Clashes in Kazakhstan: The battle over the political and economic systems

In this article, we apply North et al.'s open-access order (OAO) and limited-access order (LAO) framework to the case of Kazakhstan by examining how the two main competing groups in Kazakhstan, whom we term the “legitimizers” and the “delegitimizers” of the country's political and economic systems, frame issues related to the country's governance models. Considering what occurred in Kazakhstan in early January 2022, as people throughout the country took to the streets due to discontent with issues related to the lack of democratic practices and the oligarchic economic system, examining the two antagonistic groups’ views toward such issues is essential. Our study reveals stark contrasts between how the two groups frame (i.e. legitimize or delegitimize) the country's political and economic systems. Based on our discourse analysis, we found that the interlinked issues of corruption and inequality, which are common themes in an LAO, are highly salient for the country's cultural producers in seeking to delegitimize the government. The government and its legitimizers, however, framed the country as an OAO. Examining such sources from 2019 to 2020 reveals discontent and the lack of legitimacy for the country's system, both of which were manifested during the January 2022 protests.