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2Copyright © 2024 by Cherkas Global University
Published in the USA
International Journal of Media and Information Literacy Issued since 2016. E-ISSN: 2500-106X 2024. 9(1): 130-141
DOI: 10.13187/ijmil.2024.1.130 https://ijmil.cherkasgu.press
Media Coverage of Conflict Situations in Kazakhstan in the Early Years of Independence
Kenzhegul Tergembay a , *, Akmaral Mamankul a, Meruyert Shukuyeva a, Aitmukhanbet Yesdauletov a
a L.N. Gumilev Eurasian National University, Republic of Kazakhstan
Abstract
The article examines the coverage in the Kazakh mass media of the issues of countering terrorism and extremism at the national and international levels. The topic is relevant, since the acts of terrorism taking place in the modern world cause a public resonance and affect the security of States. Terrorism has recently been seriously disturbing the public consciousness of almost all states, and in the early 90s, after the collapse of the USSR, terrorism spread its roots to the newly formed CIS countries. Unfavorable trends began to manifest themselves in Kazakhstan. Having gained independence, the young state also found itself under the threat of extremism, and the fight against manifestations of terrorism has become a priority in ensuring the national security of the country. Therefore, they begin to actively cooperate with international organizations, becoming a member of many associations in the world and Eurasian space, whose goals include countering terrorism and extremism in the territory of the participating countries. The latest information technologies and the development of social networks contribute to the intensification of the impact of terrorism on public consciousness. This is due to the scale and nature of the recent terrorist attacks. The authors consider the issues of coverage of the manifestation of modern terrorism and, based on the conclusions and conclusions, formulate recommendations for journalists writing on the topic under consideration.
Keywords: terrorism, terrorist acts, extremism, struggle, high-profile events.
1. Introduction
The relevance of the topic. With the globalization and digitalization of the information space, terrorism and extremism acquire an international character and threaten the territorial integrity of States, provoking the emergence of various kinds of conflicts, outbreaks of intolerance, hostage-taking. The turbulent situation in the world, the post-Soviet space, as well as the immediate proximity of our country to the hotbed of terrorism, Afghanistan, leaves its mark. Most modern countries are exposed to the threat of terrorism, and Kazakhstan is no exception either. The relevance of this work is related to the growth of radicalization in modern society, as a result of which it is important to consider the origins, as well as manifestations of terrorist activity in Kazakhstan and methods of countering it by law enforcement agencies.
At the end of the XX - beginning of the XXI century, the problems of terrorism and counteraction to it became one of the most important both for individual states and for the world community as a whole. This is explained by the scale and nature of the terrorist acts committed recently (Beznosov, 2010; Pochebut, 2010). If in the XIX and XX centuries terrorists acted by the method of individual terror, killing political and state figures, then the victims of modern terrorists
* Corresponding author
E-mail addresses: 324750@mail.ru (K. Tergembay)
are civilians - hundreds and thousands of people. This was the case with the explosion of residential buildings in Moscow and Volgodonsk in 1999 and the destruction of the World Trade Center building in New York in 2001. In the past, terrorists sought to find ethical justifications for their actions, while modern ones demonstrate cynicism, extremism and a willingness to neglect people's lives. The means of carrying out terrorist acts are also changing. At first, the terrorists used cold steel and firearms, then explosives appeared. Currently, the trends in the development of terrorist activities are aimed at equipping the technical and technological base. The origin of terrorism is based on many causes — economic, political, religious, social, psychological, environmental (Beznosov, 2010; Pochebut, 2010).
The topicality of the topic under consideration determines the importance of analyzing the problems of terrorism in modern conditions, as well as developing an effective policy to counter such a phenomenon, protecting the country from destabilization by anti-terrorist methods of struggle. At the same time, in the name of creating models of personal and social security, it is extremely important for journalists today to know how to cover various kinds of conflicts and talk about its participants.
The systematization and evaluation of the role of mass media in covering the manifestation of acts of terrorism and extremism is one of the little-studied topics. By promptly covering the law enforcement agencies' resistance to manifestations of terrorism and extremism, the mass media contribute to solving the conflict problem. At the same time, in certain cases, journalists, promptly covering a high-profile event, can provide information services to terrorists, facilitating their illegal actions. The theoretical and practical significance of the work lies in the fact that some extremely poorly researched issues are being studied. In the article The problem of terrorism in the Republic of Kazakhstan, the authors argue that terrorism in Kazakhstan can be divided into the following stages: the first stage - the late 1990s - early 2000s, when the first cases of terrorism appeared in Kazakhstan immediately after independence; the second stage - the early - mid 2000s. During this period, there has been an increase in cases of involvement and participation of citizens of Kazakhstan in terrorist activities, both on the territory of neighboring countries and in foreign countries; the third stage - 2005 - 2011, when terrorists from among the citizens of Kazakhstan appear who carry out terrorist actions on the territory of the country; the fourth stage - the it is being exploited by the spread of Islamic extremist groups and their terrorist activities in Kazakhstan in order to undermine the foundations of society (Dusmetova, 2020; Nalibai, 2020).
