Национальный доклад «Молодежь Казахстана – 2016» - часть 22

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Scientific-Research

Center «Youth»

National Report «Youth of Kazakhstan – 2016»

 7.1. 

 YOUNG PEOPLE’S INVOLVEMENT 

IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION SYSTEM AND 

POLITICAL AND CIVIL LIFE OF KAZAKHSTAN 

How politicized are today’s young people in Kazakh-

stan, what is the level of their political participation? 

This question is debatable. Various experts have various, 

sometimes even opposite views on this issue. First of all, it 
should be noted that the Kazakh youth is heterogeneous, 
not only in terms of certain social and demographic char-
acteristics, but also in terms of their attitude towards the 
country’s policy and assessment of their participation in 
it. So, the majority of young people have a conformist 
attitude to life and low interest in politics, because they 
believe they cannot have a significant influence on it. The 
rest have a conscious attitude to politics and the desire to 
have a significant influence on the situation in the country. 

This group consists mainly of the urban youth and uses 

modern information technologies and social media as 
a tool of influence, which is in line with the modern in-
ternational trends. However, it can be assumed that their 
mobilization potential is still not so high.

Young people’s participation in the country’s political 

life shows the degree of the political system’s openness to 
individual expression of interests in politics and its ability 
to serve the interests of ordinary citizens.

According to researchers, the less people are interest-

ed in politics and feel their ability to influence its develop-
ment, the less formed and stable their political views are, 
which, in fact, can lead to alienation from the realities of 
the country’s social and political life. This, in turn, directly 
leads to a situation when young people are not feeling 
useful and important to the society in which they live 
and fulfill themselves and can easily be involved in the 
activities of non- or anti-system organizations. According 
to some research conducted in Kazakhstan, today the 
country’s young people desperately feel the need to do 
something important and worthwhile for the country [1].

Today, in the age of information technology, forms 

Figure 7.1

 Levels of participation in the country’s political life

of young people’s political and civic participation have 
undergone significant changes. Mass participation is not 
the only factor that shows development of political and 
civic initiatives of young people. New forms of behavior 
are emerging, such as participation in various informal 
movements and development of various subcultures, 
characterized in varying degrees by politicization, along 
with the traditional forms of participation. We are talking 
here about activists, of course, who have a considerable 
mobilization potential and can have a significant impact 
on the life of the country thanks to the modern commu-
nication means.

The level of young people’s participation in the polit-

ical life depends, first of all, on the political culture that 
characterizes the youth. The political culture, in its turn, is 
formed by knowledge of objective political processes and 
relevant conclusions. The current young generation of 
Kazakhstan was growing during a difficult stage of social 
and economic transformation, which, of course, has had 
an impact on the attitudes and views of today’s youth. In 
this context, the political culture of today’s youth in Ka-

zakhstan is quite controversial. Another factor that should 

definitely be taken into account is that the country’s youth 
is quite heterogeneous in terms of attitudes depending 
on the age, settlement type (rural and urban youth, those 
who come to the city to work) and employment (working, 
self-employed young people and students). This directly 
leads to the differences between certain groups of young 
people in the level of interest in politics, the degree of 
participation in political life, the various attitudes to the 
role of the state in solving their life problems.

One of the main indicators of conscious and con-

cerned position of young people, their rational and crit-
ical perception of society and the state, the political and 
civic participation, is their interest in politics pursued in 
the country, awareness of the ongoing government pro-
grams. An active, non-speculative form of political par-
ticipation is the desire to influence the development and 
implementation of decisions regarding their own and the 

actions actually taken by an individual in 

the political environment, his/her practical 

involvement in the political life (activities aimed 

at supporting candidates and parties in election 

campaigns, participation in meetings and 

demonstrations, participation in the activities 

of political parties and interest groups)

conscious interest in the political processes, 

events, need in continuous obtainment of new 

political knowledge, independence of political 

analysis and making individual decisions, in the 

sense of responsibility for their country’s fate. The 

most important forms of civic participation are 

various civic initiatives

Civic participation

Political participation

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public interests through participation in the activities of 
various social structures. In addition to traditional forms 
of political participation, today there are also such forms 
as activity in the media scene and blogging, which have 
significant potential for mobilization.

Young people’s interest in politics

The modern Kazakh youth’s interest in the policies 

pursued by the country is well shown in the survey called 

«The status of the state youth policy: the needs and social 

practices» conducted by «Youth» Research Center in 2016 

(figure 7.2).

The main sources of information about politics and 

world events are television (89.2%), the Internet (60.5%), 
family discussion (33.1%), as well as conversations with 
relatives and friends (16%). Social media are used as 
a source of political information only by a small number 
of young people, about 10% of the respondents. Internet, 
radio and social media are more popular as a source of 
political information among urban youth, while televi-
sion and daily newspapers are more popular among rural 
young people (Figure 7.3) [1].

Young people in Kazakhstan are not well aware of the 

activities of youth resource centers, which are created by 

local executive authorities to provide information and 

consulting services aimed at support and development 
of young people and youth organizations. Thus, only 

31.8% of the respondents know about the Youth Resource 

Centers to various extents. More than a half of the re-

spondents do not know anything about this organization 

(57.7%) (Figure 7.4).

As for the question about what kind of assistance they 

would like to receive at the Youth Resource Centers, the 
majority of young people mentioned help in employ-
ment and youth employment (49%), participation in the 
affordable housing program (43.9%), in higher education 

(27.8%), business development (25.9%), etc. (Fig.7.5).

Thus, most of the young people of Kazakhstan show 

little interest in the country’s political life today. It can be 

assumed that those 10% of young people who use social 
networks as their primary source of political information 
are the active segment of young people who are trying to 
influence the political life of the country through the new 
information technologies. That is, using other, non-tradi-
tional forms of political participation, they, nevertheless, 
can be considered as active participants in the country’s 
modern political process.

However, taking into account the fact that employ-

ment and housing issues are the most important ones 
for the country’s youth, it is clear that Kazakhstan’s young 
people have a rational attitude to the policy implemented 
in the country, being interested first of all in the programs 
and policies that directly affect their interests.

