Rallying the Masses (1 January 1992) - Essay Example

In Times of Turmoil – Peace and Prosperity under the Shanyrak1 Dear citizens of Kazakhstan! The last days of the just past year have marked the dawn of a new era in our tempestuous and turbulent history – the creation of a new country. From that time onward, day after day and year after year, for many years to come, we must put all our energy and efforts into laying the foundations of the new Republic and building it up - as a country open and above board, politically stable, prospering, and guaranteeing its citizens maximum security, as well as a country, which will never pose a threat to any other state in the world. (Address of President of the Republic) This creative process will afford us great opportunities, which the people of Kazakhstan merit for sure, but we are also going to face great challenges, which I’m sure the people of our country will rise to.
One of the greatest opportunities that lie ahead and will directly result in people’s prosperity is the development of an independent republican economy based on the market principles. Kazakhstan is abound with natural resources – uranium, chromium, copper, coal, iron, oil and natural gas (International Crisis Group, r.133) – which, if managed properly, could provide a steady inflow of foreign currency and thus, along with our wheat, textiles, and livestock exports, to predetermine our success in the economic field. As to which way is the proper one such wealth to be managed, I vote for profit-orientated management, but with strong regard for the national interest. In that connection, what we need is to attract large foreign investments into the national economy, under strict governmental supervision, as well as to help the formation and growth of domestic private capital. Therefore, we are going to face some of the greatest ever challenges. First and most important is the matter of stepping out of the centralized economical structure of the former Soviet Union, which matter should be carried to its logical conclusion with perseverance, as well as with a certain dose of cautiousness – in order to be minimized the shock for the Republic’s economy, hence to protect the living standard of the people against collapse. In that train of thoughts, as major obstacles ought to be mentioned our exports’ exclusive dependence on trade partners within the ex-Soviet Union, the vast distances between Kazakhstan’s coalfields and the European industrial centers, the existing infrastructural deficiencies, etc.
Second and not less important is the process of privatization of many industries hitherto owned by the state. The correct manner of managing that process will make a big difference to the rates of economic growth and development for the next decades. Staffing the process of privatization will present another uneasy task for the republican administration, given the inevitable ebb of cadres after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Actually, the shortage of cadres is going to affect all the industry sectors, which is facing us with the challenge to create our own cadre bench, able to take the everyday management of the national economy. And last but not least, I’ll mention the necessity of creating new relationships with partners like the US, Western Europe, China, etc., along with preserving the previous ones, even though modified according to the market principles, with our fellow-countries from the Commonwealth of Independent States. This is a matter equally economic and political, so special attention has to be paid to the relationships with our immediate neighbors, which is essentially true as far as the Russian Federation is concerned – not only because both countries have shared common past, however uneasy it was, but also by reason of the common legacy, including the mixed-population factor, as well as of the fact that the Russian Federation is our major trade, energy, and security counterpart in this time of turmoil. The state of these relationships, sound or poor respectively, although not considered to predetermine the foreign policy of the Republic of Kazakhstan, is deemed overly important in regard with our attitude to the surrounding world and to have major impact on the geopolitics of the region.
Having the unique opportunity of determining its relationship with the rest of the world, our nation confronts another major challenge – to retain its independence while seeking guarantees for its external security. Given our geographical position, our size and importance in the context of Central Asia’s geopolitical balance, as well as the definite will of our nation to stand for its independence, we will continue pursuing a multifaceted and well-balanced foreign policy in order to defend our national interest and independent development. (Blank 2)
Dear fellow countrymen and women!
Today we are witnessing the birth of a new nation consisting of many different ethnic groups and nationalities. The turbulent years of our past have bred considerable tensions, discontent and offense among some of them, and even a shade of revenge-seeking moods. Sparks of such attitudes couldn’t have been overlooked as flying around among the two largest nationalities – the Kazakh, who were one of those suffering years of mistreatment, and the Russian who now fear for being mistreated. That unwelcome legacy faces our newborn nation with the daunting task to rebuild and consolidate the society in a fair and upright way, integrating any nationality or ethnic group without ethnic or religious discrimination. Every citizen of our Republic has the opportunity to possess and enjoy all the civil rights guaranteed by the Constitution, as well as every citizen confronts the challenge to defend these civil rights.
In conclusion I want to say that we are faced with enormous challenges on our way toward the greatest opportunities that happen once in a nation’s lifetime. I strongly believe that united and with joint efforts we’ll turn Kazakhstan into a land of peace and prosperity!

Cross – reference
1. The upper dome-like part of the traditional nomadic yurt (tent) used as central symbol in the National Emblem of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
References
1. Official site of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Addresses, congratulations: Address of President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev to the people of Kazakhstan, < http://www.akorda.kz > Retrieved on 19/11/2009
2. International Crisis Group, Central Asia’s Energy Risks, Asia Report No. 133, 2007. Retrieved on 19/11/2009
3. Blank, Stephen. Eurasia Insight: Kazakhstan’s foreign policy in a time of turmoil, Eurasianet, 27 April 2005 < http://www.eurasianet.org> Retrieved on 19/11/2009 Read More