Is this really the case? This work will also consider a short period of time from the first stage, that is, the beginning of the nineties. Is it possible to agree with the opinion of the above-mentioned author that terrorists in Kazakhstan manifested themselves only in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
The object of the study is the media coverage of the topic of terrorism and extremism in Kazakhstan. Subject of the study: mass media and problems of countering terrorism and extremism in Kazakhstan. The purpose of the article is to characterize the media coverage of counter-terrorism in Kazakhstan. To achieve the goal set in the work, it is necessary to perform the following tasks: to consider the prerequisites for the emergence, the origins of extremism and terrorism in Kazakhstan; to study international legal documents regulating the fight against terrorism; to analyze the coverage in mass media of issues of countering terrorism and extremism in Kazakhstan. The practical significance of the study lies in the fact that the provisions and conclusions of the study can be useful for journalists covering the topic of combating terrorism and extremism. It has been established that modern terrorism is a qualitatively new and specific form of war. Terrorist activity acts as a new form of military action - armed (terrorist) struggle, different from the classical perception.
2. Materials and methods
The material base of the study. The sources of this research are monographs, textbooks, textbooks, as well as materials published in domestic and foreign mass media on the topic of terrorism and extremism.
The methodological basis of the research is the methods of analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, analogy, comparison and others. The bases for constructing theoretical models of the main forms of terrorist activity, which allow solving the problem of identifying the Kazakh specifics of terrorist activity and developing recommendations for covering the activities of anti-terrorist structures, published in the period from 1991 to 2023. The theoretical and methodological
foundations of the study are justified in considering from different sides the coverage of the topic of terrorism and extremism in the early years of independence and assumes a comprehensive interdisciplinary methodology combining descriptive and correlational types of research.
3. Discussion
Terrorism is a kind of political extremism in its extreme violent manifestation. Translated from Latin, the word "terror" means "fear", "horror". The main goal of terrorists is to cause a state of terror not only in their hostage victims, but also in all other people (Russian News, 2019). Therefore, during terrorism, which causes a public outcry, it is better to be careful when spreading any information. This is due to the fact that information disseminated during a special operation is more likely to lead to disruption of all activities or aggravation of the situation. Not only will it not achieve the goal of confidentiality, but it can also lead to new risks to data security (Liu, 2023).
In the region where terrorist acts occur, the risk of spreading disinformation increases. This threat has doubled nowadays with the use of new media. Some studies confirm this by finding that greater consumption of social media is negatively associated with a belief in disinformation (Competiello et al., 2023).
The problem of terrorism currently underlies the research of many scientists, one of which is considered in the work of modern researcher Mauro Lubrano, in which the author notes that during terrorist attacks, in most cases, the final decision is made by terrorists. Relations with friendly or hostile movements also influence their decisions. Obviously, excluding these elements would be detrimental. However, at the same time, focusing on terrorist organizations as units of analysis allows us to trace the logic and dynamics of their decision-making process. As soon as contextual factors and external actors limit and/or determine the available strategic options, the final decision remains with terrorist organizations (Lubrano, 2023).
As noted above, terror can be called violence deliberately directed against the state. Bruce Hoffman, an expert in the field of terrorism, argues that "with the help of mass media, terrorism easily reaches a wide audience. There is an interactive symbiotic relationship between media and terrorism". This symbiosis is the product of a complex relationship between the methods used by terrorists and priorities (main interests) Mass media (Ryzhkova, 1992).
According to Henman, 'digital technologies automatically collect, collate, combine and distribute digital traces of our actions and thoughts, which are used to create our digital characters (Henman, 2022). First of all, when linking terrorist activities with information technologies, mobile phones are used as the most frequently used means, as well as the means used in carrying out terrorist activities. Central to this quest for digital well-being is the paradoxical experience of using mobile technologies that both enhance and suppress individual autonomy (Vanden, 2021). Working with data is a part of our daily lives and throughout our lives, which is especially important for children growing up in a world full of data (Armstrong et al, 2023).
