Why My Library is Closed

I just realized I made a reference in my last entry without explaining it.

 

My library, the English library I was running with Project Hope Petropavlovsk, has been closed since August 18th.  That also happens to be the date of the parliamentary election here, in which the ruling party, basically a rubber stamp for Nazarbayev, won every single seat.  Kazakhstan now has a one party parliament, like a Rovian fantasy circa 2004.

 

The week of the election I was sitting in the library with my Russian tutor Vladimir, having a lesson.  Suddenly a pudgy Kazakh guy in a suit bursts through the door and starts demanding to see some kind of documentation.  Through Vladimir I was able to determine that this pompous blowhard was from the Financial Police, and wanted to see some document that proved I had been paying the landlord.

 

"This is not America!" he yelled (in Russian) as he stormed out the door.

 

At first I thought we had been singled out for some reason, but soon my organization, specifically Alexei, my chief collaborator, established that every business in the building was given the same warning, and instructed to have everything out of the building by 6 PM.

 

Of course, that was impossible.  Eventually the deadline was extended until that Saturday, the day of the election.

 

Soon, we also realized that a small opposition party office had moved into the building, and the pieces began to fall into place.  The Akimat claims it is giving the building to the university to make a museum.  No one at the university seems to know what they're talking about.

 

Losha (Alexei's friendly diminutive monicker), Sarah, Meghan, and I moved the most valuable books, the DVD's, and the electronic equipment out of the building and into Meghan's appartment.  Many of the books we just left.

 

Fortunately (from our perspective), the building was just locked up.  Because we are on good terms with our former landlord, we can still access the books if we need to move them.  So for now it's like they are in storage, until we find a new place for them (rents are too high everywhere else, so we're looking for a partner).

 

For us it is not such a big deal-- we are just a non-profit.  But for the small business in the building it was devestating.  They were thrown out by the bureucrats with just one week warning.  And now, of course, the building sits empty and unused.  Corruption and waste are about as depressing as sham elections.  The Akimat certainly hasn't made my time here any easier.

 

До свидания

 

 

Comments

[tom isherwood]

Heya,

It's good to read this and get caught up with you. Glad to hear you're still doing well despite annoying bureaucracy from two different governments (re: that article and the library).

My girlfriend leaves today for Turkmenistan where she'll be a PCV. Exciting and scary.

Still thinking of finding your way out here (oxford) sometime in the future?

Best,

Tom