Kazakhstan is a large state in the post-Soviet space. What is known about this country? What form of government is established in Kazakhstan, what are the features of its territorial structure? Based on the Constitution of the Republic, this article will provide answers to all pressing questions about the structure of the Kazakh state.
General characteristics of the Republic of Kazakhstan (RK)
According to the first article of the Kazakh Constitution, the Republic of Kazakhstan is a democratic, unitary and socially-legal state with a presidential form of government. Kazakhstan adopted the country's main law in 1993. Two years later, a new Constitution was adopted. In 1998, a number of major amendments and changes were introduced to it.
The state system of the Kazakh Republic is based on the principle of separation of powers. All authorities belong to one of three branches: legislative, judicial or executive. The president is not dependent on any branch.
The Kazakh state is divided into regions. In total, there are 14 regions and 2 cities of republican significance in the country - Alma-Ata and the capital Astana. There is also Baikonur - a city with special status, which is temporarily rented by the Russian Federation. The population of Kazakhstan is 18 million people.
The form of government in Kazakhstan
What is a "form of government"? The European theory of state and law says that this is the organization of power in the country. The form of government is a characteristic of the relationship between government bodies. An idea of a vertical-horizontal system of relations is given.
In the Republic of Kazakhstan, the form of government is referred to as semi-presidential, or mixed. How does the Kazakh system coincide with the classical republican system, as, for example, in the USA? Of course, Kazakhstan is far from the American device. When developing the Constitution and forming the state system in the early 90s, the French model was taken as a basis. I must say that the very formation of the current form of government in Kazakhstan went through several stages. Each stage of development will be described in detail below.
Formation of a semi-presidential form of government in the Republic of Kazakhstan
In April 1990, the post of head of state, that is, president, was established in the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic . The first President was elected by the people's representatives - members of the Supreme Kazakh Council. His rights were largely limited by the powers of the President of the USSR and the Council of Ministers. By the way, the ministers themselves were vested with authority from the Supreme Council.
In November 1990, many changes were made to the Constitution of the Kazakh SSR. The status of the head of state was strengthened. From now on, he became not just the formal head of the republic, but also the chairman of the administrative and executive branch. The Ministerial Council was transformed into a Cabinet of Ministers. It was formed by the head of state. In December 1991, the first election of the Kazakh President took place. In the same month, independence of Kazakhstan was proclaimed. The president becomes independent from the Soviet heads of state. On January 28, 1993, the first Kazakhstani Constitution was adopted, which proclaimed the principles of democracy, secularism, separation of powers and the priority of legal foundations. The president becomes the sole head of state and chairman of the executive branch of Kazakhstan. What form of government was established by the Constitution? If the President was appointed head of the executive branch, then presidential rule was established in the country. It existed until 1995.
Change of government
Until August 30, 1995, a norm was in force in the Republic of Kazakhstan, according to which the Government was formed by order of the head of state. Also, the president could empower the prime minister, as well as a number of executive ministers. However, this already required the consent of the Supreme Council.
In December 1993, the President was given the opportunity to delegate additional powers to the heads of local administrations. A similar measure was adopted due to the mass self-dissolution of members of the Supreme Council. In the spring of 1994, the first Kazakhstani Parliament was formed - the Supreme Council of the 13th convocation. A year later, he was declared illegitimate by decree of the President.
For six months Kazakhstan did not have a legislative authority. Only in the summer of 1995 the text of the second state Constitution was developed. According to its provisions, the President was proclaimed equidistant from all branches of government. He was assigned the status of an arbitrator. A presidential form of government has been established in Kazakhstan.
Currently, the 1995 standards have a slightly changed look. So, three years after the adoption of the second Constitution, the powers of the Parliament were expanded. The rights of the President have slightly changed. In 2007, the Constitution was amended. The government should be formed in accordance with the party majority of the Mazhilis - the lower house of the Kazakh Parliament. This norm approved the final transition to a mixed republic.
About the President of Kazakhstan
Having dealt with the question of what form of government has been established in Kazakhstan at the moment, we should proceed to a detailed study of each state body, which constitutes the country's management system. However, it should begin with the President - the head of the Kazakh state.
The President of the Republic of Kazakhstan is the highest official. It is he who determines the main directions of foreign and domestic policy, and also ensures the functioning of all state institutions. Finally, the head of the Kazakh state is the supreme commander in the country.