Extremism (Latin extremus - "extreme") means commitment to extreme, mostly violent means in order to achieve goals. In politics, extremism manifests itself in an effort to undermine the stability of existing social structures and political institutions. This is done through demagoguery, calls for violence, acts of terrorism and methods of guerrilla warfare. Extremism is characterized by uncompromising, all-or-nothing actions. The ideological and theoretical basis of extremism are radical ideological concepts, religious fundamentalism, and nationalism (Russian News, 2019). It is difficult to define extremism clearly. When explaining extremism, we must clearly point out the explanandum and the relevant contrast with which this explanandum is combined (Peels, 2023). But based on Berger, we understand violent extremism as the belief "that the success or survival of an internal group can never be separated from the need for violent action against an external group" (Berger, 2018). Extremists have an enemy in their minds. He may be a representative of another religion. In its violent extremist form, such ideology also includes specific claims and the legitimization of violence against certain enemies (Ackerman, Burnham, 2021).
There is a Global Terrorism Index, which is calculated based on four indicators. In 2018 alone, according to The Global Terrorism Index, 15,952 people died at the hands of representatives of terrorist cells in the world. According to the ranking of countries by the level of terrorism, compiled in 2019 by specialists from the University of Maryland (USA), Kazakhstan took 85th place. This is probably more or less reassuring information when the top five with the highest number of violent acts and deaths from them include: Afghanistan, Iraq, Nigeria, Syria and Pakistan. Our northern neighbor Russia ranks 37th (Russian News, 2019).
The higher the index, the more often conflicts and terrorist acts occur in the country. According to the data, the top 10 countries in the ranking account for 80 % of all deaths from terrorism in the world. Kazakhstan ranked 95th in the ranking of the most dangerous countries in terms of terrorism - in 2020, the number of crimes related to extremism and terrorism in the country decreased by 15 %. In total, 135 states are listed in the ranking. According to the portal Energyprom.kz Kazakhstan's terrorism index was 0.901, which is a very low indicator (Krivtsanova, 2020).
The problem of terrorism and extremism remains one of the main problems in the world and still requires in-depth scientific research, their underlying mechanisms are insufficiently studied theoretically (Cherney, Koehler, 2023).
The first terrorist act in Kazakhstan or fugitive convicts hijacked a bus with passengers
In the first stage, from 1991 to the end of 1999, according to researchers, individual manifestations of extremism and terrorism make themselves felt on the territory of the young independent state. The first terrorist act in Kazakhstan, the hostage-taking in the Kyzylorda region, took place in 1992, when convicts, natives of Uzbekistan, who were transported from Samara to Tashkent, managed to tie up a guard and jump out of a train carriage. They planned to escape to Almaty and "lay low" there. In order to carry out their plan, they seized a bus en route to Sary-agash. The operatives conducted long negotiations with the officials, who demanded a plane to fly to warmer countries. The demands of the terrorists were not fulfilled — they were killed during the storm attack (Mukhit, 2021).
The correspondent of the regional socio-political newspaper Southern Kazakhstan T.Koretskaya describes the resonant event as follows: "On Sunday afternoon, February 23, 1992, at a press conference in the office of the KGB of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the Shymkent region (now the Turkestan region-the author), General Major E. Mustafetov said: "Today in Shymkent, employees Alfa special forces released the passengers of the Ikarus bus, who became hostages of armed prisoners who escaped from custody. All the hostages are alive. Alpha fighters too. The terrorists are destroyed" (Koretskaya, 2019).
In the collection The Special Service of South Kazakhstan, the author of the reserve Major General describes this incident in more detail. "... in February, criminals on the Kyzylorda -Shymkent highway seized an Ikarus flight with two dozen passengers, taking them hostage, and arrived at the bus station of the village of Shieli. When the bandits began to get off the bus with the passengers, the police opened fire. Two were killed. Two were detained. One policeman was killed in the shootout. The two remaining bandits closed down together with 11 passengers". Further, the author writes that "a pre-worked operation "Alarm" was involved, the hostages were released, and the bandits were eliminated". This is how the first terrorist act in independent Kazakhstan ended (Koretskaya, 2019).
More complete information about how the operation took place was made public after the Almaty journalist O. Gubaidullin, with reference to the participants of the operation, outlined the course of events in more detail. He begins his story with how the prisoners who took the bus passengers hostage escaped. "All the blame," the journalist said, "lies with the commander who accompanied the special wagon with the prisoners. He opened the locks. They broke into the compartment to the head of the convoy, tied him up and took three flights. They tore off the stopcock and ran away" (Gubaidulin, 2019).
