Festival Shares Kazakh Films with Chinese Audience
Kazakhstan’s Cinema Week dedicated to the 21st anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Kazakhstan and China was held April 17-22 in Beijing. The event was organized by the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan jointly with the State General Administration of Press, Publishing, Radio, Film and Television of China.…
Spring Festival Celebrates Japanese Culture
ASTANA – On April 10-11, a Japanese Spring Arts Festival was held in Astana. Popular jazz pianist Ayako Shirasaki starred in a concert on April 10 in the Astana Music Hall. She performed alongside famous jazz musicians drummer Gene Jackson and virtuoso bass player Noriko Ueda. In 2010, Shirasaki won international acclaim with her album…
Country hosts festival of French-speaking nations
ASTANA – From March 15 to April 6, the Alliance Française (the French Alliance) and the embassies of five French-speaking nations are holding a cultural festival in Kazakhstan, called the Feast of Francophonie. On March 23, the embassies of France, Belgium, Canada, Romania and Switzerland held a trade fair in Astana. Visitors purchased goods on…
Trilingual Education Touted as Right Way Forward
ASTANA – On April 4, Kazakh Humanities and Law University (KazHLU) in Astana held a roundtable discussion on the theme “Multilingualism in the educational environment: problems and prospects” with the participation of Swedish Ambassador to Kazakhstan Manne Wangborg, Spanish Ambassador to Kazakhstan Don Manuel Larrotcha Prada, Provost of Nazarbayev University Simon Jones, Head of the…
Air Astana expands network across Eurasia
ASTANA, April 3 – Kazakhstan’s leading airline company, Air Astana, has launched two new international direct flights from Astana and Almaty to Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. An Embraer 190 aircraft now flies the Astana-Kiev-Astana route on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. Flights from Almaty to Kiev and back are conducted on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays…
Kazakhstan hosts festival of French-speaking nations
ASTANA – From March 15 to April 6, the Alliance Française (the French Alliance) and the embassies of five French-speaking nations are holding a cultural festival in Kazakhstan, called the Feast of Francophonie. On March 23, the embassies of France, Belgium, Canada, Romania and Switzerland held a trade fair in Astana. Visitors purchased goods on…
Kazakh Cinema Remembers a Famous Father
ASTANA – This year marks the 90th anniversary of the birth of the famous Kazakh film director, Sultan-Ahmet Khodzhikov. On March 11, an evening commemorating the memory of this master of Kazakhstan’s cinema was held at the Cinema House in Almaty. Friends, colleagues, family members and filmmakers laid flowers at his memorial plate on the…
National Bank’s Coins Are Works of Art, Investment Vehicles
ASTANA – On March 1st the National Bank of Kazakhstan issued a commemorative coin to mark the 100th anniversary of People’s Artist of the USSR, Kazakh composer Mukan Tolebayev. The bank also released a new, two-volume catalogue price list of the country’s coins, which depicts all the coins issued by the National Bank of Kazakhstan…
Author-Fighter to Shoot Series about Kazakhstan’s Olympians
ASTANA – The well-known Kazakhstan’s and Dutch director Peter Berman is to begin shooting a television series titled “The Olympians.” The series will focus on the stories of three friends, Ilya, Sasha and Serik, whose prototypes are Olympic champions Ilya Ilyin, Alexander Vinokourov and Serik Sapiyev. Ilya Ilyin has already agreed to take part in…
University of Arts Holds Anniversary Concert
ASTANA – On March 6, the University of the Arts held its 15th anniversary concert in the Central Concert Hall. The dean of the university, internationally acclaimed violinist Aiman Mussakhodjayeva and the Aigolek Children’s Ensemble opened the programme playing the Praeludium and Allegro in the style of Pugnani by Fritz Kreisler. The concert also included…
Nationwide Donations Offer Hope to Sick Child
ASTANA – On Feb. 22, the Kazakhstan TV channel and Zhas Otan, the youth wing of the Nur Otan political party, organised a charity concert, “Heart to Heart,” at the Kazakhstan Central Concert Hall in support of a small child with a rare bone disease. The four-year-old girl, Aruzhan Orazbekova, suffers from osteocytes, which makes…
Nation Remembers Warrior Women of the Great Steppe
ASTANA – Today, 8,000 women in Kazakhstan have dedicated themselves to the defence of their country, operating rockets and artillery, serving as air defence troops and in other forces. The history of the steppe has many examples of women whose actions made them the pride of their people. Legends and national folklore bring us songs…
Journalist Asks Obama to Intervene with AES on Water Crisis
