Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE) | Oireachtas source

At the start of January, there was a mass movement in Kazakhstan, an uprising triggered by an increase in fuel prices. The move started with a strike of oil workers in Zhanaozen and became widespread general strikes and protests across much of the country. It was put down with incredible brutality by an incredibly brutal dictatorship. The military and police were given orders to shoot without warning. They did so, killing well over 160 protestors. More than 8,000 people were arrested and many remain in prison. It was horrific brutality.

The response of the European Union was to call on protestors to avoid any incitement of violence and to make a similar call on authorities - in other words, to blame both sides. Why? The reason is that the European Union is interested in protecting western oil interests because the Kazakh regime is happy for western as well as Russian oil interests to exploit the massive natural resources that exist there. I call on the Irish Government and the Taoiseach to condemn what happened in Kazakhstan and to condemn the Kazakhstan dictatorship and the brutal repression of the protestors.

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