The official information in the media was positive - bandits, criminal authorities, sentenced to capital punishment and hostage takers were eliminated. However, how should the perpetrators of the emergency be perceived - are they escaped convicts, hostage takers or terrorists? There are many forms of terrorism that can be classified by subjects of activity and by their focus on achieving certain results. Terror can be called violence deliberately directed against the State. Violence comes in two forms: 1) direct violence, which is expressed in the direct use of force (war, armed uprising, political repression, terror) (Osobennosti..., 2012).
In paragraph 5) of Article 1 of the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan On Countering Terrorism dated July 13, 1999, the following definition of terrorism is given: "the ideology of violence and the practice of influencing decision-making by state bodies, local governments or international organizations by committing or threatening to commit violent and (or) other criminal actions related to the welfare of the population and aimed at causing damage to the individual, society and the state" (Zakon..., 1999). Considering the conflict, two sides can be distinguished, which have their own truth. Firstly, the passengers became hostages of convicts who escaped from
custody and seized weapons. Secondly, the terrorists have been destroyed. Where is the truth? Are they terrorists or fugitive convicts who hijacked a bus with passengers?
In the handbook Terrorism and terrorists K.V. Zharinov notes: "Any actions of a terrorist (even those not related to murder) still involve violence, coercion, and threat. After all, the word terror came from the Latin language: "terror" - fear, horror" (Zharinov, 1999). There is violence, coercion, and threat in the actions of escaped convicts. Therefore, their illegal actions in February 1992 can be confidently qualified as a terrorist act, the first in the history of the young independent State.
An event can be qualified as a terrorist act based on the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan On Countering Terrorism dated July 13, 1999 No. 416, where article 1 defines that "an act of terrorism is the commission or threat of an explosion, arson or other actions that create a danger of loss of life, causing damage to significant property damage or the occurrence of other socially dangerous consequences, if these actions are committed in order to violate public safety, intimidate the population (... ) (Kazakhstanskaya Pravda, 1999).
The authorities, however, try not to focus on the event, which created a danger of loss of life. Even in the documents on ensuring the national security of the country, they did not want to classify the events as terrorism, the fight against terrorism was considered only an external threat. Although this could happen again, and residents could become victims of their manifestation. "...almost until 2011, the state did not want to classify events as terrorism, which gave terrorists a head start to prepare for terrorist acts (Dusmetova, 2020; Nalibai, 2020).
This could happen anywhere, but not in our country. "The fight against terrorism, according to official data, in the documents on ensuring the national security of the country, was not a priority and was considered only an external threat. For example, in the program "Time" of the TRK of the Russian Federation on June 19, 1992, Sergei Fateev's report on the conflict in Transnistria was shown, where there were terrifying shots of how refrigerated trucks filled with corpses drove up to the cemetery in Tiras field, where the funeral of soldiers took place (Osobennosti..., 2018).
Despite such reports from the former Soviet Republic, which shocked the audience, our government representatives were confident that terrorism was far away and there would be no such events in Kazakhstan aimed at de-stabilizing the country. Everyone was also reassured by the fact that it was a foreign news story. The country's leadership presented such information through the QMS that the population was completely confident that this infection was somewhere out there, far away, and would not reach us" (Kozlovsky, 2018).
In ensuring national security, one of the directions - countering terrorism was perceived in our country only as an external threat. You can refer to the opinion of political scientist Abraham Miller, who wrote: "Terrorism and the media share a symbiotic relationship. Terrorism is capable of creating any drama - no matter how terrible - to attract the attention of the media... Terrorism is like an ill-mannered obnoxious child, whom the media, unfortunately, can neither ignore nor reject" (Ryzhkova, 1992). There is violence, coercion, and threat in the actions of the fugitive convicts, and they were able to attract media attention. Therefore, their illegal actions in February 1992 can be confidently qualified as a terrorist act, the first in the history of the young independent State.
The country's first suicide bomb explosion occurred on May 17, 2011 in Aktobe, when R. Makatov entered the building of the Aktobe National Security Committee and detonated a self-detonation. R. Makatov, was a member of a religious extremist organization. He died on the spot, three people were injured. (...) The event immediately acquired the character of an emergency. All the media, both domestic and foreign, were vying to tell about the incident. The journalists of the publications wanted details and details. "A variety of epithets were used in relation to the deceased Makatov: the first Kazakh suicide bomber, the first shahid and other comparisons" (Terakt..., 2021), the press service of the National Security Committee said. However, the Prosecutor General's Office of the Republic of Kazakhstan did not recognize the self-detonation as a terrorist attack.
