Imagine you were born in one of the richest countries in the world, with an area as big as the entire territory of the European Union. All the wealth is in the hands of a narrow group of corrupt oligarchs, while the population of the country simply survives on food loans.
This is what #Kazakhstan looks like today, where the regime is kept in place only through brutal repression and Putin's army, ready to crush peaceful protests at the first call of the Kazakh president.
As soon as you dare to put a like under a post criticising the authorities or participate in a protest, you are declared an extremist, a terrorist, a threat to national security or a money launderer.
The police will not only torture you to death after your arrest, they always take hostages of those you care about most. Your son or daughter may be kidnapped and killed to "make you come to your senses".
Your only chance of escape is to get on EU or US politicians' political prisoner lists. Kazakhstan is very keen on international recognition, trade and these are the only leverages for the release of political prisoners.
But let's look at another situation. You are not an activist. You're just a sympathiser and you've decided to donate to support the politically persecuted or support an opposition movement.
🔻What then? You'll be charged with „funding extremism” or „laundering money” in a secret court. You, your family members will all be financially excluded immediately. You can work informally for cash, but it is becoming increasingly difficult.
In such situations as described above, p2p exchange of cash for #bitcoin becomes the only salvation for you, how to protect your resources from illegal searches by secret police, banal theft and in general safety, transfer of your value.
🔻But the party did not last long: Kazakhstan's regime decided to take the tool away from the financially excluded and criminalise p2p cash-to-cryptocurrency exchanges in line with FATF/G7 recommendations.
Protecting such people as politically repressed is almost impossible for human rights defenders with this approach. This is one of the main factors why negative language towards bitcoin/p2p exchanges should not be allowed in the regulation of democracies.
🔻Kazakhstan primarily targeting those who use p2p transactions, mostly with cash for bitcoin and #USDT. On 12 March 2024, Kazakhstani media reported that a resident of Astana was imprisoned for 2 years and 6 months with confiscation of property for "illegal p2p-exchange of cash for cryptocurrency".
🔻Follow how fast was reaction of regime: on 4 March 2024, the Financial Monitoring Agency of Kazakhstan announced that it "observes the presence of illegal transactions of individuals with cryptocurrency (purchase, sale, payments for goods, works, services, transactions via P2P)".
Already on 12 March, the first demonstrative "verdict" on conducting "illegal" p2p exchanges of cash for cryptocurrency was announced.
🔥Question to #Nostr: What solutions do you have to protect individuals doing #cash to bitcoin p2p exchanges in such countries?
p.s. This is a photo of the family of a peaceful Kazakhstani man, 31-year-old Zasulan #Amangeldinov, a father of three.
He is one of the victims of torture and mass shootings involving Russian troops in January 2022. The reason for his arrest and torture by pouring boiling water on him in the Almaty pre-trial detention centre is that he was a witness and victim of mass shootings. Zhasulan was financially excluded as a „suspected extremist”.
