On 7 April the court of Astana sentenced Nurbek Kushakbayev to two-and-a-half years in a corrective labour colony for his calls to hold a strike. This is the first time a union leader has been prosecuted through the recently adopted Criminal Code. The judge has also satisfied the OCC’s demand to collect KZT 25 million (US$80,000) from Kushakbayev for alleged harm caused to the company...OCC management started mass layoffs of employees who participated in the protests. The OCC is a part of KazMunaiGas, the largest state oil and gas company in Kazakhstan.