In fact, even after the first terrorist acts were committed in 2011 (the explosion in the building of the National Security Committee department in Aktobe and at the building of the National Security Committee pretrial detention center in Astana), the authorities refused to call the incident terrorist acts. The word "terrorism" was not used in subsequent statements. In the case of Aktobe, the name "self-detonation" appeared in official reports (Abramov, 2012; Shibutov, 2012).
The Karavan newspaper published an article entitled "The most high-profile terrorist attacks in the history of Kazakhstan", which described the twin terrorist attacks in Atyrau on October 31, 2011. The first explosion occurred near the prosecutor's office, the National Security Committee
and the regional akimat. The second one is in the courtyard of an apartment building. The terrorist, 23-year-old B. Sultangaliyev, died on the spot. The events in Atyrau were recognized as a terrorist act for the first time in the history of modern Kazakhstan. The terrorist group Soldiers of the Caliphate claimed responsibility for the bombings. All those involved in the terrorist attacks in Atyrau were arrested a few days later. A year later, the extremists were convicted under the article "Terrorism" (Samye..., 2016).
The fact of terrorism was thus recognized for the first time by the Kazakh authorities only after two explosions in Atyrau at the end of October 2011. Then a criminal case was initiated under the relevant article of the Criminal Code. At the beginning of the following month, five militants were killed near Almaty, who killed two policemen on November 8, 2011. The extremists were planning a series of terrorist attacks in the city. Two commandos were killed during the storming of the house where the terrorists were hiding (Samye., 2016).
Creation of a domestic legal framework for countering terrorism
Perhaps the actions of unrecognized terrorists influenced or it was a natural step of a young state trying to gain international recognition, on May 15, 1992, Kazakhstan became a member of the International Regional Collective Security Organization Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), which unites six states (Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan) (Kozlovsky, 2018).
At the 61st session of the Interpol General Assembly, held in Dakar (Senegal) on November 4, 1992, Kazakhstan was accepted as a member of the International Criminal Police Organization Interpol. A year later, the National Central Bureau of Interpol of the Republic of Kazakhstan (NCBI RK) was established as a structural unit of the Ministry of Internal Affairs" (Toksanbaev, 2012). It should be noted that ten years later, that is, in 2012, this organization, NCBI RK, "maintained business contacts with law enforcement agencies of 47 states, trying to increase the efectiveness of its work through mutually beneficial exchange.
The next step was that Kazakhstan joined the Shanghai Five in 1996, later renamed the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) (2001) (Dusmetova, 2020; Nalibai, 2020). For the first time in the domestic legal field, terrorism as a separate type of crime was consolidated on July 16, 1997, Article 233 "Terrorism" was introduced into the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Prestupleniya..., 1997). The Agreement on Cooperation with the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) dated June 4, 1999 and membership in the Council for Interaction and Confidence-building Measures in Asia (CICA) (O merah..., 2000).
Countering terrorism requires joint coordinated efforts by the State and society through national and international means. Therefore, it has become necessary to develop relatively unified political, legal, financial, economic and military mechanisms for combating terrorism, and to develop a program to combat religious extremism and terrorism in Kazakhstan.
In order to effectively counter organized terrorism by criminal legal means, in accordance with the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated February 19, 2002 No. 295-II "On Amendments and Additions to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on combating terrorism", relevant novelties were introduced in the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, which made it possible to criminalize acts reflected in the introduction of the following offences: Articles 233-1 "propaganda of terrorism or public calls to commit an act of terrorism", Articles 233-2. "Building, leadership of a terrorist group and participation in its activities", Articles 233-3 "Financing of extremism or terrorist activity" (UK Respubliki..., 2002).
The Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan On Countering Terrorism was adopted on July 13, 1999 (No. 416-I) and defined the legal, organizational foundations for combating terrorism, the procedure for the activities of State bodies and organizations, regardless of their forms of ownership, as well as the rights, obligations and guarantees of citizens in connection with the fight against terrorism (Zakon. , 1999).
Broad explanatory work is becoming one of the key tools in the country's anti-terrorist activities. For the first time, the status of the Anti-Terrorist Center of the Republic of Kazakhstan was legally consolidated and the creation of anti-terrorist commissions in the regions was envisaged (Zakon. , 1999).
