Anti-government protesters were detained on February 28 in Kazakhstan’s capital, Nur-Sultan, and the country’s largest city, Almaty. Security forces tried to surround smaller groups of protesters and push them into police buses. Rallies were called across Kazakhstan by two opposition groups — the Democratic Party and Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan. Protesters demanded the release of political prisoners and decried the continuing authoritarian influence of former President Nursultan Nazarbaev.

This post was originally published on Radio Free.