...You've got to hand it to Nursultan Nazarbayev, the "democratically" el...
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You've got to hand it to Nursultan Nazarbayev, the "democratically" elected president of Kazakhstan. The revolution he feared would come to his country, as in so many other former Soviet republics recently, has come and gone. Nazarbayev didn't need guns for the battle. He won it by letting a Gucci clothing store open in what was once the land of Genghis Khan.
Along with Gucci came Baskin-Robbins ice cream, a Subaru dealership and sushi restaurants. The former Communist Party chief turned president - who easily secured a third term in office earlier this month in an election that international observers said did not meet democratic standards - has bet his political future that once people have gotten a taste of the good life they'll be content. Content enough to trade personal liberties like freedom of speech or assembly for access to great shopping.
Indeed, Nazarbayev has boasted that Kazakhstan, a country with untapped billions in potential oil revenues, is too rich for a revolution, even though the average person's wage is still around $200 a month.
In September I was invited to the country by the U.S. State Department to teach two political reporting seminars. After having worked in Central Asia during the late 1990's as a news adviser for an independent media group, I couldn't pass up the chance to see how Kazakhstan had changed. And it has changed.
When my wife and I moved here in 1998, my boss said we should expect "really nice third-world" conditions. Back then, finding real peanut butter had left us dancing in the aisles of the grocery store. Now, upscale shopping malls, fast food and cellphones largely define life here in the nation's economic capital.
Political outrage is natural when a government can't feed its citizens, but it is harder to start a revolution when Gucci is rolling out its new autumn line. The brilliance of Nazarbayev - a 65-year old former steelworker who is smooth, polished and highly courted by Western leaders - is that he loosened the reins just enough in Almaty for people to have a pretty good life if they want it. Modern condos are popping up everywhere. Stores are plentifully stocked, there are jobs. Life in this part of Kazakhstan provides the illusion of prosperity.
That illusion is propped up by largely passive news media that cannot criticize the administration. It is in fact, a federal crime to insult the president or any member of his family, and a journalist can literally be sent to prison if any of them don't like a story. Add that at the same time, the family itself has become the largest media powerhouse in Central Asia. For the last decade Dariga Nazarbayev, the president's daughter, has systematically bought many of Kazakhstan's most powerful television stations.
Leading up to the election, reporters were detained, opposition party Web sites were shut down, newspapers were confiscated, and youth groups suspected of "antigovernment" activity were raided. In one of the more blatant political moves, security forces detained an opposition leader while he was on his way to meet Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during her visit to Kazakhstan.
Rice, for her part, told opposition leaders that the United States would, "keep an eye on the elections," which reminded me of when my sister and I were kids and if we were making too much noise, Dad would yell, "Don't make me come up there!" But he would never do much more than sigh heavily and go back to his favorite chair.
Despite Nazarbayev's victory, I want to think there is a new leader somewhere in this magnificent country. Nazarbayev may very well have won this round by handing out shopping bags in exchange for political reform. The real test for him, and ultimately for Kazakhstan, will be when freedom is measured by more than what the country's elite can buy.
Until then I'm choosing to stay optimistic about Kazakhstan's future. Life is better here than when I left in 1999, and that makes me happy. What makes me sad is that six years later, you can still be snatched off the streets by the government for speaking your mind.
If you define democracy by available freedoms then Kazakhstan is still poor, and not just "nice third-world" poor. Just try to imagine Genghis Khan with a Gucci shopping bag.
(Jerry Huffman is communications director for the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.)
ALMATY, Kazakhstan You've got to hand it to Nursultan Nazarbayev, the "democratically" elected president of Kazakhstan. The revolution he feared would come to his country, as in so many other former Soviet republics recently, has come and gone. Nazarbayev didn't need guns for the battle. He won it by letting a Gucci clothing store open in what was once the land of Genghis Khan.
Along with Gucci came Baskin-Robbins ice cream, a Subaru dealership and sushi restaurants. The former Communist Party chief turned president - who easily secured a third term in office earlier this month in an election that international observers said did not meet democratic standards - has bet his political future that once people have gotten a taste of the good life they'll be content. Content enough to trade personal liberties like freedom of speech or assembly for access to great shopping.
Indeed, Nazarbayev has boasted that Kazakhstan, a country with untapped billions in potential oil revenues, is too rich for a revolution, even though the average person's wage is still around $200 a month.