According to the requirements of the adopted law, organizations whose activities are of a terrorist nature have been banned on the territory of Kazakhstan. Organizations are recognized as terrorist if their statutory goals and activities contradict the Constitution and Laws of the Republic of Kazakhstan and international treaties to which the Republic of Kazakhstan is a party; if there is a
potential danger of activating the functioning of these organizations to destabilize the situation in the states of the Central Asian region (Zakon..., 1999).
The global experience in combating international terrorism has shown that the main importance should be given to its financing, as well as the fight against organized crime. Kazakhstan has joined all thirteen international universal conventions on combating terrorism (Bekishev, 2017).
Information terrorism of the weekly Karavan
In the modern world, since 1990, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has been issuing global reports on human development issues. The criteria for a new measurement of socio-economic progress were taken by the Human Development Index (HDI). According to the UNDP, after the collapse of the USSR, HDI fell in Kazakhstan, in particular, in 1991, the structure of this decline was as follows - by 84 % due to the economic downturn, 13 % due to a decrease in life expectancy and 3 % due to a decrease in the level of education (Tema., 2023).
After gaining independence in December 1991, changes began to occur in Kazakhstan not only in socio-political and economic life. On the way to true sovereignty, Kazakhstan has faced a number of difficulties: economic crisis, social tension, decrease in the standard of living of the population, unemployment, environmental problems, criminogenicity. The national security system of the young independent state was more focused on preventing and preventing interethnic conflicts, drug trafficking, economic threats, and corruption. During these years, the authorities have always officially supported all initiatives aimed at combating terrorism and have taken preventive measures to counter them. They tried not to advertise certain phenomena of extremism and terrorism, as if it were not a topical problem for the country. The impression was created, it could happen anywhere, but not here.
The most difficult times for the young state were 1991-1992. "Lights and heat were constantly turned off in Almaty, unemployment was worried in Karaganda, and various sects began to appear in Kokshetau with provocative slogans. The Ural Cossacks and the Lad movement in Kaliningrad escalated the situation with extremist actions, and the incident with Chechens in the area of Klyuchi in Eastern Kazakhstan caused concern," Z. Aupbayev, a journalist, recalls those times in an interview. - The first issue of the newspaper "Karavan" was published in early August 1991 and over time the weekly began to gain popularity among readers. However, some provocative materials were negatively perceived by society and caused misconceptions. Then a group of journalists was invited to the Ministry of Press and Mass Information. Minister A. Sarsenbayev met with us and expressed concern: "Every time they get more and more arrogant and go beyond the limits of what is permissible, they ridicule our people and our lands. They touch the independence of the state with unflattering words, and there are negative statements addressed to the head of state. We need to stop this lawlessness, but how can we influence them? I ask you to write your suggestions within an hour and leave them to the head of the department," the Minister addressed the audience (Kutken..., 2023).
In those years, two parliamentary newspapers were opened in the state-owned Halyk Kenesa and the Russian language Soviets of Kazakhstan. "Then I worked as deputy editor-in-chief of the newspaper Halyk Kenesa and my colleague, the editor-in-chief of Soviets of Kazakhstan Yuri Anreevich Tarakov, sat next to me at this event. I do not know what he wrote, but my suggestion was that if "The Karavan received a Certificate of registration from the Ministry of Press and Mass Media, it is necessary to raise the registration documents and familiarize yourself with the charter of the editorial office, which is attached in one copy. This will allow you to find answers to the questions: the scope of the newspaper? What is the subject-thematic focus of the publication?" It is necessary to clarify whether the publication complies with the statutory requirements?
Soon, after three or four days, they found out that the newspaper Karavan, which has always excited the population with its publications, disappeared from the shelves of retail outlets in Almaty, the next fresh issue did not arrive at newsstands. The merchants of the publication, who loudly called visitors near shops and bazaars, also disappeared. For many, this was an unexpected event that had never happened before. However, in the second half of the following week, street vendors began to appear again with the offer to buy the latest issue of the weekly.
As it turned out later, the publication of the newspaper was suspended by the Ministry of Press and Mass Media for gross violation of the regulations specified in the charter, and the circulation distributed by street vendors was printed in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan. This was told to us by Aida Abnizova, head of the Department of the Ministry of Press and Mass
Information. I was pleased to hear her say to me: "The Minister expressed his gratitude to you". A gross violation of the provisions of the Editorial Board's Charter was that it was written in the charter that the newspaper was not engaged in politics, they were interested in advertising and commerce, the issues would be filled with educational materials, the main direction, reviews, operational news. Thus, the publication of provocative materials in the weekly was stopped, which could cause a crisis situation, because times were very difficult for the young state. In this way, information terrorism can be said to have been avoided (Asabaev, 2009; Umirzakova, 2009).
