"We are firmly against it": The Ministry of Internal Affairs commented on easing penalties for drunk driving.

In the corridors of the Senate, the head of the Interior Ministry's administrative police committee commented on a recently proposed initiative by a deputy to ease penalties for drunk driving in Kazakhstan, reports NUR.KZ correspondent.

https://www.nur.kz/society/2223651-my-kategoricheski-protiv-v-mvd-vyskazalis-o-smyagchenii-nakazaniya-za-pyanoe-vozhdenie/2025-02-26 08:30:25

"The number of drivers operating vehicles while intoxicated cannot be said to be decreasing. They continue to drive as they have before. Regarding accountability - yes, we are receiving many requests (for leniency - ed.) at this time."

"Since the beginning of the year, the Ministry of Internal Affairs has received 7,500 appeals for leniency or amnesty. However, concerning the position of the Ministry of Internal Affairs - we are categorically against declaring an amnesty and softening the penalties for driving under the influence of alcohol," - stated the head of the administrative police committee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kaysar Sultanbaev.

He added that there was a vote on this topic on social media with the question, "Should we ease the punishment for drunk driving?"

"There will be no leniency. There was a public survey on social media - to ease or not. About 7,000 people participated in the survey, and the majority voted against leniency."

"We studied the practices of various countries - Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, the USA, and so on. Their laws are much stricter than ours. For example, in Japan, not only the driver is held accountable, but also family members. Therefore, I believe that the responsibility here is proportionate," - added the representative of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Earlier, Majilis deputy Nikolai Arsyutin criticized the practice of revoking driving licenses for 7 years due to "drunk" driving in Kazakhstan during a Majilis meeting and proposed to soften the punishment.

Later, in the Senate corridors, the deputy and former vice-minister of internal affairs spoke about the possibility of easing the punishment for drunk driving in Kazakhstan.

It is worth noting that last year, a group of car enthusiasts in Kazakhstan advocated for leniency in penalties for driving while intoxicated and created a petition on this matter. As the author stated, many drivers from across the country rallied around this initiative. The Ministry of Internal Affairs had responded back then about whether they were willing to make concessions to motorists.

Later, the Ministry of Internal Affairs responded to this proposal, stating that they do not see the need to reconsider the penalty measure and consider it quite "adequate."

It should be noted that the responsibility for driving while intoxicated is provided for in Article 608 of the Administrative Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

According to part 1 of this article, operating a vehicle by a driver in a state of alcohol, drug, and/or toxic intoxication, as well as transferring control of a vehicle to a person in a state of alcohol, drug, and/or toxic intoxication, results in an administrative arrest for 15 days and revocation of the right to operate a vehicle for a period of 7 years .

If driving under the influence causes harm to the victim's health, but there are no signs of a criminal offense, the offender faces an arrest for 20 days and revocation of driving rights for 7 years.

In case of repeated violations, the driver faces an arrest for 25 days and revocation of driving rights for 9 years.