INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Kazakhstan said Thursday it had prevented a coup attempt by supporters of an exiled opposition figure as it arrested seven people ahead of a
presidential election this weekend.On Sunday, Kazakhstan will hold a snap presidential vote expected to cement incumbent
National Security Committee said a group of seven people planned to "organize riots and a coup and proclaim a provisional government,"
adding that the suspects "share the views of exiled opponent Mukhtar Ablyazov."Ablyazov, a former energy minister and bank chairman, is a
vociferously encouraged protests through his social media channels.The security service said the group was trying to organize large-scale
assault rifles, sawn-off shotguns, ammunition and materials for Molotov cocktails as well as walkie-talkies were confiscated, it
said.Tokayev, 69, became leader in 2019 and has stymied opposition and consolidated power by sidelining his authoritarian predecessor
Nursultan Nazarbayev after the January unrest.He has touted himself as a reforming leader capable of uniting the country.Earlier this year,
he had empowered law enforcement personnel with "shoot to kill" orders.The vast, ex-Soviet country is precariously perched geopolitically,
with historic economic and military ties with Moscow coming under strain over Ukraine and Beijing emerging as a regional power
broker.Tokayev has vowed to build "a new Kazakhstan" by liberalizing the judicial system, tackling corruption and undertaking reforms.But
deep social inequality that was at the origin of the January protests remains a problem and a potential political threat.Tokayev is facing
five little-known challengers as he seeks a seven-year term in the early vote he initiated in September, saying he needed a "new mandate of
trust from the people."Elections were initially set for December 2024, but in March, he introduced constitutional reforms to curb the powers
of the president and boost the role of parliament, sparking the early ballot.'No real choice'Observers from the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) have criticized Kazakhstan's failure to meet electoral recommendations, including "conditions of
eligibility and registration of candidates.""There is no credible candidate
I'll be voting against all of them," said Asset Terirgaliyev, a retired resident of the country's economic capital, Almaty, the city which
was an epicenter of the riots and subsequent repression."These elections are a farce," architect Aidar Ergaly told AFP."Had Tokayev said:
Andrei Chebotarev said the January violence, which he said put the country "on the brink of a civil war," had also brought about a "change
of the foundations of society and the state."Balancing act"A little time has passed and we don't see any real changes yet," said pensioner
cares more about the people than Nazarbayev did."The International Monetary Fund has warned of the persistent risk of instability as
Polling stations open Sunday at 1:00 a.m
GMT and close at 3:00 p.m