Tabloid-type mass media are oriented to a large extent to the psychology of the crowd, to the needs and interests, to lower levels of the mass psyche. The yellow (tabloid) press has its own typology - it is a "universal" tabloid, offering gossip and hyped sensations from all spheres of life (Express Newspaper, Yellow Newspaper). So the Karavan of those years, it was safe to refer to the yellow press, one of the first among non-state newspapers to publish photographs and materials under the heading "Intimacy". The reason for the emergence of various kinds of proceedings was the column in the newspaper "Well, wow!", which published comments on the statements of prominent public and political figures published in other newspapers.
Are they terrorists or just soldiers' riots on Baikonur
In the publication Kazakh riots in the 90s were also on Baikonur, E. Sazhneva describes the situation of that time as follows: "Meanwhile, the residents of Leninsk (as Baikonur was called in the old days) recall how they survived the soldiers' riots in the early 90s. These were the 91st, 92nd and 93rd years. A huge and seemingly friendly country, the Soviet Union, has just collapsed. The future was hazy. (...) The command of the cosmodrome, caught between two fires, even had to issue a special leaflet-an appeal to the Baikonur people. In which they sternly described the truth of life and a bleak future. "In difficult conditions, we carry out tasks with you. The collapse of the USSR, the economic chaos and devastation that followed it, political instability, the crisis of national relations, inconsistency in solving issues of military construction and military service - all these are characteristic signs of the present day" (Sazhneva, 2022).
However, the appeal of the cosmodrome command to the military personnel did not help, since "A dozen military construction detachments turned out to be isolated from the world. And this is in the neighborhood of missile defense complexes and mines with nuclear missiles that were on combat duty! (...) The bed linen was no longer changed, the food in the dining room became worse, even worms in the meat came across. The dirty and hungry soldier's mask was growling softly, and the officers could not help them in any way. The soldiers began to get even angrier" (Sazhneva, 2022). This is how journalist Yuri Dmitriev describes what happened in those days on Baikonur: "On the night of February 23-24, 1992, a real soldier's riot broke out in the military construction units of the 110th, 118th, and 253rd sites. In a few hours of outrages, robberies and robberies, multimillion-dollar damage was caused to state property. By the way, the estimated date of the beginning of the rebellion was known to dawn - the Day of the Soviet Army. There were warnings-reports to the right place. But they were unwrapped. No one believed to the last that such a thing could happen at all. [...] The rioters tried to grab weapons and go to Baikonur. When this failed, the crowd rushed to smash the nearest military town: barracks, headquarters, canteen, tore off locks from food and clothing warehouses... Beat officers and all those who tried to show at least some resistance, tore of watches, hats, pea jackets, wrung their hands... (Sazhneva, 2022).
Residents of Baikonur stayed at home in those terrible days. There were no official reports of what was happening. Local television in the news briefly reported that some kind of small emergency had occurred in military units near Lenin- and that was all. Trains flew past the nearest stations without stopping, fearing capture. In the end, a rather controversial, but the only possible decision in those circumstances was made - all the conscript rebels, almost three thousand people, were sent home. Supposedly on vacation, from where they have not returned. No one was criminally responsible for the riot and pogroms. (...) Criminal cases against the real culprits were preferred to be put on the brakes. It is possible that this was a mistake. Since the next year, another soldier's riot broke out near Baikonur (Sazhneva, 2022).
Exactly a year later, at the 95th site, where the specialists who prepared and launched Proton rockets into space lived, a group of Russian rocket soldiers rebelled. The example of their colleagues inspired the construction workers to revolt. The soldiers honestly admitted that they also hoped for a speedy discharge into the reserve and therefore acted. (...) Another media riot in the summer of '93 was suppressed and, thank God, it turned out to be the last one. A lease agreement between Kazakhstan and Russia was signed soon (Sazhneva, 2022).
There was no publicity about these riots in the Kazakh mass media, except: "Local television in the news briefly reported that some kind of minor emergency had occurred in military units near Leninsky, and that's all." Until now, many of our compatriots do not know that there were military riots on the territory of the Baikonur cosmodrome.
