Kazakhstan’s referendum on adopting a new constitution takes place this Sunday (March 15). Officials say the new document will help lead the Central Asian country into the future, but any constitutional referendum always triggers concerns that among the many changes proposed are some that benefit the authorities more than the people.

So, what sort of changes are there in the new constitution that Kazakh citizens are being asked to vote for?

Some basic facts

Kazakhstan held a referendum on amendments to the constitution as recently as June 2022. Thirty-three of 98 articles were affected.

Many changes removed previous amendments that enhanced the role and privileges of the country’s first president, Nursultan Nazarbayev. All references to “Elbasy” (Leader of the Nation), a title parliament bestowed on Nazarbayev in 2010, were removed from the constitution, as were the ex-president’s rights to remain involved in government affairs.

Current President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said at the time that the amendments had ended the super-presidential system and awarded more power to the legislative branch of government.

The draft constitution up for approval in the weekend referendum changes 84% of the constitution as it stands. It is only possible to vote ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on approving the entire new constitution.

The key changes

The concept of the draft constitution presented to the people is “a strong president – ​​an influential parliament – ​​an accountable government”, according to Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov.

The new constitution will create a 145-seat unicameral parliament to replace the bicameral parliament (made up of the 98-seat Mazhilis lower house and the 50-seat Senate upper house) brought into existence by the constitution of 1995. The new parliament will be called the Kurultai.

Deputies will be elected by party lists. Currently, no genuine opposition parties are registered in Kazakhstan, so the new legislature is guaranteed to be packed with supporters of the president.

Also, a People’s Council of Kazakhstan will be created, replacing the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan. The purpose of both is to provide representation from the country’s various ethnic groups. The new 42-member Council will be able to submit “proposals for domestic policy, promotion of social unity, promotion of national values, submission of bills to the Kurultai, and initiation of republican referendums.”

The office of vice president is reintroduced. The post existed from 1991-1995, when it was filled by Erik Asanbayev. It was removed by the 1995 constitution.

The vice president will be next in line to assume power should the president die or be unable to perform the functions of office. There is speculation that Tokayev, due, constitutionally, to step down in 2029, will name his chosen successor to be vice president.

The president will personally select a candidate for vice president, and parliament must then approve the choice. If parliament twice fails to approve the chosen candidate, the president can dissolve parliament.

That is also true for other presidential nominees. The president will have the right to name 10 Constitutional Court judges, six Central Election Commission members, eight Supreme Audit Chamber members and parliament’s chairman. Any double-rejection means the president can dissolve parliament.

The current constitution says a president must be 40 years-old or older, fluent in the Kazakh language, have lived in Kazakhstan for the previous 15 years and have a higher education. The new constitution adds that the president must have3 previously worked at least five years in the government or in elected posts.

One of the most confusing changes involves the status of Russian language in Kazakhstan. Under the present constitution, Russian is officially used “equally” in government agencies. That will change to Russian being used in government agencies “alongside” the state language, Kazakh.

Kazakh media outlet Tengrinews explained the difference as being “the first implies equal status in use, the second – use together, but not necessarily on equal terms.”

There are anxieties that the new constitution will place tighter restrictions on the right to public assembly and protest (Credit: Azzatyk, screenshot).

The law on public assembly currently upholds the citizen’s right to hold public meetings, rallies, demonstrations, marches and pickets, but that right can be restricted “in the interests of state security, public order, protection of health and the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.”

The draft constitution says the right to assembly can be restricted “to protect the foundations of the constitutional order, human rights and freedoms, ensure national security, and protect public order, public health,and public morality.”

Human Rights Watch described this wording as “vague”. It said it created “a risk of broad and arbitrary interpretation that could be used to silence critical voices”.

Kazakhstan just introduced a law banning LGBT propaganda. It appears that the reference to public morality could be used to break up any public events where the LGBT community is openly demonstrating.

Another change that would affect the LGBT community states that marriage is “exclusively a union between a man and a woman”.

The current constitution says international treaties ratified by Kazakhstan take precedence over the country's laws, but that will change under the new constitution to “the procedure for the application of international treaties will be determined by the laws of Kazakhstan.”

Another change makes it illegal to have dual citizenship. Anyone holding the citizenship of another country must officially annul it or lose their Kazakh citizenship.

Controversies

Tokayev suggested the need to switch to a unicameral parliament in September 2025, at which point he proposed conducting a national referendum on that issue in 2027.

A working group was formed in October to draft the necessary legislation. Around two months ago, on January 21, a 120-member Constitutional Commission was established. After 10 days of meetings, the commission said its proposed amendments affected 84% of the current constitution, meaning the drafted new document effectively amounted to a new constitution.

The timeline for a 2027 referendum would have allowed time for a discussion of proposed changes, but on February 11, the commission said the draft constitution was ready for a referendum and handed it over to Tokayev. The very same day, Tokayev signed a resolution naming March 15 as referendum day.

Later, government officials noted how Tokayev personally took part in drafting the new constitution’s text.

Many people are still questioning the need to adopt the new constitution so quickly.

Authorities have restricted negative media coverage of the draft constitution. The KazTAG news website became unavailable at the start of February after KazTAG called the Constitutional Commission a farce and criticised the document.

Since early February, people have been fined for posting what authorities said was “false information” about the draft constitution on social networks.

Police in Almaty went to  the homes of two journalists who posted critical comments about the text on social networks for a conversation that included officers asking them to delete the offending posts.

Authorities have also prohibited anyone from conducting public surveys on attitudes towards the proposed constitution.

Media outlet Uralskaya Nedelya was fined for conducting a poll on the topic. The Central Election Commission rejected a request from the Bureau of Express-Monitoring of Public Opinion Demiscope to conduct a survey of people’s opinions on the constitution they are being asked to vote for, despite the organisation saying it had been allowed to conduct such polls, including on referendums, since 2012 without any problem.

The new constitution is certain to be passed in the referendum. Questions over the haste with which the document was written and offered for approval in a vote will likely hang over it for years to come.

The new constitution will come into effect on July 1. Within one month after that, the president must name the date for parliamentary elections, which must take place before September.