A meeting of the working group on parliamentary reform was held in Astana with the participation of Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. State Counsellor Erlan Karin briefed the Head of State on the group’s activities and presented the members’ overall vision, emphasizing that the reforms will contribute to modernizing the political system in line with the demands of the time. Assistant to the President on Legal Issues Yerzhan Zhiyenbayev reported that since October last year, the working group has reviewed issues related to the functioning of the new unicameral Parliament, including its size, term of office, election procedure, lawmaking mechanisms, and interaction with other branches of government. Over several months, all seven political parties, dozens of non-governmental organizations, business groups, as well as legal scholars and experts have submitted their proposals on constitutional reform. In addition, more than 1,500 appeals have been received from citizens regarding the constitutional structure and the improvement of political and social institutions. Political party leaders reported that residents in the regions have also shown strong interest in political reform during meetings with members of Parliament. Summing up the meeting, the Head of State noted that nearly six months have passed since discussions on constitutional reform began. During this time, society has developed a clear understanding of the goals and objectives of the forthcoming transformation of the country’s highest legislative body.
«In effect, a fundamentally new political model is
taking shape in the country. Implementing parliamentary reform will require
revising several sections of the Constitution. Therefore, taking into account
the amendments previously made to our Basic Law, the draft proposed by the
working group allows us to speak, in essence, about considering a new
Constitution of Kazakhstan,» Tokayev
said.
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