The Moment of Truth in the nineties or how organized criminal groups in Kazakhstan terrorized small businesses
New institutions of government were just being formed, a market economy was being built, foreign investors came in, and international contracts were concluded. The winds of political change in its former expanses blew with such force that many citizens of newly formed sovereign states felt their heads spin: the market, freedom, competition, democracy, glasnost - all this, of course, is good, but why did the crisis develop in such terrible forms (Tema..., 2023), - wrote A. Suetin in the article "The Moment of truth. The nineties became decisive in the development of sovereign Kazakhstan" and further the author identifies their causes. - Unemployment and prices were growing rapidly, salaries were not paid at many enterprises, paid medical services turned out to be unaffordable for the majority of the population, and life expectancy fell. The previous political and socio-economic methods of leadership have exhausted themselves, but the new ones have not yet worked" (Suetin, 2016).
The crisis in 1992 could not be overcome, and it lasted until the end of the 90s of the last century. It was the most difficult period in the history of independent Kazakhstan. The collapse of a large country, economic stagnation, the decline of agriculture, the loss of moral guidelines and other negative phenomena. Despite the various measures taken, the evolutionary process of the formation of radical movements is being monitored, their groups tried to take advantage of the political and economic instability of the young state. One of them was that organized crime groups began to appear in the country. Only in Almaty, according to official data, there were more than a hundred of them (Mukhit, 2021).
Many organized criminal groups consisted of athletes and law enforcement officers. They "protected" bazaars and certain people, traded drugs, beat out debts, and distributed porn products. To destroy the leaders of the organized crime group, it was necessary to have a serious evidence base. Even its presence did not guarantee that a person would "serve" a full term. Many bandits managed to be released on parole. Kurdish, Chechen-Ingush and other ethnic criminal groups were particularly active in the country. The most famous among them were Four Brothers, Deputy Corps, Red Diamond organized criminal group, Bahi Festival, Atabs, Krykbaevsky, Kisa, Abram, Mahara-Chivanin (Mukhit, 2021).
One of the most respected among this circle was Aitkali Mai-mushev, aka Lesha Maymysh, a man with multimillion-dollar profits from both legal and illegal businesses. He was the organizer of the large drug trafficking Siberia-Kazakhstan-Urals, and also engaged in trade with China. He was repeatedly convicted of hooliganism, possession of weapons and extortion. He was detained with drugs and fake passports. In total, Aitkali Maimushev spent about 20 years in prison. For a long time, Aitkali "looked after" Kazakhstani prisons and was engaged in the production of alcohol. Thanks to such organized criminal groups, the "shadow" economy is developing, huge financial flows are generated that are not controlled by the state or other authorities (Mukhit, 2021).
Some organized criminal groups in Kazakhstan have maintained their activities, reformed methods and techniques of criminal activity, and some even changed their direction. Meanwhile, groups appeared in society that began to strictly follow the rules of religious communities; the training of the special services was not at the appropriate level to resist terrorists, as they did not have such experience. Social networks, which actively promoted prohibited activities on the Internet, also played a certain role.
4. Results
The main forms of terrorist activity in Kazakhstan are: terrorist act; hostage-taking; political assassination. The most significant scientific results in the article are that it gradually examines the coverage of the actions of terrorists and extremists in Kazakhstan, directed against the system of public relations, to achieve goals by terrorists through forcible coercion of public authorities using depressive psychological factors. The content and functions of the methodology for building a new system of scientific knowledge on the coverage of terrorism and anti-terrorism arising in the confrontation between their terrorist and anti-terrorist activities. The provisions and conclusions of the scientific study of the coverage in the QMS of the organization and conduct of the terrorist
struggle are in urgent need of further scientific development and implementation of the interdisciplinary theoretical and practical branch of scientific knowledge in Kazakhstan.
The structure of the article is subordinated to the main idea and strategy of the research of a scientific problem and consists of an introduction, discussion, conclusion and bibliographic list.
5. Conclusion
Currently, Governments in many countries recognize that organized crime is not only a problem for law enforcement agencies, but also a threat to national security. The Heads of State and Government expressed concern about local, regional and global crime problems. The UN has taken a leading role in this area. In 2000, a special convention was adopted in which organized crime was declared a threat to global security.
The article considers a short period of time in the early nineties of the last century. Analyzing examples from the events of those years, it is safe to say that terrorists manifested themselves in Kazakhstan in the early nineties, and not in the early 2000s.
The digitalization of the information environment has enriched terrorists with an extremely powerful tool for promoting their views and mobilizing like-minded people. The mass media promptly covered the anti-terrorist activities of law enforcement agencies and special services, since coverage of the topic under consideration always attracts public attention in the information space. Certain groups resort to it due to social, religious and ethnic contradictions. Therefore, it became necessary to combine the efforts of the mass media and law enforcement agencies in countering extremism. This will allow maintaining public control over the process of anti-terrorist activities of the state, thereby maintaining a balance between security and human rights.
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