Controversy Surrounds Kazakhstan's Nuclear Referendum

The chairwoman of Kazakhstan's Central Commission on Referendums (ORK), Sabila Mustafina, said on September 3 that 15.5 billion tenges (more than $32 million) has been requested for a nationwide referendum on the construction of a nuclear power station in the Central Asian country next month. The announcement came a day after President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev announced the referendum and signed a decree setting October 6 as the date of the vote. According to Mustafina, 71 percent of the requested sum would cover compensation for the work of more than…