Almaty civil service department asks mayor's office about Kok-Zhailau tree-felling recordings

September 16, 2026 at 10:21 AM2 min

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The Almaty city department of the Agency for Civil Service Affairs has asked the mayor's office for information about audio recordings related to tree felling at Kok-Zhailau. The request follows the city prosecutor's office forwarding a media inquiry to the department. The mayor's office has extended its own response deadline to September 18.

Key Facts

The Almaty civil service department sent a request to the city mayor's office for information on the Kok-Zhailau tree-felling audio recordings.
The Vlast editorial office sent its inquiry to the General Prosecutor's Office on August 28.
The mayor's office extended its response deadline to September 18.
Aruna Ortaeva, an opponent of the Kok-Zhailau ski resort construction, published the audio recordings on Instagram in August.
Ortaeva was later arrested for 15 days.

Official Inquiry

The Almaty city department of the Agency for Civil Service Affairs sent a request to the city mayor's office to obtain information and clarify the circumstances described in the appeal. The department stated that the results of the request's consideration would be reported additionally. The Vlast editorial office sent its inquiry to the General Prosecutor's Office on August 28, asking whether the published audio recordings became grounds for an official check of the actions of Almaty mayor's office officials and the management of Kazakh Tourism Development. The inquiry was redirected to the Almaty prosecutor's office and then to the city civil service department.

Audio Recordings and Arrest

In August, Aruna Ortaeva, an opponent of the ski resort construction in the Kok-Zhailau tract, published audio recordings on Instagram. The recordings allegedly capture mayor's office employees discussing at a working meeting how to make the endangered Sievers apple trees cease to be protected and be cut down for the construction of a road to Kok-Zhailau, as well as how to properly conduct public hearings. Ortaeva was later arrested for 15 days.