Interior ministry weighs liquor sale limits in Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs has proposed limiting alcohol sales to specialized shops with restricted working hours. The initiative was presented by Interior Minister Yerzhan Sadenov during a session of the Interdepartmental Commission for the Prevention of Offences in Kazakhstan.
The agency believes that addressing the issue of alcohol abuse requires a comprehensive approach. For example, some entrepreneurs whose licenses have been revoked continue to sell alcohol illegally through straw parties or by operating under the guise of all-night bars.
According to the ministry, police identified and stopped 7,000 violations related to liquor turnover. Business entities were fined a total of approximately $682,000, and 2,252 licenses were revoked.
«A total of 107,000 cases of liquor drinking in public places have been halted. Injunctions against drinking have been handed to 11,000 individuals. Public intolerance toward alcohol is being actively promoted. There are 402 settlements across the country that have renounced alcohol,» Sadenov added.
The meeting’s proposals included:
- Tightening eligibility requirements for license issuance;
- Reviewing the possibility of allowing liquor sales only at specialized shops with restricted working hours.
In late June, Kursiv.media reported that Kazakhstan saw a rise in alcohol-free villages, following an initiative of the same name launched by the ministry, which bans alcohol sales in selected rural areas.
