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international

national referendum on the “I have initiated amendments to the
Constitutional amendments Constitution, which are fundamental in nature
On 5 June 2022, the people of Kazakhstan and significantly alter the country’s political
voted on amendments to the Constitution, system. We are transitioning to a new state
which would significantly strengthen model, a new format of interaction between
protection of human rights. They meant the state and society. This qualitative transition
limiting presidential powers, enhancing can be called the Second Republic,”- President
checks and balances, giving more power Tokayev.
to the Parliament and making it more
representative of the country’s 19 million The last republican referendum was held in
population and to regional and local 1995, when the current Constitution was
authorities. adopted. Amending the set of fundamental
principles and laws of the nation through a
Human rights were again the recurring leitmotif, popular vote in 2022 allowed every citizen to
with the amendments aimed at consolidating directly participate in deciding the future of
the human rights protection mechanisms and the country.
empowering the Constitutional Court to review
the normative legal acts for their compliance achieving gender equality and
with the Constitution and consider the citizens’ empowering women and girls
appeals. Another noteworthy revision was to Having made significant progress in
grant the Commissioner for Human Rights building a society with equal rights and
an immunity from prosecution and the right opportunities, Kazakhstan now is close
to apply to the Constitutional Court, as well to gender parity in access to primary and
as making the Ombudsperson independent secondary education. In the annual UNDP
and not accountable to any state bodies and Human Development Report 2020 on the
officials. Gender Development Index, the state ranks
51 among 189 countries of the world, being
Furthermore, to finally consolidate the in the group of states with low gender
decision to abolish the capital punishment, inequality index in empowerment and the
the Constitution of the New Kazakhstan now labour market, along with countries like
explicitly prohibits death penalty. Malaysia, Hungary, Slovakia and Qatar.

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