The main powers of the President include the creation and promulgation of laws, the dissolution of Parliament, the empowerment of certain officials, as well as international negotiations. The remaining functions of the head of state of the Republic of Kazakhstan are fixed in the Constitution. The President of Kazakhstan from 1990 to 2019 is Nursultan Nazarbayev.
Government
The Kazakhstan executive body is headed by the prime minister. He is appointed by the head of state with the consent of the Parliament. The powers of the Government include the following points:
- legislative activity within the framework of their authority;
- development of socio-economic, defense and social programs;
- state property management ;
- empowerment of certain officials;
- development of measures of foreign policy of the Republic of Kazakhstan;
- the performance of other functions and powers enshrined in the Kazakhstan Constitution.
The government of Kazakhstan resigns only after the election of the head of state. The executive branch is completely accountable to him.
Legislature
The main legislative body in Kazakhstan is the Parliament. It has a bicameral structure. It includes the Senate, formed for a period of six years, and the Mazhilis. The Senate has 47 members. 32 of them are elected by representative regional bodies - 2 representatives from each region. The remaining 15 people are empowered by order of the President. The Senate is the upper house of parliament. The main purpose is to consider bills adopted by the Majilis.
The Mazhilis is the lower parliamentary chamber. This body is elected for 5 years. The powers of this chamber include approving the country's budget, resolving issues of peace and war, ratifying international treaties and much more.
Judicial branch
The court system is also an element of a mixed form of government in Kazakhstan. Features and principles of the judicial system in the Republic of Kazakhstan are regulated by the Constitution.
The highest judicial body in the country is called the Supreme Court. Its chairman and judges are appointed by the Senate on the proposal of the President. There is also the Supreme Judicial Council - a society that finances all courts, submits candidatures, and also controls the judicial system.
In the Republic of Kazakhstan there is a Constitutional Council, the duties of which include the exercise of the functions of the Constitutional Court. The Council is not included in the judicial system.
Government structure in the Republic of Kazakhstan
Having dealt with the fact that Kazakhstan is presidential-parliamentary (mixed) in the form of government, we should begin to study the territorial structure of the state. The Kazakhstan Constitution states that the country is unitary. This means that Kazakhstan is an indivisible state with one budget and a single tax system. All administrative-territorial units in the country do not have independence, but depend entirely on the center.
In Kazakhstan there is a single system of power: it is one President, a single Government and Parliament. The tax, credit and monetary systems are also centralized, and therefore cannot have local sovereignty.
Thus, the Constitution of Kazakhstan does not imply endowing the regions with some share of sovereignty, as provided, for example, in the United States or in Russia. In the state in question, everything is united and strictly centralized.
Administrative structure of the Republic of Kazakhstan
The Republic of Kazakhstan is divided into regions and districts. There are 14 provinces in the country, while districts are within each oblast. Almaty and Nur-Sultan are cities of republican significance, with Nur-Sultan being the state capital. The remaining 14 areas are named as follows:
- West Kazakhstan, South Kazakhstan, East Kazakhstan and North Kazakhstan regions;
- Akmola, Almaty, Zhambyl, Kostanai, Atyrau, Karaganda, Pavlodar, Kyzylorda, Aktobe and Mangystau regions.
In total, in Kazakhstani regions there are 11 urban and 160 rural areas, as well as 46 cities. There are 2453 rural districts in the country. Before entering the Russian Empire at the beginning of the 19th century, Kazakhstan consisted of 11 regions. The state itself was called the Kazakh Khanate. In the Russian Empire, Kazakhstan included the Trans-Caspian and Ural regions. At the same time, the Bukeevskaya Horde in 1801-1845. was part of the Astrakhan province.
The form of government and the form of government of Kazakhstan have repeatedly changed over the thousand-year history of the country. The board was finally formed only in 2007 - when major amendments were made to the Constitution. The process of state structure was completed by 2001 - then the center of the Almaty region was moved to Taldykorgan.
The economic condition of the Republic of Kazakhstan
The characteristics of the territorial structure and form of government of Kazakhstan should be supplemented with information on the financial and economic condition of the state.
The national currency in the country is tenge. The Ministry of Budget Planning and Economic Status is responsible in Kazakhstan for the formation of financial and economic ties, as well as for their development. The first bank in the country is called the National Bank of Kazakhstan. All assets in the state are concentrated in Samruk-Kazyna - the largest holding. He invests in large projects that are aimed at the development of Kazakhstan.
The country has a particularly developed mining industry. The state "feeds" at the expense of oil, coal, gas, ore and other minerals. The leading industries are non-ferrous and ferrous metallurgy.