The level of political and civic participation 

of Kazakhstan’s young people
Let’s consider the results of a survey, conducted in 

the 3rd quarter of 2016, to identify the most common 

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Figure 7.4

 Do you know anything about youth 

resource centres in your region/city? (in %)

YOUNG PEOPLE’S SURVEY RESULTS (ACCORDING TO THE  «YOUTH» 

RESEARCH CENTRE)

%

Yes, I do, I’ve been at the Youth Resource Centre  5,1
Yes, I know about the Youth Resource Centre, but 

I’ve never been there

13,0

I’ve heard, read something about it

13,7

I don’t know anything about the Youth Resource 

Centre

57,7

Hard to say

10,6

Figure 7.5 

What kind of assistance or services would 

you like to receive at the Youth Resource Centres? 

(in %)[3].

YOUNG PEOPLE’S SURVEY RESULTS (ACCORDING TO THE  «YOUTH» 

RESEARCH CENTRE)

%

Assistance in employment and youth 

employment

49,0

Assistance in participation in the affordable 

housing program 

43,9

Assistance in obtainment of higher education

27,8

Assistance in development of business activity 

among young people 

25,9

Assistance in development of cultural and leisure 

activities 

17,5

Assistance in obtainment of vocational education 13,4
Legal assistance

12,7

Assistance of a psychologist, social worker 

10,7

Other (computer with Breille letters for the blind, 

assistance in sports activities, help for families 

with many children, etc.)

0,6

Hard to say

12,6

Almost 

every day

At least 

once 

a week

At least 

once 

a month

Several times 

a year and 

less

Never

Hard to say

Engage in volunteer activities 

(assistance to people, animals, 

environment protection, etc.)

6,6

8,7

9,2

19,0

55,6

1,1

Take part in the activity of 

a public association, movement

2,4

6,6

6,0

11,2

73,1

1,0

Take part in the activity of 

a political party

1,2

4,9

4,6

8,6

79,9

1,0

Attend a church, observe 

religious ceremonies

1,3

8,5

12,6

22,6

53,5

1,7

Figure 7.6 

Do you agree with the following statements or not?

YOUNG PEOPLE’S SURVEY RESULTS (ACCORDING TO THE  «YOUTH» RESEARCH CENTRE)

forms of political and civic participation of young people. 

According to the results, the majority of young Kazakh-

stanis are not members of any political parties or public 
associations. Only 15.3% of the country’s young people 
are systematically engaged in volunteer activities.

When asked about the role played by the Kazakh 

youth in the political life of the country, 48.4% of the re-
spondents, or every second person, said that their partic-
ipation in the country’s political life is their participation 
in the elections. According to the respondents, the youth 
does not play a significant role in other forms of political 
participation.

According to a survey conducted at the initiative of 

the Ebert Foundation in Kazakhstan in 2015, the impor-
tance of participation in politics and civil initiatives is not 
a priority for the youth today, but rather the contrary. 

Thus, 45.9% of the respondents believe that participation 

in politics and civil initiatives is «not so important», 35.5% 
believe that it is «not important at all».

A study conducted in 2016 also identified a signifi-

cant degree of young people’s dissatisfaction with the 
opportunities for the younger generation to influence the 
politics and participate in the enforcement of power. Just 

21% of the respondents assess their opportunities to in-
fluence the policy in Kazakhstan as high. 39% assess these 

opportunities as limited. Every third respondent consider 

the impact as weak or deny any influence of young peo-
ple on the formation of policy in Kazakhstan. [3]

As for political views and attitudes of the younger 

generation, they are characterized by inconsistency. So, 

35.8% of the respondents are focused on their own abil-

ities and family, while 46.4% have different paternalistic 
attitudes, waiting for help from the government. 17.8% 
of the respondents have «Neutral» views, which are a mix 
of  «rightist» and the Soviet values. Thus, most of the 
young people in Kazakhstan still have high demands for 
government support in dealing with personal problems.

Thus, the Kazakh youth varies significantly in matters 

of civil and political participation, as well as attitudes to-
wards the role of the government in solving the problems 
of the population.

Most of them are characterized by weak interest in 

politics and political development of the country, low 

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Figure 7.7

 What is the role of the youth in the political 

life of Kazakhstan, in your opinion? (in %) [3].

YOUNG PEOPLE’S SURVEY RESULTS (ACCORDING TO THE  «YOUTH» 

RESEARCH CENTRE)

THE TOTAL AMOUNT IS NOT EQUAL TO 100%, BECAUSE THE 

RESPONDENTS WERE OFFERED TO CHOOSE SEVERAL VARIANTS 

%

They take active part in the elections

48,4

They take part in state youth associations and 

organizations 

22,3

They influence the policy through various public 

organizations and political parties 

21,7

They work in government agencies and local 

governments 

15,7

They influence the state youth policy 

15,5

They take part in meetings and protest 

campaigns

13,2

They take part in clashes and disorders with their 

peers 

4,6

They do not influence the political life of the 

country

15,8

Hard to say

8,7

Figure 7.8 

What is your assessment of the 

opportunities to take part in and influence the 

formation of policy in Kazakhstan? (in %)

 All young people

 NEET

21

39

24

10,9

5,1

19,8

35,5

29,9

10,2

4,6

Great influence

Have certain influence

No influence

Hard to say

Poor influence

involvement in the forms of political participation. Such 
behavior, to some extent can be explained by the fact that 
young people consider as a priority solution of problems 
related to employment, education and housing. Thus, the 
low interest of young people in politics is partly explained 
by the acuteness of their vital needs. Other causes of their 
low participation are lack of confidence in the effective-
ness of traditional mechanisms of political participation in 
Kazakhstan, in their ability to influence the events taking 
place in the country. That is, we can say that most of the 
young people in the country are characterized by a cer-
tain degree of political alienation.

At the same time, today the degree of the young peo-

ple’s desire to participate in Kazakhstan’s political life 
is greater than their real participation in politics and 
civil initiatives. This fact is important because young 
people’s lack of a sense of involvement and useful-
ness to their country, while having high hopes, can 
lead to multiple negative consequences, including their 
possible involvement in the activities of destructive 
organizations, as well as deterioration of their mental 
state, social well-being. As the researchers note, the 
youth’s activity, their civic and life stance and desire to 
participate in public decision-making is the key to na-
tional security. [4]

An additional problem in this context is the lack of 

channels for political communication and participation, 
when young people do not understand what and how 
they can affect. The lack of understanding of the actual 
mechanisms and channels for involvement in influencing 
the process of social problems solving creates the feeling 
of the young people’s insignificance.

We should also particularly mention those young 

people, who translate and, thus, express their politi-
cal views through modern information technologies. 