ASTANA – Fedor Kovalev, a Kazakh journalist from Pavlodar, published at open letter to U.S. President Barack Obama calling on him to press the AES Corporation to fulfil its investment obligations to the Shulbinsk Hydroelectric Power Plant. Journalist Fedor Kovalev claimed that AES (Applied Energy Services), a major American company, had delivered far too little…
Improved Adoption Policies Protect Children’s Rights
ASTANA – One of the priorities of state policy in Kazakhstan is the right of every child to live and grow up in a family. Raissa Sher, Chairwoman of the Children’s Rights Protection Committee of the Ministry of Education and Science, recently held a briefing where she spoke about the implementation of the National Strategy…
Hollywood’s Russell to Make Kazakh-Russian Comedy Thriller
ASTANA – Famous Hollywood director Chuck Russell who made the hugely popular films “The Mask,” “Eraser” and “The Scorpion King” will make the joint Kazakh-Russian film “Politsioner” (a tongue-in-cheek mix of “Policeman” and “Militsioner” (Militia men in Russia). The film will be a comedy thriller with a $10 million budget, produced with the financial support…
Almaty’s Tram Café Is Favourite Ride for Romance
ALMATY – An unusual new travelling café in a restored tram has become a hot stop for dating couples and proposals of marriage. The tram café travels on a regular route and daily schedule around the city of Almaty. But its passengers sip coffee and drink champagne, savour quality desserts and even listen to soft…
Film by Kazakh Director to Compete at Berlinale
ASTANA – For the first time in Kazakhstan’s history, a film directed by a Kazakh director has been chosen to enter the Berlin International Film Festival. “Harmony Lessons,” by Amir Baygazin, will be part of the main competition in this year’s 63rd Berlinale. The Berlin International Film Festival, held every February since 1951, is one…
Khasangaliev: The Man Who Writes Folk Hymns
ASTANA – Since its creation 33 years ago, “Atameken” (“Land of My Fathers” in Kazakh) has remained as popular as ever. “Atameken,” with lyrics by Kadyr Myrzaliev and music by Eskendir Khasangaliev, is considered the unofficial hymn of Kazakhstan. Kazakh young people sang this song during the protests in Almaty in December 1986, making “Atameken”…
Nation Promotes, Protects Women’s and Children’s Rights
ASTANA – On January 24, a panel discussion on the implementation of the National Human Rights Action Plan of the Republic of Kazakhstan 2009-2012 took place in Astana. The idea of developing national plans of action for human rights was articulated during the World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna in 1993. The Vienna Declaration…
Kazakhstan Promotes, Protects Women’s and Children’s Rights
ASTANA – On January 24, a panel discussion on the implementation of the National Human Rights Action Plan of the Republic of Kazakhstan 2009-2012 took place in Astana. The idea of developing national plans of action for human rights was articulated during the World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna in 1993. The Vienna Declaration…
Kazakh School Opens Doors in Houston, Texas
ASTANA – With the assistance of the Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the United States and the international cultural and educational organization Raindrop, the children of our compatriots in the United States can now learn their native language. The Shanyraq Foundation, a Kazakh cultural and educational non-profit organization operating in Houston, has opened…
Modern Kazakh Writers Gain Domestic, Global Popularity
ASTANA – On January 9, President Nursultan Nazarbayev, in his Almaty residence, awarded presidential and state grants in literature and art to writers and artists. More than 100 writers and artists have been honoured with a presidential grant for their contributions to the development of national culture. Among the global challenges facing modern Kazakhstan, President…
Kazakh Language to Use Latin Alphabet by 2025, President Says
ASTANA –The Kazakh language will switch to the Latin alphabet by 2025 rather than the current Cyrillic one, President Nursultan Nazarbayev announced in his annual state of the nation address in December 2012. The president announced a new policy of the state towards the development of the Kazakh language. “By 2025, the Kazakh alphabet should…
Local Boxers Continue Kazakhtan’s Global Winning Streak
Kazakh boxer Gennady Golovkin defended his World Boxing Association (WBA) World Middleweight Champion title on January 19 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The 30-year-old Kazakhstani boxer took the ring against 26-year-old American Gabriel Rosado. The representative of Kazakhstan won in the seventh round with a technical knockout. This is Golovkin’s first win…
Fairytale Show Delights Nation’s Children
ASTANA – The main children’s New Year’s show on behalf of President Nursultan Nazarbayev was held on December 26 in the new building of the Palace of Scholars on Astana’s left bank. This annual children’s show is organized for orphans, children from low-income families, excellent pupils and champions of school competitions. For this event, children…
