Participants in the German-Kazakh exchange on public relations Kazakhstan
In May 2026, Wolf-Tilman Baumert, Chief Public Prosecutor and Press Officer for the Wuppertal Public Prosecutor’s Office, and reporter Ekkehard Wolff provided press officers from the Kazakh courts in Almaty with practical insights into their day-to-day media work.
The requirements for modern communication work in the justice sector are constantly evolving. As part of the German-Kazakh exchange of experiences, the participants therefore learnt strategies for effective public relations work and a sensitive approach to challenging situations in cooperation with the media and state institutions.
In conclusion, the participants that emphasised the presented solutions had encouraged them to develop a modern and transparent public relations strategy. Through concrete case studies, exercises and discussions, they received valuable insights and practical recommendations for their day-to-day work. Not least for this reason, our Kazakh partners expressed their support for continuing cooperation in this area.
Participants in the seminar on child-friendly justice Kazakhstan
As a judge or public prosecutor, how do you deal with the conflict between victim protection and establishing the truth? Which legal instruments ensure the best possible protection for underage victims in criminal proceedings?
These key questions were addressed at a seminar for Kazakh judges, prosecutors, lawyers and representatives of other institutions in Astana on 2 and 3 February 2026.
The professional exchange with Anne Meier-Göring, Presiding Judge at the Hamburg Regional Court (Juvenile Criminal Division), and Dr Johannes Schlichte, Presiding Judge at the Hamburg Regional Court (Criminal Division), focused on child rights-based standards in dealing with underage witnesses from a German perspective. Practical solutions were presented and discussed in depth.
Finally, concrete recommendations were made, which the Kazakh side intends to implement systematically. The aim is to better take into account the special needs of children and young people in criminal proceedings. This includes, among other things, guaranteeing psychosocial and legal support for the children affected in the proceedings in order to improve the framework conditions for a child-friendly justice system.
Dr Angela Reitmaier, Member of the Executive Committee of Transparency International Deutschland e.V./ Expert on international anti-corruption agreements (4th from right), Prof Dr Marat Bashimov, member of the Parliament of the Republic Kazakhstan (3rd from right) and Altynai Myrzabekova, Staff member responsible for Kazakhstan at the international secretariat of Transparency International (2nd from right). Kazakhstan
A new anti-corruption law is currently being intensively debated in the Majlis, the lower house of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The political debates continue to highlight the need for further support from IRZ in this area of law.
Against this backdrop, in August 2025, following its consultations with the Anti-Corruption Agency – which had been integrated into the National Security Council's anti-corruption service in June 2025 – IRZ organised a study trip with expert discussions in Berlin. This involved representatives of the Kazakh Parliament, the presidential administration, the Agency for Public Service Affairs and others. The aim was to share German experiences and best practices in effective anti-corruption and prevention, and to analyse relevant legislative initiatives and practices in dialogue with German colleagues.
During the three-day study trip, the Kazakh delegates held expert discussions at the German Bundestag, the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection, the Berlin Public Prosecutor's Office and Transparency International on party financing, the legal basis for combating corruption and the need for civil society involvement in the fight against corruption. Particular attention was paid to issues such as the liability of not only private individuals but also legal entities for acts of corruption in the banking sector, in the economy and in companies, as well as the provisions of German criminal law relating to bribery and favouritism towards public officials. The discussion focused on German guidelines in the public service and quasi-public sectors, as well as criminal and administrative liability for promising bribes.