In September I was invited to the country by the U.S. State Department to teach two political reporting seminars. After having worked in Central Asia during the late 1990's as a news adviser for an independent media group, I couldn't pass up the chance to see how Kazakhstan had changed. And it has changed.
When my wife and I moved here in 1998, my boss said we should expect "really nice third-world" conditions. Back then, finding real peanut butter had left us dancing in the aisles of the grocery store. Now, upscale shopping malls, fast food and cellphones largely define life here in the nation's economic capital.
Political outrage is natural when a government can't feed its citizens, but it is harder to start a revolution when Gucci is rolling out its new autumn line. The brilliance of Nazarbayev - a 65-year old former steelworker who is smooth, polished and highly courted by Western leaders - is that he loosened the reins just enough in Almaty for people to have a pretty good life if they want it. Modern condos are popping up everywhere. Stores are plentifully stocked, there are jobs. Life in this part of Kazakhstan provides the illusion of prosperity.
That illusion is propped up by largely passive news media that cannot criticize the administration. It is in fact, a federal crime to insult the president or any member of his family, and a journalist can literally be sent to prison if any of them don't like a story. Add that at the same time, the family itself has become the largest media powerhouse in Central Asia. For the last decade Dariga Nazarbayev, the president's daughter, has systematically bought many of Kazakhstan's most powerful television stations.
Leading up to the election, reporters were detained, opposition party Web sites were shut down, newspapers were confiscated, and youth groups suspected of "antigovernment" activity were raided. In one of the more blatant political moves, security forces detained an opposition leader while he was on his way to meet Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during her visit to Kazakhstan.
Rice, for her part, told opposition leaders that the United States would, "keep an eye on the elections," which reminded me of when my sister and I were kids and if we were making too much noise, Dad would yell, "Don't make me come up there!" But he would never do much more than sigh heavily and go back to his favorite chair.
Despite Nazarbayev's victory, I want to think there is a new leader somewhere in this magnificent country. Nazarbayev may very well have won this round by handing out shopping bags in exchange for political reform. The real test for him, and ultimately for Kazakhstan, will be when freedom is measured by more than what the country's elite can buy.
Until then I'm choosing to stay optimistic about Kazakhstan's future. Life is better here than when I left in 1999, and that makes me happy. What makes me sad is that six years later, you can still be snatched off the streets by the government for speaking your mind.
If you define democracy by available freedoms then Kazakhstan is still poor, and not just "nice third-world" poor. Just try to imagine Genghis Khan with a Gucci shopping bag.
(Jerry Huffman is communications director for the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.)
ALMATY, Kazakhstan You've got to hand it to Nursultan Nazarbayev, the "democratically" elected president of Kazakhstan. The revolution he feared would come to his country, as in so many other former Soviet republics recently, has come and gone. Nazarbayev didn't need guns for the battle. He won it by letting a Gucci clothing store open in what was once the land of Genghis Khan.
Along with Gucci came Baskin-Robbins ice cream, a Subaru dealership and sushi restaurants. The former Communist Party chief turned president - who easily secured a third term in office earlier this month in an election that international observers said did not meet democratic standards - has bet his political future that once people have gotten a taste of the good life they'll be content. Content enough to trade personal liberties like freedom of speech or assembly for access to great shopping.
Indeed, Nazarbayev has boasted that Kazakhstan, a country with untapped billions in potential oil revenues, is too rich for a revolution, even though the average person's wage is still around $200 a month.
In September I was invited to the country by the U.S. State Department to teach two political reporting seminars. After having worked in Central Asia during the late 1990's as a news adviser for an independent media group, I couldn't pass up the chance to see how Kazakhstan had changed. And it has changed.
When my wife and I moved here in 1998, my boss said we should expect "really nice third-world" conditions. Back then, finding real peanut butter had left us dancing in the aisles of the grocery store. Now, upscale shopping malls, fast food and cellphones largely define life here in the nation's economic capital.
Political outrage is natural when a government can't feed its citizens, but it is harder to start a revolution when Gucci is rolling out its new autumn line. The brilliance of Nazarbayev - a 65-year old former steelworker who is smooth, polished and highly courted by Western leaders - is that he loosened the reins just enough in Almaty for people to have a pretty good life if they want it. Modern condos are popping up everywhere. Stores are plentifully stocked, there are jobs. Life in this part of Kazakhstan provides the illusion of prosperity.
