Emrah Kaya
I have visited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, on 12-18 September 2022, as one of the winners of the competition titled “New Kazakhstan through the Eyes of Foreign Media” held by the Ministry.
If it is needed to mention about the meetings under the visit, and impressions on the construction of New Kazakhstan, on October 13, 2022, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Roman Vassilenko, Managing Director of Kazakh Toursim Daniel Serzhanuly and the President of the Chief Editors’ Club Bibigul Jeksenbai have attended the meetinf held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. After the speeches, awards ceremony was realized. Vassilenko has delivered the awards to the winners.
After the ceremony, under Vassilenko’s moderating, Chairman of the Board of the Nazarbayev Center for Development of Interfaith and Inter-Civilization Dialogue Bulat Sarsenbayev, has made a speech to the researchers and journalists. The main content of the speech was the wish of Kazakhstan to be a center of peace and developing policies on that issue. In this speech, it is expressed that Kazakhstan is a place where different ethnic and religious groups live. Because, it is stated that in the country, in addition to the nearly 150 ethnic groups, various religions such as Shamanism and Islam have been living peacefully together
After this meeting, President of Kazakhstan Mr. Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Papa Francis held a meeting opened to the international media. Mr. Tokayev has underlined that they put emphasis on this meeting a lot, because the day that meeting was held was the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Kazakhstan and Vatican. Besides, he expressed that it is important for them to people living in a peace, social harmony and mutual solidarity. Moreover, he stated that they try to apply the principle of “unity in variety” in Kazakhstan.
Papa Francis expressed that “The beginning of the success is the unity”, by mentioning there are different ethnic groups live and over 80 languages were spoken in Kazakhstan. Papa Francis has states that Kazakhstan is a “rendezvous country” by mentioning the country is a polyphonic symphony. After that, he emphasized that there is a need for the leaders, who are able to develop multilateral dialogue, and desire to construct a stable and peaceful world. At that point, Papa has indicated that they support Kazakhstan.
On September 14, 2022, under Mr. Tokayev’s presidency, a congress was held, to where the representatives of Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Shintoism, Budism, Zoroastrianism, Hinduism and other religions. The content of the congress was on peace, religious dialogue, and anti-radicalism.
The international congress, which was successfully held with great effort and devotion, revealed the fact that Kazakhstan wants to become a new center of peace in world politics. Especially by bringing the leaders having different ethnic and religious identities under an umbrella, and by discussing the problems and peace multilaterally was an indicator for this. Because, with this congress, Kazakhstan has proven that it has become an implementer of the “unity in variety” principle not only in domestic affairs but also in world politics.
In the congress, Mr. Tokayev has indicated that today’s problems are only be defeated by bona fide, dialogue and cooperation. On the other hand, by quoting the words of Great Kazakh Poet Abay Kumanbay, “The basis for the peace is love and justice”, Papa Francis delivered the message that Kazakhstan is available for this mission in terms of culture and history. In addition, Papa has stated that he appreciates the nuclear disarmament and environment policies of Kazakhstan, as a center between Europe and Asia.
On September 15, 2022, the journalists and researchers were informed about e-statization and digitalization in Kazakhstan. In order to reach the public, and follow the developments in the country closely, Kazakhstan is having a significant digitalization process. As a matter of fact, including water and energy resources, many other issues in the country are transiently followed. By taking necessary precautions, it is aimed to protect people against problems. Because, Kazakhstan having the 29th rank on the issue of e-state, and that shows the success on this issue.
It was stated that by using the biometric security system in the country, citizens were allowed to receive public services without leaving their homes. Currently, it is possible to access 94% of public services remotely in Kazakhstan. In this way, the burden of the public was reduced and prevent people from wasting time. It is also stated that Kazakhstan is the 31st in the world in cyber security.
After Astana, the cities of Turkestan and Almaty were visited. The development of Kazakhstan is at a level that will surprise journalists, researchers and visitors. Because the three most important cities of Kazakhstan have different characteristics. As it is known, Astana is the capital and having a significant development process. Astana is constructed from scratch in the middle of Ulu Bozkır. It is possible to see new constructions and buildings all around the city. Because, during the visits, how was Astana, the brain of the Kazakh politics, was constructed were told detailly.
In the city of Turkestan, a significant development is held. The city is considered as one of the cultural centers of the Turkish World because of the tomb and convent of Hodja Ahmet Yesevi. In addition, the excavation of archaeological sites such as Kültepe continues. These excavations brought the historical roots of Kazakh culture and the city, and makes Turkestan a center for tourism. It can be said that the investments made in the city will increase the importance of Turkestan, especially considering that it has a milder climate compared to the north and its historical background.
Last but not least, Almaty is one of the most cosmopolitan cities of Kazakhstan. Almaty is close to Kyrgyzstan and China border. Besides, it has multi-cultural structure due to the Uzbeks, the Tajiks, the Westerners and the Russians like. Thusly, Almaty is a worldwide-famous trade center. Due to being a former capital and placed on the foothills of the Tengri Tagh, Almaty has a historical mission and a different beauty.
As a result, a successful state-building process is being carried out in Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan has clearly demonstrated this in various official contacts and international meetings. In addition to the historical background, the spirit of Ulu Bozkır and Mr. Tokayev’s visionary leadership understanding accelerate the progress of Kazakhstan. In this context, it is possible to say that Kazakhstan is moving towards the future with consistent, secure and strategic policies, confident, strong, compatible with the world and peacefully.