Presidential Ponderings

Nursultan Nazarbayev (taken from www.akorda.kz)

So I've been thinking a lot of the president of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev. [You may recognize the last name, the school system I'm working for is named for him] He's had an incredibly diverse life here in Kazakhstan. He grew up a farmer boy, helping his father take care of their small plot of land, and travelling everyday to stand in line for bread. When he started school he lived with an uncle, but then went on to live at a boarding school. He became interested in the Young Communist League (YCL) (even though his father did not approve). As a teen he was attracted to a job in a steel mill in central Kazakhstan, but arrived to find the mill still under construction and therefore went to the Ukraine to work, until the other location was ready. Although, he worked at the mill, he stayed involved with the YCL, which ultimately saved him from becoming a life-time steel worker.

Nazarbayez officially joined the communist party at the age of 22 and rose quickly through the ranks. It seems that he was one of the few that was bothered by the construction and corruption of the party. There was disorganization and inequality everywhere he looked. This is an excerpt from Apples are from Kazakhstan that describes the type of corruption that was abundant:

"Under the Soviet system it was essential to be on good terms with powerful Moscow officials. All the income from the factories of every region in each republic was returned to Moscow, divided up, and sent back to the republics. Kazakhstan, with its natural resources and heavy industry, was automatically the victim of such a system, for while billions of rubles flowed to Moscow, only a fraction found its way back. Anyone with a good personal relationship with the finance minister could expect a few extra million rubles in their budget, while a friend of the chairman of the State Supplies Committee might receive extra cement, metal or timber for their factories. The corrupted command system demanded that all the republics play the game, and no one considered the consequences of taking someone else's share" (p. 265).

In 1991, a failed coup in Moscow attempted to overtake the government from Mikhial Gorbachev. Things started to quickly unravel for the Soviets and their communist system. Nazarbayev, as head of the communist party in Kazakhstan, asked for equality with Russia, instead of independence like other republics. He was afraid that independence would create disaster in Kazakhstan, as all of the industry was tied to Moscow. Many talks and meetings occurred throughout the year, finally on December 21, 1991, the republics met to sign a treaty for independence. 

Nursultan Nazarbayev is the founding father of Kazakhstan. He has brought them through ups and downs, and has a passion to continue the fight. So, going back to the beginning of this blog, and why I've been thinking about him so much, relates to a few conversations I've had over the last few days about politics in the United States. Barack Obama is not our founding father, George Washington is (well, one of many anyway), and we put him on quite the pedestal. He fought for our country - out in the trenches - he put in his time and risked his life for our freedom. Washington had a heavy burden placed upon him when becoming president. Overseeing the beginning of a new government and the emergence of a new and proud nation, stumbling through the steps but overcoming many obstacles. 

Almost 250 years later, we have very little reverence for our leaders, many of whom have not fought in the trenches for our freedom. Obama has come under a lot of fire lately and it's disappointing to see our nation struggling so; it was refreshing to hear positive comments about him coming from some of my foreign colleagues. A New Zealander was gushing over him (yes, gushing!) and praising all of the foreign policy work he's done over the last few years. An Australian co-worker was confused as to the dissension among Americans over Obama's policies and could only agree that he has been one of the best things to happen to the US in a while. Even a fellow American sang his praises, a Political and Historical degree holder, he had evidence and the intelligence to back up his claims. Several of my colleagues have spent recent years in the Middle East and talked about the love those people have for Obama and all of the right and wonderful things he's doing in the US. These statements are not meant to start a fight or an intense discussion about who is right or wrong here, it is meant to show the world view about Obama and the confusion about many Americans' reactions to his policies.

I guess this is just another one of those lessons I've learned being overseas. When you have a more global perspective your eyes can be opened a little wider and you can accept that maybe things are not as bad as they seem. As Americans we have a lot of power over our government (even though sometimes it doesn't seem so), we just need to remember to exercise that power - write to your representatives if you're not happy about something - Facebook is not the way to get things done in the government, direct contact with government reps is the better way to go. Good luck!

Nazarbayev and Obama (taken from en.tengrinews.kz)