Kazakhstan’s authorities hailed a landslide constitutional referendum win, but the coded language citizens used online before the vote may say more about the political climate than the official result. As ballots were cast on Sunday, some Kazakhs avoided discussing the referendum openly and instead asked one another whether they were “going to the store” to buy “sour cream” — a thinly veiled way of talking about politics under pressure. Speaking to TVP World’s Eastern Express program, Bruce Pannier, a board member at the Caspian Policy Center and a longtime analyst of Central Asia, said the euphemisms reflected a public used to speaking indirectly when sensitive issues are at stake. “People in Kazakhstan have gotten used to talking obliquely about issues because they know that they can’t talk directly about them,” he said. A rushed rewrite? Official results released on Monday showed 87.15% backing for the new constitution, with turnout at 73.12%, according to Kazakhstan’s Central Election Commission. But critics say the speed of the process gave voters little chance to absorb changes that reshape much of the political system. Pannier argued that what began as a narrower discussion about parliamentary reform quickly turned into something far larger. “It does represent a new constitution,” he said, noting that roughly 84% of the document was rewritten. He said the public was then given only weeks to assess an all-or-nothing package. That concern echoes wider criticism already raised around the vote. Reuters reported that analysts fear the new system, while presented as a move away from “super-presidential” rule, could in practice deepen the president’s control by restoring the vice presidency and concentrating appointment powers in the hands of Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Media pressure remains The atmosphere around the referendum also raised fresh concerns about press freedom. Pannier said brief detentions of journalists and tighter accreditation rules fit a familiar pattern in Kazakhstan, where independent reporters and observers have long faced pressure. He argued there was little in the new constitution to suggest a more open media environment. For critics, the latest referendum appears to reinforce that pattern: a sweeping political rewrite approved by a large margin, but under conditions that left little room for open scrutiny.
