other religions are playing in shaping their cultural system, worldview and identity. The public discourse about Islam that timidly began in the last years of perestroika has grown and gained in sophistication since independence. The debate about the place of Islam in Kazakh culture and society is at once part of and the background against which the re-islamization process is taking place in Kazakhstan. The most urgent call that rises from the pages of newspapers and monographs, from public debates and official statements is the call for moral regeneration as the fundamental prerequisite without which neither democracy nor economic prosperity can become a reality in Kazakhstan. The urgency of the task acquires added poignancy when viewed against the background of the picture, revealed by the debates, of a society in dire need of a sound moral compass. In conclusion, it can be argued that in today's Kazakhstan Kazakhs along with Russians and other fellow Kazakhstanis are engaged in a spiritual quest aiming to fill in the enormous moral void left by 74 years of atheism. This quest is driven by the need to identify the moral compass that will guide them through the challenges and uncertainties that are part of their rapidly changing world. Discredited by its association with the previous communist regime, and by its partnership with the present political establishment, official Islam's moral authority stands challenged, even though it is an important vehicle of re-islamization. Hence, it may well be that the future of the re-islamization of the Kazakhs belongs to unorthodox and popular Islam, because, as Kazis Toguzbaev noted, in order to ensure the democratization of Kazakh society "democratic forms of Islamic life, particularly sects, should be encouraged."

Objectives: (1) To develop a useful tool to measure food, alcohol and tobacco items; (2) to document the availability of these items in Almaty, Kazakstan; (3) to describe the relationship between consumption and availability; and (4) to identify possible relationships between availability and health outcomes in the city and region. Design: A survey of 648 vendors in Almaty, Kazakstan was conducted over one month from December 1999 to January 2000. Vendors identified which items they sold from a list of 61 food, alcohol and tobacco items. Setting: Vendors were approached in three of the six regions of Almaty, Kazakstan. Regions canvassed included Auzov, one of the three 'sleeping regions'; Medeo, one of the two downtown regions; and Turksib, a more suburban/rural area of the city. Results: There was a significant correlation between alcohol and cigarette consumption and availability. The relative availability of items was numerically and spatially consistent throughout the city. Fruits and vegetables occurred infrequently (<20% of sites) and in relative isolation from the rest of the system, while candy and cigarettes occurred with a higher relative frequency (75-80% of sites). Maps of vendors showed clusters around geographical features such as major roads and intersections. Conclusions: Combining a checklist and mapping tools provides a model of consumer item availability that can help identify priorities for public health and urban planning professionals. The wide availability of cigarettes, alcohol, candy, coffee and tea, and limited availability of fruits, vegetables and whole grains, is likely to support increasing rates of chronic disease in Almaty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the nationalistic motives for the movement of the Kazakh capital. Implications of the collapse of the Soviet Union; Development of national identities; Change of capital of Kazakhstan.

Cystic echinococcosis, caused by Echinococcus granulosus, is an emerging disease in many parts of the world and, in particular, in eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. This paper examines the abundance of infection of E. granulosus in the definitive host in southern Kazakhstan. Observed data are fitted to a mathematical model in order to decide if the parasite population is partly regulated by definitive host immunity and to define parameters in the model. Such data would be useful to develop simulation models for the control of this disease. Maximum likelihood techniques were used to define the parameters and their confidence limits in the model and the negative binomial distribution was used to define the error variance in the observed data. The results indicated that there were 2 distinct populations of dogs in rural Kazakhstan which had significantly different exposures to E. granulosus. Farm dogs, which are closely associated with livestock husbandry, particularly sheep rearing, had a relatively high mean abundance of 631 parasites per dog and a prevalence rate of approximately 23%. The best fit to the model indicated that there was significant herd immunity in the dog at this infection pressure. In contrast, village dogs which were more likely to be kept as pets had a much lower mean abundance of parasites of only 27 parasites per dog and a lower prevalence of 5-8%. With this village population of dogs, the best fit indicated negligible herd immunity.