written by Alezandra Tsay

translated by Peretz Partensky

Part 1 here.

Perfect storm

FCC had to renege on the original purchase price of $165 US because that turned out to be the market price on the Black Sea ports. Given transport costs, this cost of grain would make it uncompetitive.

FCC was facing the prospect of buying three million tons of grain it couldn’t possibly sell. The company has already endured a net loss of $1.5 billion tenge in the first half of this year. Funds for the procurement are borrowed from the National Fund, and it is quite possible that the FCC is worried about defaulting on its obligations. Even at a reduced purchase price offer around $123 US per tone will not make Kazakh wheat competitive in foreign markets.

The critics point out that the FCC should have foreseen these market conditions before giving false hope to the farmers through reneged promises. Read the full story »

Translation of publicist’s post (RUS).

While working at my last job, I was given a “Good” assessment at the end of the year, and was supposed to receive a bonus based on the results. Deciding not to wait for payment, I quit the job and transferred to another company. No bonus was allocated to me as part of the severance fee. Can I, after voluntarily quitting my job 7 months ago, still claim the bonus?
Read the full story »

Translaton of mursya’s post (RUS).

ulan writes:

Today (probably yesterday in America), the Kazakh film “Kelin” (“The Daughter-in-Law,” directed by Ermek Tursunov) was shortlisted with 8 others for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Read the full story »

Translation of ankona’s post (RUS).

From 23 January to 1 February the Alliance Francaise in Almaty will host an exhibition by R. Marat dedicated to the works of Cioran, Becket and Ionesco. Read the full story »

written by Alezandra Tsay

translated by Peretz Partensky

Government intervention is necessary to address the problem of excess wheat supply that is threatening Kazakhstan’s grain industry.

With the help of abundant summer rains, farmers in Kazakhstan harvested a record crop of wheat. “National grain yield amounts to 22.7 million tons in bunker weight, which is 5.7 million tons or 34% more than last year’s level,” reported the Minister of Agriculture of Kazakhstan, Akylbek Kurishbayev, at a press conference in October. The numbers speak for themselves. One after the other, the main grain-producing regions, Akmola, Kostanai and North Kazakhstan, reported completion of the harvest campaign with record quantities of grain.

The good news foreshadowed a very serious problem. A global glut has led to a collapse in the grain market, and a lot of unsold grain in the hands of the farmers.   Read the full story »

Translation of Klavdia Razina’s post (RUS).

For previous posts in the series, click here, here and here.

Bareta Yergalieva:
I’ve listened to each one of you carefully. The fact that we are defenseless now is our own fault as a nation. I choose my words carefully, considering I am a veteran of Kazakhstan’s human rights movement. Read the full story »

Photograph by Flickr user An Untrained Eye (CC-usage).

Radio Azattyq has hosted a round table discussion on Kazakhstan’s human rights organizations, several of which are facing criticism by relatives of political prisoners.  The ensuing discussion revealed much deeper problems that anticipated.

neweurasia’s Klavdia Razina has been publishing the transcripts of the discussion by Sultan-Khan Akkulyuly and translated into English by neweurasia’s Andrey Tolstoy.   Here’s a round-up, but we strongly recommend you follow the links and read the full transcripts.

Read the full story »

Translation of Klavdia Razina’s post (RUS).

For the previous two posts in the series, click here and here.

Rosa Akylbekova:
I am in complete accord with Ms. Yesergepova on the point that the agency has been recently preoccupied with the fate of its director, who was unjustly sentenced. It is perfectly normal. As for your husband – if you remember, when Zhovtis was on trial, we sent Andrei Sviridov. However, this is not important right now. Read the full story »

Yaroslava Shevdova, photograph by Flickr user ataelw (CC-usage).

It is so far a successful season start for Kazakh tennis players Yaroslava Shvedova and Andrey Golubev with their solid performance in Perth, Australia during the Hopman Cup. This tournament was a unique opportunity to play against some of the strongest athletes.

Unlike other tennis tournaments, the Hopman Cup is a mixed competition. Every match consists of women’s and men’s singles and mixed doubles matches. Teams are divided into two groups, winners make it to the Final. Eight nations compete in this tournament — seven selected teams and the winner of the qualifying tournament, Asian Hopman Cup.

Last autumn, Yaroslava and Andrey booked Kazakhstan a spot in the tournament for the first time after winning Asian Hopman Cup in Astana.  On Australian hardcourt the Kazakh team was supposed to face Russia, Great Britain and Germany.  Read the full story »

Translation of publicist’s post (RUS).

“Deer” racing, ice architecture and snow painting are only a few things Father Frost (the Soviet version of Santa Claus) and his lovely assistant Snegurochka can offer for a holiday celebration. Mojazarplata.kz goes behind the scenes of this fairytale. Read the full story »