More than a thousand people held an unauthorized rally in Atyrau ( the administrative center of the region Atyrau in the western part of Kazakhstan ). People are protesting against changes to the Land Code that allows to sell land to foreigners, the local newspaper Ak Zhayik reports. There are women and children among the demonstrators.

Media outlets report that the activists submitted an application to the akimat ( mayor's office.) to held a rally on April 24, but their application was denied . The leaders of different institutions came out to meet with demonstrators. They tried to explain them that the new Land Code contains no threats to the sovereignty of Kazakhstan, but of no use.

During the negotiations with Nurlan Nogaev, the akim of Atyrau oblast, the protesters demanded to stop the criminal cases initiated against eight civil activists, RIA Novosti reported .

Earlier, the Deputy Minister of Economy Kairbek Uskenbaev explained that the agricultural land will not be transmitted to the ownership of foreign citizens. Foreign citizens may have lands for agricultural purposes only under the right of temporary land usage with a condition to lease the land up to twenty-five years .