That illusion is propped up by largely passive news media that cannot
criticize the administration. It is in fact, a federal crime to insult the president or any member of his family, and a journalist can literally be sent to prison if any of them don't like a story. Add that at the same time, the family itself has become the largest media powerhouse in Central Asia. For the last decade Dariga Nazarbayev, the president's daughter, has systematically bought many of Kazakhstan's most powerful television stations.
Leading up to the election, reporters were detained, opposition party Web sites were shut down, newspapers were confiscated, and youth groups suspected of "antigovernment" activity were raided. In one of the more blatant political moves, security forces detained an opposition leader while he was on his way to meet Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during her visit to Kazakhstan.
Rice, for her part, told opposition leaders that the United States would, "keep an eye on the elections," which reminded me of when my sister and I were kids and if we were making too much noise, Dad would yell, "Don't make me come up there!" But he would never do much more than sigh heavily and go back to his favorite chair.
Despite Nazarbayev's victory, I want to think there is a new leader somewhere in this magnificent country. Nazarbayev may very well have won this round by handing out shopping bags in exchange for political reform. The real test for him, and ultimately for Kazakhstan, will be when freedom is measured by more than what the country's elite can buy.
Until then I'm choosing to stay optimistic about Kazakhstan's future. Life is better here than when I left in 1999, and that makes me happy. What makes me sad is that six years later, you can still be snatched off the streets by the government for speaking your mind.
If you define democracy by available freedoms then Kazakhstan is still poor, and not just "nice third-world" poor. Just try to imagine Genghis Khan with a Gucci shopping bag.
(Jerry Huffman is communications director for the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.)
ALMATY, Kazakhstan You've got to hand it to Nursultan Nazarbayev, the "democratically" elected president of Kazakhstan. The revolution he feared would come to his country, as in so many other former Soviet republics recently, has come and gone. Nazarbayev didn't need guns for the battle. He won it by letting a Gucci clothing store open in what was once the land of Genghis Khan.
Along with Gucci came Baskin-Robbins ice cream, a Subaru dealership and sushi restaurants. The former Communist Party chief turned president - who easily secured a third term in office earlier this month in an election that international observers said did not meet democratic standards - has bet his political future that once people have gotten a taste of the good life they'll be content. Content enough to trade personal liberties like freedom of speech or assembly for access to great shopping.
Indeed, Nazarbayev has boasted that Kazakhstan, a country with untapped billions in potential oil revenues, is too rich for a revolution, even though the average person's wage is still around $200 a month.
In September I was invited to the country by the U.S. State Department to teach two political reporting seminars. After having worked in Central Asia during the late 1990's as a news adviser for an independent media group, I couldn't pass up the chance to see how Kazakhstan had changed. And it has changed.
When my wife and I moved here in 1998, my boss said we should expect "really nice third-world" conditions. Back then, finding real peanut butter had left us dancing in the aisles of the grocery store. Now, upscale shopping malls, fast food and cellphones largely define life here in the nation's economic capital.
Political outrage is natural when a government can't feed its citizens, but it is harder to start a revolution when Gucci is rolling out its new autumn line. The brilliance of Nazarbayev - a 65-year old former steelworker who is smooth, polished and highly courted by Western leaders - is that he loosened the reins just enough in Almaty for people to have a pretty good life if they want it. Modern condos are popping up everywhere. Stores are plentifully stocked, there are jobs. Life in this part of Kazakhstan provides the illusion of prosperity.
That illusion is propped up by largely passive news media that cannot criticize the administration. It is in fact, a federal crime to insult the president or any member of his family, and a journalist can literally be sent to prison if any of them don't like a story. Add that at the same time, the family itself has become the largest media powerhouse in Central Asia. For the last decade Dariga Nazarbayev, the president's daughter, has systematically bought many of Kazakhstan's most powerful television stations.
Leading up to the election, reporters were detained, opposition party Web sites were shut down, newspapers were confiscated, and youth groups suspected of "antigovernment" activity were raided. In one of the more blatant political moves, security forces detained an opposition leader while he was on his way to meet Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during her visit to Kazakhstan.