They are mostly urban youth, who have more oppor-

tunities for self-realization. Their great involvement in 
the country’s political life is mostly due to the quality 
and availability of the Internet connection, which is sig-
nificantly higher in the cities than in rural areas. This 
means that modern means of communication are used 
by this group of young people as an instrument of 
making a noticeable impact on the country’s political 
life. However, taking into account the fact that social 
networks are not the source of information for 90% of 
the country’s young citizens, it can be assumed that the 
mobilization potential of this group of young people is 
not high today.

We are talking here about the need to create an in-

frastructure for social and political participation of young 
people. This issue is a priority, which should be resolved 
at the level of central government. It is about improving 

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the quality of local youth centers, increasing their fund-
ing, and most importantly, ensuring transparency and 
efficiency of their activity.

It is necessary to involve young people in the process 

of discussing the complex issues of social development 
through public institutions, not only at the central but 
also at the local levels.

As an example, we can mention international edu-

cational forums, one of the activities of which may be 
identifying and supporting young talents. Such forums 
can provide a platform for development of young peo-
ple’s political activity, as well as influence the process of 
addressing regional problems through the civil society 
institutions. In this regard, it is important to give up the 
formal approach and hold forums at a high level, which 
will directly affect young people’s belief in themselves, 
that they can be heard and be useful for their country.

One of the great problems is a lack of young people’s 

awareness of the possible ways of political and civic par-
ticipation. That is why, it is important to spread informa-
tion on the rights and responsibilities, as well as on the 
possible ways of their direct influence on the political life 
in the country. Thus, in general, civic education, develop-
ment of social and political activity is very important. In 
this context, the experience of Great Britain can serve as 
a good example. Since 2002, citizens’ education courses 
have been held there as part of the school educational 
programs.

 7.2. 

 THE LEVEL OF YOUNG PEOPLE’S 

PROTEST ACTIVITY 

 According to researchers, the main indicators of pro-

test activity are: awareness of protest actions; frequency 
of participation in campaigns; the scale of campaigns; 
involvement of others in protest activities; dissatisfaction 
with the state authorities, the level of political and legal 
culture [5].

According to a survey conducted in 2016 by «Youth» 

RC on «The status of the state youth policy: needs and 
social practices», the level of young people’s protest 
potential is low. Thus, the majority of the respondents, 
namely 72.5%, believe that a protest is unlikely, or rather 
unlikely, to happen at their place of residence. 32.4% are 
fully confident that protests will not happen at their place 
of residence. 13.2% of the respondents are not confident 
in their assessments, but suggest that the protests are 
likely to happen. Only 4.8% believe that mass protests 
are likely to happen (fig.7.9).

As for the regions, the likelihood of protests in their 

settlements is assessed as high by the residents of Kyz-
ylorda (the total figure of answers «definitely yes» and 

«rather yes» is 50.6%), Zhambyl (43.8%), Karaganda 

(28.4%), Atyrau (27.9%) regions, Almaty city (26.0%) 
(fig.7.10).

Of course, the results of a survey cannot serve as a ba-

sis for making conclusions about the high or low potential 
for protest. As it is known, protests arise from objective 
and subjective factors. These are the level of trust in public 
authorities and social well-being of young people in these 
regions, forms of participation and the degree of activity 
of social and political movements. In this regard, there is 
a need for an effective system for reducing the destruc-
tive protest activity not only in the above mentioned areas, 
but also in the country.

An important factor of young people’s protest poten-

tial is the level of their satisfaction with their life. Accord-
ing to the results of the survey «Studying the social and 
political situation in the youth environment» conducted 
by the «Youth» Research Center for the 3rd quarter of 

2016, the majority of the respondents are satisfied with 

their life: completely satisfied - 37.4%, more satisfied - 

46.8%. 13.8% of the respondents are not satisfied with 

their life (fig.7.11).

It is necessary to study the indicators characterizing 

the main reasons that can make young people to go to 
a public protest campaign.

The causes of political protests depend on many 

factors: the characteristics of the political process in the 
world and the country, traditions and culture of citizens, 
civil society development. At the same time, the probabil-
ity of participation in a protest increases with the level of 
young people’s concern with social problems. The main 
reason for young people’s dissatisfaction is social and 
economic challenges such as the rise in prices for food, 
fuel, medicines (12.9%), redundancy or termination of 
employment (12.2%), delay in payment of wages, pen-
sions and scholarships (9.7%), increase in tariffs for public 
utility services (7.5%), etc. (Fig. 7.12).

It should be also mentioned that dissatisfaction with 

the actions of the authorities may be a ground for a pro-
test for 8.4% of the respondents. This suggests the need 
to increase political trust through effective government’s 
activity in the social and economic sphere, activation of 
democratic institutions, creation of new mechanisms for 
youth participation in the political process.

When asked «What would you do to defend your in-

terests?», 20.2% of young people said they would appeal 
to the court, 12% would appeal to the Nur Otan party, 
9,9% - to newspapers, to television, radio (Fig. 7.13).

These results indicate that the Kazakh youth are pri-

marily focused on constructive methods to protect their 
interests, and are ready to comply with the laws, estab-
lished standards, which reduces the likelihood of protests. 
However, only 8.1% of young people will turn to the gov-
ernment representatives to defend their interests. Young 
people in this situation have more trust in the media than 
in public authorities. In addition, the overall percent of the 
respondents who answered: «I will take part in a protest 
meeting», «I will not go to work, to classes,» «I will go 

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Definitely yes

Rather 

yes

Rather 

not

Definitely 

not

Hard to say

Akmola

1,3

12,8

46,2

15,4

24,4

Aktobe

6,9

18,6

47,1

16,7

10,8

Almaty

0,5

13,5

50,7

28,4

7,0

Atyrau

4,4

23,5

36,8

20,6

14,7

East Kazakhstan

4,1

8,3

32,4

32,5

22,8

Zhambyl

18,2

25,6

26,4

27,3

2,5

West Kazakhstan

1,4

8,3

34,7

44,4

11,1

Karaganda

7,9

20,5

44,4

23,2

4,0

Kostanay

2,1

7,4

34,7

51,6

4,2

Kyzylorda

18,0

32,6

29,2

12,4

7,9

Mangistau

2,7

9,6

31,5

47,9

8,2

Pavlodar

1,3

2,5

48,1

43,0

5,1

North Kazakhstan

-

-

35,7

51,8

12,5

South Kazakhstan

0,6

4,4

41,3

53,4

0,3

Astana city

4,8

8,7

47,1

19,2

20,2

Almaty city

6,6

19,4

39,3

17,1

17,5

Figure 7.10 

Answers to question  «How do you think, is the chance of protest actions high now in the 

place of your residence (settlement)» (by regions, in %)

YOUNG PEOPLE’S SURVEY RESULTS (ACCORDING TO THE  «YOUTH» RESEARCH CENTRE)

on a hunger strike», «I will participate in the blocking of 
roads, highways» «I’ll spread leaflets and proclamations» 
was 12.5%. It should also be noted that 39.7% of young 
people said they «will not do anything» and more than 

12.5% found it hard to answer.

