The Constitution Of The Republic Of Kazakhstan

This book is the first-ever comprehensive overview of the legal system of Kazakhstan in English. It offers a compact, coherent, systematic and reliable overview of the major legal concepts, principles and developments of the legal system of Kazakhstan. Sixteen chapters, each written by an expert in the respective field, cover the following specific areas of the Kazakhstani legal system: History of Kazakhstan; Basic Features of the Legal System (Comparative Perspective and Sources of Law); Legal Education and Science in Kazakhstan; Constitutional Law; Administrative Law; Law of Persons; Property Law; Law of Obligations; Family and Inheritance Law; Labor Law; Private International Law; Civil Procedure; Criminal Law; Criminal Procedure; Investment and Energy Law; Tax Law.

Derived from the renowned multi-volume International Encyclopaedia of Laws, this very useful analysis of constitutional law in Kazakhstan provides essential information on the country’s sources of constitutional law, its form of government, and its administrative structure. Lawyers who handle transnational matters will appreciate the clarifications of particular terminology and its application. Throughout the book, the treatment emphasizes the specific points at which constitutional law affects the interpretation of legal rules and procedure. Thorough coverage by a local expert fully describes the political system, the historical background, the role of treaties, legislation, jurisprudence, and administrative regulations. The discussion of the form and structure of government outlines its legal status, the jurisdiction and workings of the central state organs, the subdivisions of the state, its decentralized authorities, and concepts of citizenship. Special issues include the legal position of aliens, foreign relations, taxing and spending powers, emergency laws, the power of the military, and the constitutional relationship between church and state. Details are presented in such a way that readers who are unfamiliar with specific terms and concepts in varying contexts will fully grasp their meaning and significance. Its succinct yet scholarly nature, as well as the practical quality of the information it provides, make this book a valuable time-saving tool for both practising and academic jurists. Lawyers representing parties with interests in Kazakhstanwill welcome this guide, and academics and researchers will appreciate its value in the study of comparative constitutional law.

While Kazakhstan is not a country with frequent or dramatic government crackdowns on freedoms and human rights, when it comes to exercising fundamental rights such as worship, press freedom, and assembly, Kazakhstan's people live in an atmosphere that is far more circumscribed and fearful than one would expect of a country that will soon take on the leadership of an organization grounded in human rights principles. This report documents human rights violations in these three areas. It analyzes overly restrictive measures, and draft laws that fail to correct them. It describes the often subtle but effective methods the government uses to prevent people from fully exercising these rights. Kazakhstan should implement, soon, consistently, and meaningfully the human rights reforms it has promised the OSCE and which are required of it as an OSCE participating state. In so doing, Kazakhstan would provide an important positive example to other countries of Central Asia.