Political observers of Kazakhstan happened to review a classified memorandum and felt baulked.

It seemed the country leadership strived to become open and transparent. Reality shows, our leaders wish to keep some aspects of their activities secret. Daniyar Ashimbayev reports the following:

“On 31 July, President signed an Edict Concerning Some Issues of Public Service HR Policy, by which document, he approved the following:

1. List of political posts and positions, holders of which are assigned and dismissed by President or President’s Office, and
2. Procedure of assignment and dismissal of political public servants.

Earlier in history, such documents with all appropriate changes and amendments, were adopted in 1990, 1994, 1999 and 2002.  Such documents were a material for the analysis of the public HR policy. 

In 2023, those documents were made classified.

That novelty reminds of the situation of December 2021, when the Government classified its edicts imposing limits on the headcount of officials in central and local executive bodies. 

In July 2019, President’s Edict concerning the new structure of headcount of the President’s Office was deleted from public data bases. 

That is not a good symptom.