The Kyrgyz pianist is hailed in the Kazakh media as a paid participant

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However, the man seen in the video has been recognized by his relatives in Kyrgyzstan, who claim that it is jazz pianist Vikram Ruzahunov, who often went to music in Kazakhstan – the last time on January 2, the portal “Currenttime” reports.

A man in a video distribution in the state media of Kazakhstan says that he has agreed to take part in the riots for 90 thousand tenge (about 200 dollars) because he is unemployed. He also paid for a plane ticket to Kazakhstan.

Relatives say they have not been able to contact Ruzahunov. The Kyrgyz Interior Ministry, to which relatives have turned for help, confirms that the video shows Ruzahunov, a Kyrgyz citizen.

Kazakhstan’s Interior Ministry, in response to the news, said that the detainee shown in the video was not Ruzahunov but Zakir Uburov, who was born in 1990.

“Currenttime” failed to find such a name in Kyrgyz voter lists. There is a man with a similar surname Zakirs Juburovs, who has been working in Almaty for more than a year. However, his brother denied to the media that the man in the video was his relative.

Mass protests against the rise in liquefied gas prices began in Kazakhstan on January 2, which soon swept across the country. Gas prices were slashed, but protests continued, demanding the removal of long-time ruling Nursultan Nazarbayev.

President Kasim Zhomart Tokayev announced Nazarbayev’s resignation as chairman of the National Security Council, but also strongly opposed the unrest, accusing him of hosting “terrorist groups trained abroad” and asking for help from the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (ODIHR), which brought in 6 . in January.

On Monday, January 10, in the largest city of Kazakhstan Almaty has re-established internet connections, which may mark the end of a week of bloody protests.

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