Rice, for her part, told opposition leaders that the United States would, "keep an eye on the elections," which reminded me of when my sister and I were kids and if we were making too much noise, Dad would yell, "Don't make me come up there!" But he would never do much more than sigh heavily and go back to his favorite chair.
Despite Nazarbayev's victory, I want to think there is a new leader somewhere in this magnificent country. Nazarbayev may very well have won this round by handing out shopping bags in exchange for political reform. The real test for him, and ultimately for Kazakhstan, will be when freedom is measured by more than what the country's elite can buy.
Until then I'm choosing to stay optimistic about Kazakhstan's future. Life is better here than when I left in 1999, and that makes me happy. What makes me sad is that six years later, you can still be snatched off the streets by the government for speaking your mind.
If you define democracy by available freedoms then Kazakhstan is still poor, and not just "nice third-world" poor. Just try to imagine Genghis Khan with a Gucci shopping bag.
(Jerry Huffman is communications director for the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.)
ALMATY, Kazakhstan You've got to hand it to Nursultan Nazarbayev, the "democratically" elected president of Kazakhstan. The revolution he feared would come to his country, as in so many other former Soviet republics recently, has come and gone. Nazarbayev didn't need guns for the battle. He won it by letting a Gucci clothing store open in what was once the land of Genghis Khan.
Along with Gucci came Baskin-Robbins ice cream, a Subaru dealership and sushi restaurants. The former Communist Party chief turned president - who easily secured a third term in office earlier this month in an election that international observers said did not meet democratic standards - has bet his political future that once people have gotten a taste of the good life they'll be content. Content enough to trade personal liberties like freedom of speech or assembly for access to great shopping.
Indeed, Nazarbayev has boasted that Kazakhstan, a country with untapped billions in potential oil revenues, is too rich for a revolution, even though the average person's wage is still around $200 a month.
In September I was invited to the country by the U.S. State Department to teach two political reporting seminars. After having worked in Central Asia during the late 1990's as a news adviser for an independent media group, I couldn't pass up the chance to see how Kazakhstan had changed. And it has changed.
When my wife and I moved here in 1998, my boss said we should expect "really nice third-world" conditions. Back then, finding real peanut butter had left us dancing in the aisles of the grocery store. Now, upscale shopping malls, fast food and cellphones largely define life here in the nation's economic capital.
Political outrage is natural when a government can't feed its citizens, but it is harder to start a revolution when Gucci is rolling out its new autumn line. The brilliance of Nazarbayev - a 65-year old former steelworker who is smooth, polished and highly courted by Western leaders - is that he loosened the reins just enough in Almaty for people to have a pretty good life if they want it. Modern condos are popping up everywhere. Stores are plentifully stocked, there are jobs. Life in this part of Kazakhstan provides the illusion of prosperity.
That illusion is propped up by largely passive news media that cannot criticize the administration. It is in fact, a federal crime to insult the president or any member of his family, and a journalist can literally be sent to prison if any of them don't like a story. Add that at the same time, the family itself has become the largest media powerhouse in Central Asia. For the last decade Dariga Nazarbayev, the president's daughter, has systematically bought many of Kazakhstan's most powerful television stations.
Leading up to the election, reporters were detained, opposition party Web sites were shut down, newspapers were confiscated, and youth groups suspected of "antigovernment" activity were raided. In one of the more blatant political moves, security forces detained an opposition leader while he was on his way to meet Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during her visit to Kazakhstan.
Rice, for her part, told opposition leaders that the United States would, "keep an eye on the elections," which reminded me of when my sister and I were kids and if we were making too much noise, Dad would yell, "Don't make me come up there!" But he would never do much more than sigh heavily and go back to his favorite chair.
Despite Nazarbayev's victory, I want to think there is a new leader somewhere in this magnificent country. Nazarbayev may very well have won this round by handing out shopping bags in exchange for political reform. The real test for him, and ultimately for Kazakhstan, will be when freedom is measured by more than what the country's elite can buy.
Until then I'm choosing to stay optimistic about Kazakhstan's future. Life is better here than when I left in 1999, and that makes me happy. What makes me sad is that six years later, you can still be snatched off the streets by the government for speaking your mind.
If you define democracy by available freedoms then Kazakhstan is still poor, and not just "nice third-world" poor. Just try to imagine Genghis Khan with a Gucci shopping bag.
(Jerry Huffman is communications director for the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.)