Thus, according to the results of surveys, we can con-

clude that the protest potential of young people is not 
a real destabilization threat to the political system. In ad-
dition, social protests stimulate social and political chang-
es, help to identify urgent problems and contradictions in 
society. Protests give a signal of trouble in society, reveal-
ing the causes of young people’s discontent. Therefore, 
today it is more important to develop a protest behavior 
culture of young people and legal mechanisms for the 
expression of their interests. This will prevent the protests, 
which can take destructive forms, accompanied by shocks 
to society when trying to settle them.

In this regard, the local executive authorities should 

develop a set of measures:

- to form political and legal culture of young people, 

build a dialogue between young people and public au-
thorities, identify the radicalization problems;

- ensure young people’s rights;
- implement the youth socialization programs;
- develop legitimate structures and mechanisms for 

expression of their interests.

 

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Figure 7.12 

Answers to the question: What kind of 

problem can make you take part in a public protest 

campaign? (in %)

YOUNG PEOPLE’S SURVEY RESULTS (ACCORDING TO THE  «YOUTH» 

RESEARCH CENTRE)

%

Rise in prices for food, fuel, medicines

12,9

Redundancy or termination of employment

12,2

Delay in payment of wages, pensions and 

scholarships

9,7

Dissatisfaction with the activity of public 

authorities

8,4

Increase in tariffs for public utility services

7,5

Housing problems

7,3

Unjustified fines

7,2

Unfair court decisions

6,7

N

egligence and incompetence of healthcare 

workers

5,9

E

nvironmental degradation

5,8

Increase in loan and mortgage payments

5,3

Problems at school, university, college

5,1

Disagreement with implemented reforms

4,5

Poor quality of education services

2,8

Infringement of rights on ethnic grounds

1,9

Other, including: terrorism, devaluation, land 

reform, nepotism in all spheres

0,6

N

othing can make me to protest openly 

46,5

Hard to say

10,1

 7.3. 

 YOUTH AND RELIGION

Interest in religion in Kazakhstan has acquired a mass 

character. The number of participants in worships, vari-
ous religious festivals and ceremonies has significantly 
increased, many of them being non-religious. The awak-
ening of religious consciousness in Kazakhstan is accom-
panied with the revival of the «national spirit». The reli-
gious situation in Kazakhstan, changed over a relatively 
short period of time, raises a number of issues that need 
to be addressed and solved.

Evaluation of the youth religious situation 

The number of religious people among the youth, es-

pecially Kazakhs, is growing. According to a survey conduct-
ed by the «Youth» research center for the 3rd quarter of 2016, 

79.6% of young people have religious beliefs. The proportion 

of those actively practicing religion is 9.9% (fig.7.14).

It was quite expected that the vast majority of young 

people consider themselves followers of the most influ-
ential in Kazakhstan and the world’s traditional religions 
such as Islam (80%) and Orthodox Christianity (16.9%) 

(fig.7.15) 

Religious commitment of the younger generation has 

national characteristics. According to the survey conduct-
ed by the «Youth» research center, Kazakh young people 
often note their attitude to religion as «a believer and ob-
server of religious ceremonies» (18.1%), compared with 
young people of Russian nationality (6.6%) and young 
people of other nationalities (17.3%) (Fig. 7.16).

Young people believe that religious commitment of-

ten contributes to the strengthening and stability of Ka-
zakhstan society. Thus, more than a half of the surveyed 
young people (56.1%) noted the positive role of religion 
in the strengthening of stability in society. At the same 
time 27.3% think that religion has a rather negative im-
pact on the processes in society (fig.7.17)

When talking about the importance of religion for 

young people, it is important to understand what exactly 
the youth is looking for in religion. According to a survey 
conducted by the «Youth» Research Center, almost a third 
of the respondents are looking for «hope, faith in the 
future» (28.5%), a quarter of the respondents answered  

«the meaning and understanding of life» (25.6%), every 

fifth respondent find «support in the difficult period of 

life» (22%) and «discipline and order» (21.6%) (Fig. 7.18)

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Figure 7.13

 Answers to the question: «What would 

you do to defend your interests?» (in %)

YOUNG PEOPLE’S SURVEY RESULTS (ACCORDING TO THE  «YOUTH» 

RESEARCH CENTER)

%

Appeal to court

20,2

Appeal to the Nur Otan party

12,0

Go to newspapers, to television, radio

9,9

Go to the public authorities 

8,1

Take part in a peaceful demonstration 

7,6

Take part in a protest meeting

3,7

Will not go to work or classes

3,6

Go on a hunger strike

2,4

Take part in blocking roads, highways

1,4

Spread leaflets

1,4

Go to any political party besides Nur Otan 

1,3

Other

0,2

Won’t do anything

39,7

Hard to say

12,5

Figure 7.14

 Do you consider yourself a believer?

YOUNG PEOPLE’S SURVEY RESULTS (ACCORDING TO THE  «YOUTH» 

RESEARCH CENTRE)

%

I am a believer, taking part in the life of 

a religious community and observing religious 

principles

9,9

I am a believer, but rarely attend church, only on 

holidays, sometimes observe religious principles  31,2
I am a believer, but do not take part in the 

religious life 

38,5

I am not a believer, but sometimes go to church 

and observe religious principles 

4,6

I am not a believer, but respect believers

7,5

I am indifferent to religion

3,9

I am against religion, an atheist 

1,1

Hard to say

3,5

At the same time young people expressed their con-

cern with following spheres of social life (Fig. 7.19)

As can be seen from the information presented in the 

table (fig.7.19), the greatest concern to young people is 
the issue of «religious radicalism and extremism».

Problems of terrorism, extremism and countering 

these phenomena in the world today have become one 
of the most important, both for individual countries and 
the international community as a whole. This is explained 
by the scope and nature of terrorist attacks in recent 
years, showing that with their changing essence, they 
have evolved from personal and national into a global 
phenomenon.

