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Press release
The Republic of Kazakhstan (RK) ratified the Convention on Access to
Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in
Environmental Matters (the Aarhus Convention) on October 23, 2000. The
Convention came into force on the 30th of October, 2001. From this date, all
articles of the Convention are legally binding for signatories.
Unlike other international conventions, which place binding obligations on the
governments of signatory nations in their interactions with the governments of
other signatory nations, the Aarhus Convention places clear obligations on
government bodies in their interactions with the public.
In 2004, the environmental organization Green Salvation (GS), together with
citizens whose rights GS was working to defend in court, sent several
communications concerning compliance with the Aarhus Convention to the Aarhus
Compliance Committee. These were communications ACCC/C/2004/01 and
ACCC/C/2004/02 and they were among the first communications ever considered by
the Compliance Committee.
The Compliance Committee acknowledge the failure of the RK government to comply
with a number of obligations of the Aarhus Convention as well as a number of
cases of violation of citizens’ right to participate in the decision making
process and the right to access to justice on environmental matters. A report
outlining the Compliance Committee’s findings and recommendations with respect
to compliance by Kazakhstan was approved at the Second Meeting of the Parties of
the Convention (Almaty, May 2005).
At the Second Meeting of the Parties, the decision was taken that Kazakhstan
should develop a strategy and implementation plan for implementing Decision II/5a
by the end of 2005.
A year and a half has passed since this deadline, however:
- The decisions of the Compliance Committee have not been carried out
- The strategy and implementation plan for implementing Decision II/5a of the
Second Meeting of the Parties has still not been approved by the RK government
- RK courts continue to consider the obligations under the Aarhus Convention to
be only recommendations and not legally binding
- RK environmental legislation has still not been adapted to meet international
standards.
In 2006, the Compliance Committee acknowledged yet another violation of
citizen’s right to access to justice in Kazakhstan (communication
ACCC/C/2004/06, residents of the city of Almaty: L. Gatina, A. Gatina and L.
Konoshkova).
The anniversary of the fifth year of the entry into force of the Aarhus
Convention has been uniquely ‘celebrated’ by Kazakhstan. The experiences of GS
in courts and the appeals from citizens of Kazakhstan to the Compliance
Committee on issues of compliance reveal dark tendencies in the country. Access
to justice in RK is limited to appealing to the courts. Participation in the
decision making process is limited to being able to speak freely. Detailed
Information is often hidden and released information is often too simply or
general to be useful in making informed decisions. Violations of citizens’ right
to a favorable environmental situation have lead to an increase in social
strife, poverty and disease.
For
more detailed information, see:
www.greensalvation.org/English/Facts/facts.htm
www.unece.org/env/pp/compliance.htm
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