Against the backdrop of the traditional Islam’s reviv-

al in Kazakhstan, another trend is being observed that 
could destabilize the social and political situation, such as 
a spread of fundamentalist Islamic movements that have 
acquired a form of religious extremism today. This phe-
nomenon has spread all over the Middle East, gradually 
penetrating to the Caucasus and Central Asian countries.

A number of events in Almaty, Aktobe, Atyrau, Taraz 

sharply actualized the problem of terrorism and extrem-
ism in Kazakhstan. Antisocial extremist activities, real 
clashes with the police clearly marked a new stage of 
destructive activity in the country.

The main task of a secular state is to develop a well 

thought-out state policy of fight against religious ex-
tremism. Religious extremism, being a complex social 
and legal, political and ethno-psychological problem, is 
multi-aspect and ambivalent.

This is a dangerous phenomenon for the society, 

which is manifested in the form of religious preferences 

and privileges, religious enmity and hatred, politicization 
of religion and many other negative phenomena.

Over the 25-year period of independence, the country 

has passed a difficult way from the Soviet Republic with 
planned economy to a stable state with market relations. 

This path has not been easy, the State built economic, po-

litical and cross-cultural interaction mechanisms of both 
domestic and foreign policies at the same time.

The main conclusion of the experts is that social 

discontent, conflict, etc., are based on the unstable so-
cio-political and economic situation in the region and the 
country. At the same time, in certain regions instability is 
accompanies by the spread of religious extremism among 
the population.

According to the Committee of Legal Statistics and 

Special Accounts of the Office of the Prosecutor General 
of the Republic of Kazakhstan, 315 cases of crimes with 
the elements of extremism and terrorism were registered 
over 6 months of 2016, and 61 people were convicted 
for those crimes (under verdicts that entered into force).

The dynamics of crimes with the elements of terrorism 

and extremism in 2015 shows an increase over 2014 by 

165 cases, which is 225%. 315 cases related to terrorism 

and extremism were registered over 6 months of 2016, 
which is more than the annual total in 2015 by 18 cases.

What is the reason behind young people’s support 

of extremist ideas? According to a study of the National 
Counterterrorism Centre (USA), the radicalization and 
mobilization of the population is difficult to explain by 
one factor. The reasons for the radicalization of an in-
dividual may be each of the following factors: personal, 
community, group, social and political and ideological. 

Availability of necessary objects of potential radical forces 

and their readiness to specific actions lead to their mobi-

lization. Thus, they decide to commit illegal actions (Fig. 

7.14).

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Until the 2000s, the roots of religious radicalism were 

outside Kazakhstan. Later, in 2003-2004, religious radical-
ism began to spread among the country’s citizens. The 
first information on the prevention of terrorist acts by 
the country’s national security agencies was published in 

2008-2009. [6] In 2011, there were several terrorist attacks 

in the western, central and southern regions of the coun-
try, which were organized, as it turned out later, by the lo-
cal youth supporting the ideas of religious extremism. The 
explosion that took place on October 31, 2011 near the 

Atyrau Regional Akimat and shooting on November 12, 
2011 in Taraz were against the government agencies of 

Kazakhstan. [7] On May 17, 2011, a 25-year-old R.Makha-
tov blew himself up in front of the National Security Com-
mittee Department building of Aktobe region [8].

Following these events, people started to talk openly 

about the problem of religious extremism and terrorism 
in the country. According to US researchers, Kazakhstan 
has the youngest jihadists in comparison with other Cen-
tral Asian countries [9]. According to E.Karin, the group of 
Meyrambek Makulbekov «Kazakh Islamic Jihad», created 
in 2004 in Atyrau, included young people aged 21-25, the 
average age was 25, the youngest member was 18, and 
the oldest one was 43. Representatives of this group went 
to the Afghanistan-Pakistan border to commit terrorist 
acts [10].

In Atyrau region, people aged 13 to 30 (90%) follow 

Islam, 70% of them belong to the Salafi branch, i.e., are 
under the influence of a branch that is not typical of the 

Figure 7.16

 Degree of religious commitment by 

representatives of various ethnic groups 

 a believer and observer of religious ceremonies

 a believer but rarely observe religious ceremonies

 a believer but very rarely observe religious 

ceremonies

 not a believer but sometimes go to a church, 

a mosque

 not a believer but respect believers

YOUNG PEOPLE’S SURVEY RESULTS (ACCORDING TO THE  

«YOUTH» RESEARCH CENTRE)

6,5

12,5

12,5

4,3

4,8

4,2

0,6

1,3

1,8

3,0

4,8

2,4

30,2

39,0

38,7

31,8

26,8

19,6

18,1

6,6

17,3

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Figure 7.18 

What do you think a young person is 

looking for in religion?

YOUNG PEOPLE’S SURVEY RESULTS (ACCORDING TO THE  

«YOUTH» RESEARCH CENTRE)

Meaning and undertanding...

25,6

Hope, faith in...

28,5

Support in the difficult...

22,0

Discipline and...

21,6

Opportunity to...

10,5

Hard to say

9,2

Spiritual...

8,9

Collective...

6,5

Material...

0,2

YOUNG PEOPLE’S SURVEY RESULTS (ACCORDING TO THE  «YOUTH» 

RESEARCH CENTRE)

Figure 7.19 

Religious radicalism and extremism

%

Informational provocations, uncontrolled 

internet

51,2

Mass unemployment and poorness of 

population

32,3

Risk of losing independence

27,3

Loss of national identity and traditions

12,5

Hard to say

12,0

Ecological disasters, water and air pollution

11,6

Growing protest moods and tensions

11,3

Interethnic tensions, conflicts

9,4

Separatism, calls for separation of territories

7,9

Mass epidemics, diseases 

7,1

Suppression of democratic rights and freedoms  6,5
Heating and electricity supply failures

5,8

Corruption

3,1

Increase in prices for food

0,2

Increase in prices for food

0,1

Hanafi madhab, corresponding to the formation of the 
Kazakh ethnic traditions. [11]

According to the Committee on Legal Statistics and 

Special Accounts of the Prosecutor General’s Office of 
the Republic of Kazakhstan, over 6 months of 2016 the 
number of offenses related to extremism and terrorism, 
which are being considered, is 372. The following table 
presents the data by the regions of the country for 6 
months of 2016.

The country’s enforcement agencies have developed 

a  «social portrait of a religious extremist». General Pros-
ecutor’s Office of the Republic of Kazakhstan has char-
acterized a typical terrorist in the country as «a young 
man of 28 with a high school education, unemployed, 
with no special religious education, married with several 
children». According to sociologist S.Beissembayev, in 
addition to the above-mentioned characteristics, the ma-
jority of terrorists are «internal migrants», i.e. they grew 
up in the countryside, but moved to the big cities to find 
a job. There was only one oralman from Turkmenistan 
among the 14 interviewed criminals, the rest are of Ka-
zakh ethnicity [12].

If we look at the social characteristics of terrorists, 

we can identify the causes of falling into radical groups. 

According to S.Beissembayev, most of them come from 

low-income families, and their parents have no religious 
education [13]. According to another expert, E.Karin, re-
ligious extremists did not receive religious education in 
madrassas, grew up in single-parent families, often do not 
have money to get higher education, which later force 

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Table  «Statistical information on the number of 

registered crimes with the elements of terrorism and 
extremism, as well as on the number of persons convicted 
(for sentences which came centuries force) for crimes in 
this category over the period of 1998-2015 and 6 months 
of 2016.

SOURCE: COMMITTEE OF LEGAL STATISTICS AND SPECIAL ACCOUNTS 

OF THE OFFICE OF THE PROSECUTOR GENERAL OF THE REPUBLIC OF 

KAZAKHSTAN

Year

Total number of 

registered crimes

Total number 

of convicted 

persons

1998

9

7

1999

18

5

2000

14

21

2001

17

7

2002

13

2

2003

17

3

2004

115

24

2005

65

29

2006

56

24

2007

59

35

2008

60

83

2009

49

41

2010

45

44

2011

89

46

2012

132

128

2013

108

83

2014

132

58

2015

297

83

2016

315

61

Figure 7.20

 Radicalization method

RADICALIZATION

MOBILIZATION

ACTION

SOCIAL 

FACTORS

IDEOLOGICAL 

FACTOR

OBJECT

POTENTIAL

PREPARATION 

FOR AN ACTION

OPPORTUNITIES

GROUP 

FACTORS

ACCELERATORS 

OBSTACLES

(SOURCE: NATIONAL COUNTERTERRORISM CENTRE, USA)

them to join radical groups [14]. 70 - 95% of those en-
gaged in religious extremism have no official jobs. Many 
of them are just small sellers in markets or are engaged 
in other activities that do not generate stable earnings. 
However, there are also well-integrated into society 
young people among religious extremists.

Most of the terrorist acts committed by religious ex-

tremists in Kazakhstan were against the government and 
law enforcement agencies. The reason behind it is young 
people’s dissatisfaction with the current social and eco-
nomic situation. The social and economic changes that 
have taken place in the country in recent years, including 
the devaluation of the national currency and a decrease 
in incomes increase the threat of religious extremism in 
some population groups. Other factors influencing the 
spread of religious extremism are growing unemploy-
ment, lack of a social elevator, rise in prices for food, 
utility services, increased internal migration, poor living 
standards. The situation is also complicated by a high 
degree of corruption and poor quality of public services 
for citizens.

***

The main sources of information on policies and 

world events for young people of Kazakhstan are tele-
vision (89.2%), the Internet (60.5%), family discussions 

(33.1%), as well as conversations with friends and 

relatives (16%). Social networks are used as a source 
of political information by a small number of young 
people, about 10% of the respondents. Internet, radio 
and social networks as a means of obtaining politi-
cal information are more popular among urban youth, 

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while television and daily newspapers are mostly used 
by rural young people.

Sociological studies («Youth» RC, Q3 2016) show that 

young people of Kazakhstan would apply to Youth Re-
source Centres to receive assistance primarily in employ-
ment and occupation (49%), in the affordable housing 
program (43.9%), higher education (27.8%), business 
development (25.9%).

Employment and housing issues are the most im-

portant ones for the country’s youth. It is obvious that 
Kazakhstan’s youth is characterized by a rational attitude 
to the policy implemented in the country, being primarily 
interested in the programs and policies that directly affect 
their interests.

An important factor of the protest potential of young 

people is the level of their satisfaction with life. Accord-
ing to the results of the survey «Study of the social and 
political situation in the youth environment» conducted 
by the «Youth» Research Center for the 3rd quarter 2016, 
the majority of the respondents are satisfied with their 
life: completely satisfied - 37.4%, rather satisfied - 46.8%, 

13.8% - not satisfied.

The main reason for their dissatisfaction are social and 

economic problems: rise in prices for food, fuel, medi-
cines (12.9%), redundancy or termination of employment 

(12.2%), delay in payment of wages, pensions, scholar-

ships ( 9.7%), increase in tariffs for public utility services 

(7.5%), and etc.

The number of religious people among the youth, 

especially Kazakhs, is growing. 79.6% of young people 
surveyed follow religious beliefs.

Young people believe that religious commitment of-

ten contributes to the strengthening and stability of Ka-
zakhstan society. Thus, more than a half of the surveyed 
young people (56.1%) noted the positive role of religion 
in the strengthening of stability in society. 

According to a survey, almost a third of the respon-

dents are looking for «hope, faith in the future» (28.5%), 
a quarter of the respondents answered  «the meaning 
and understanding of life» (25.6%), every fifth respondent 

find «support in the difficult period of life» (22%) and 

«discipline and order» (21.6%) (Fig. 7.18)

A number of events in Almaty, Aktobe, Atyrau, Taraz 

sharply actualized the problem of terrorism and extrem-
ism in Kazakhstan. Antisocial extremist activities, real 
clashes with the police clearly marked a new stage of 
destructive activity in the country.

Over 50% of the respondents believe that religious 

radicalism and extremism are the main threats to the 
country’s security. 

REFERENCES

1.  Состояние государственной молодежной по-

литики: потребности и социальные практики / 

А.Т.Даутов, Р.Р.Аюпова, Т.В.Башарина — Астана: 

НИЦ «Молодежь», 2016. — 204 с.; Молодежь 
Центральной Азии. Казахстан. На основе соци-

ологического опроса. Под науч.руководством 

проф.Клауса Хурельмана. Алматы, 2015. — 440 

с.

2.  Молодежь Центральной Азии. Казахстан. На 

основе социологического опроса. Под науч. 

руководством проф. Клауса Хурельмана. Ал-
маты, 2015. С.143.

3.  «Изучение общественно-политической ситуа-

ции в молодежной среде»3 квартал 2016 года 
научно-исследовательский центр«Молодежь».

4.  Научно-исследовательский  центр  «Моло-

дежь» «Изучение общественно-политической 

ситуации в молодежной среде» 2 квартал 2016 

года Астана,2016г.

5.  Беликова Е.А. Политическое участие молоде-

жи: анализ проблем политической активности 

Figure 7.21 

Number of offenses related to extremism and 

terrorism, which are being considered, for 6 

months of 2016 (regions)

SOURCE: COMMITTEE ON LEGAL STATISTICS AND SPECIAL 

ACCOUNTS OF THE PROSECUTOR GENERAL’S OFFICE 

OF THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN

74

21

4

7

42

26

50

9

37

28

31

4

7

15

5

3

NKR

WKR

 Almaty region

Akmola region 

Astana city

EKR

Mangystau region

Kostanay region

Almaty city

Aktobe region

Atyrau region

Zhambyl region

Karaganda region

Kyzylorda region

Pavlodar region

SKR

CHAPTER 7

YOUNG PEOPLE IN SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PR

OCESSES

352

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Center «Youth»

National Report «Youth of Kazakhstan – 2016»

/http://elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=21642615

6.  Beissembayev, Serik. 2016. Religious Extremism 

in Kazakhstan: From Criminal Networks to Jihad. 

The Central Asia Fellowship Papers. No.15.

7.  https://tengrinews.kz/events/atyirau-

zdaniya-oblastnogo-akimata-  progremelo-
vzryiva-200394/

8.  http://rus.azattyq.org/a/terrorism-map-in-

kazakhstan/24747077.html

9.  https://www.cacianalyst.org/publications/

analytical-articles/item/13043- how-real-is-the-
jihadi-threat-to-kazakhstan?.html

10.  Karin,  Erlan.  The  Soldiers  of  the  Caliphate: 

The Anatomy of a Terrorist Group. — Astana, 

2016. — 154p.

11.  h t t p : / / i w e p . k z / e n / k o m m e n t a r i y -

eksperta/2013-09-01/the-problem-of- terrorism-
for-kazakhstan-between-the-scylla-and-
charybdis

12.  http://www.ofstrategy.kz
13.  Ibid
14.  Karin,  Erlan.  The  Soldiers  of  the  Caliphate: 

The Anatomy of aTerrorist Group. — Astana, 

2016. — 154p.

15.  Karl-Dieter OppTheories of Political Protest 

and  Social  Movements:  A Multidisciplinary 

Introduction, Critique, and Synthesis. NewYork: 

Routledge, 2009, 448 pp.

16.  Jenkins J.S., Klandermans B. The Politics of Protest.

Comparative Perspectives on State and Social 
Movements. Univ. Of Minnesota Press: UCL 
Press.1995.Р.6.

17.  Гарр Т. Почему люди бунтуют. — СПб.: Питер, 

2005. — С.10-11 [461с.].

18.  Гаранин О.Ю. Протестная активность молоде-

жи в условиях политической модернизации 

современной России: Автореф. дисс. к. по-
лит.н. — Волгоград,2009.

19.  «Религиозная ситуация в Казахстане и процес-

сы активизации религиозного сознания моло-

дежи». Аналитический отчет. — Алматы,2014.

CHAPTER

 1

THE DEMOGRAPHIC PR

OFILE OF THE Y

OUTH OF  THE REPUBLIC OF  KA

ZAKHST

AN

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National Report «Youth of Kazakhstan – 2016»

Youth crime

CHAPTER 8

CHAPTER 8

YOUTH CRIME

354

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Center «Youth»

National Report «Youth of Kazakhstan – 2016»

 8.1 

 GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF YOUTH 

CRIME AND DELINQUENCY: CAUSES AND 

CRIME PREVENTION

Youth crime is always alarming. Adolescence is known 

as the age of increased protest against the moral norms 
and principles of the adults. Unsuccessful socialization 

largely determines the growth of youth delinquency. 

Criminal statistics uses its age graduation to account 

for age groups of young people. The young people ac-
cordingly are divided into «teenagers» or «minors» - 14-

18 years, «youth» - 19-24, and «young adults» - 25-29. 

Turning to the genesis of teenagers and youth crime, 

we note first of all that it is subject to the general laws. 

There is no special, specific «causes» of adolescent and 

youth crime. But socio-economic inequality, capability 
gap among young people belonging to various groups 

(strata), is peculiarly manifests itself in relation to adoles-
cents and youth.

Firstly, in all the societies, the concept of «senior» and 

«junior» means not only the age, but also the status 

differences. The «seniority» concept has not only de-
scriptive but also axiological, social and status meaning, 
indicating an inequality or, at least, the asymmetry of 
rights and obligations. In all languages, the «junior» 
concept indicates not only on age, but on a dependent, 
subordinate status «[1]. This causes not only increased 
deviance, but also increased victimity (the ability to be-
come a victim). 

Thus, according to official statistics for 2015 twice as 

many crimes were committed towards the minors than 
in 2011, including more than half of the crimes set out in 

Articles 120-124 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of 

Kazakhstan (rape, sexual assault, sexual intercourse and 
other sexual acts with a person under sixteen years of age, 
compulsion to sexual intercourse, sodomy, lesbianism or 
other sexual actions, corruption of minors).

According to the General Prosecutor office, if in 2010 

1,491 teenager were the victims of violent persons, then 

in 2015 - the figure was already 1,943. Over 6 months 
of 2016 the number of criminal offenses increased by 

30% compared with the previous year. In 2015, 133 sexual 

assault criminal cases were filed, 465 sexual intercourse 
and other sexual acts with persons not reached sixteen 
years of age, 101 corruption of minors. Thus only in the 

South-Kazakhstan region 467 pregnant minors were 
registered in the maternity welfare center, and over four 
months of 93 teenage girls of the South Kazakhstan re-
gion become pregnant. 

In total, 1,360 minors - the victims of criminal attacks 

were identified in the Republic, including 670 teenag-
ers suffered death, 626 minors received a serious bodily 
harm. In most cases, crimes against minors are commit-
ted by their peers and hidden away by adults the young 
people reached out to. At the same time it is alarming that 
not all the crimes are revealed. 

Secondly, the contradictions between the current (and 

constantly growing) needs of people and unequal oppor-
tunities to meet them are particularly acute with regard 
to adolescents and youth. The rapid development of their 
physical, intellectual, emotional strength, the desire to 
assert themselves in the adult comes into conflict with 
the insufficient social maturity, lack of professional and 

life experience, low qualifications (or lack thereof), and, 

consequently, low (uncertain, marginal) status. Numer-
ous case studies revealed the dissatisfaction of adoles-
cents and youth with the training and labor conditions, 

living conditions, opportunities to express themselves in 

creative activities. This dissatisfaction is due to objective 
circumstances, rather than «whims» or inflated ambitions 
of the young.

Thirdly, with regard to teenagers the acute problem is 

the «channeling» of energy, social activity in socially ap-
proved, or at least an acceptable direction, since the youth 
is in particular need of social recognition, self-assertion, 
but then again with the insufficient capabilities. The un-

filled need for self-assertion leads to personal fulfillment 
attempts not only in the work (which is quite difficult), but 

in the negative forms of activity ( «Herostratus complex») 

- violence, crimes (which is «easier») or leads to retreat - 

«escape» - into alcohol, drugs, out of life. 

Crime statistics is kept according to the number of 

criminal and administrative cases that have been filed in 
the previous years in Kazakhstan. Total of 39,611 cases on 
young people aged between 14 and 29 years were filed 
over 9 months of 2016. 

The dynamics of youth crime shows its structural anal-

ysis for 2015 and the first 9 months of 2016 (Figure 8.1.). 

Analysis of crimes committed by young people shows 

a growth in the crime rate over 9 months of 2016 by 5,4% 

Figure 8.1 

Dynamics in youth crime for 2015 and 9 months of 2016

SOURCE: COMMITTEE ON LEGAL STATISTICS AND SPECIAL RECORDS OF THE GENERAL PROSECUTOR OFFICE OF KAZAKHSTAN

Types of crimes

9 months of 2015

9 months of 2016

Total crimes

37478

39611

including

minor crime

6260

6795

crime of average gravity 

19737

21942

grievous crime

4865

5482

extremely grievous crime

420

440

CHAPTER 8

YOUTH CRIME

355

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National Report «Youth of Kazakhstan – 2016»

Figure 8.2

 The structure of youth crime over 2010-2016

SOURCE: COMMITTEE ON LEGAL STATISTICS AND SPECIAL RECORDS OF THE PROSECUTOR GENERAL OF THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN 

Types of crimes

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

9 months 

of 2016 

Total crime

46 918 46 057 54 522 54 042 53 961 51856

39611

Criminal offenses against the person

3 890

3 619

4 336

4 487

4 191

3 825

2705

Including

Murder (art.99)

764

653

722

629

482

349

281

Intentional infliction of bodily 

harm (art. 106)

797

832

864

867

775

887

662

Rape (art. 120)

969

991

1 339

1 421

1 242

939

554

Criminal offenses against property

31 202 33 648 37 448 35 540 35 860 31 241 26083

Including

Theft (art.188)

19 230

21 625 23 941

22 488

22 965

18 946

16515

Fraud (art.190)

2 317

2 167

2 844

2 999

4 071

2 995

2435

Robbery (art.191) 

5 634

6 268

6 502

6 152

4 958

3 893

3095

Robbery with 

1 364

1 420

1 209

1 010

743

590

474

Criminal offenses against public safety 

and public order

5 791

5 566

7 913

9 804

9 437

7 265

4349

Disorderly conduct (art.293)

5 407

5 198

7 276

9 351

8 980

6 931

3955

compared with the same period of 2015. Among the 
crimes committed by young people the property-type 
crimes are dominant. Thus, out of 36,611 crimes commit-
ted by youth over 9 months of 2016, the venal and violent 
type crimes account more than 70% (26,083), these are 
theft (16,515), robbery (3,095), fraud (2,435) and robbery 
with violence (474).

A detailed qualitative analysis of recorded violations 

on the completed criminal cases over 9 months of 2016 
allows to reveal regional characteristics of youth crime 
(Fig.8.3) 

In order to address the impact on the youth and teen-

ager crime state, to form a law-abiding behavior at the 
national level the public carries out preventive operations 
(«Teenager» and «Holiday», «Children in the night city») 
and activities («Teenager-law-Security», «Employment» 
and «me and my police») together with the participa-
tion of the interested state bodies representatives such 
as «Nur Otan» party, NGOs. Over the 9 months of this 
year about 7 thousand such events have been held. At 
the same time, on the initiative of the MIA annually in real 
time mode an Internet conference, where users can ask 
questions relevant to them is held. 

The proportion of juvenile offenders in Kazakh-

stan is 6% of the total youth crimes. The proportion of 

14-16-year-old minors out of total persons committed 

the crimes is 2.7% (over 9 months of 2016). Their criminal 
activity, of course, is lower than that of the 18-21 year olds’ 

(2,372 and 6,975 respectively). 

Being misunderstood by adults, young people come 

together in groups to form a youth subculture with its 
values, norms, interests, language (slang), characters, 
which is not always characterized by law-abiding. Social 
and psychological factors of subcultural communities 
formation - people’s need to unite, psychological protec-

tion, the need to be «understood», to assert themselves 
among their peers. 

Subcultural community the more united and distinct 

from the dominant culture, the more firmly and strongly 
rejected it. 

It is worth noting that the growth of crime in a state of 

alcohol and drug excitement is first of all among military 
servers (by 40%). Studies conducted among high school 
students of Kazakhstan shows that 70% of respondents 
have ever used alcohol, and the first experience was in 
the age of 11-13 years. 

According to p. 1, Art.6 of the Law of the Republic 

of Kazakhstan «On juvenile delinquency prevention and 
child neglect and homelessness prevention» the system 
of delinquency, child neglect and homelessness preven-
tion among minors included the internal affair bodies, 
educational bodies, the commission on juvenile affairs 
and protection of their rights and other state bodies with-
in their competence.

According to statistics, a total weight of male offend-

ers account for about 85%, the girls - about 15%. In recent 
years, the range and the number of crimes committed by 
minor and teenager girls is expanding. 

More than 30% of youth who have committed crimes, 

never studied or worked. One of the main reasons that in-

fluenced the increase in the number of crimes committed 

by youth, is internal migration, when, due to an influx of 
young people from depressed areas, especially villages, in 
large industrial centers of Kazakhstan they commit 80% of 
the total number of crimes committed by young people. 

Statistics show that in 2015, out of more than 104 

thousand persons committed the crime, 87 th., or 83% 
are unemployed ones. Herewith, 42 th. or every second 
relates to the youth category. Under these conditions, of 
a special concern is the fact that the majority of crimes