Kazakhstan will not soften liability for driving under the influence. Deputy Interior Minister Igor Lepekha said this, stressing that even the current tough measures are not yet stopping offenders, according to infohub.kz.
According to the deputy interior minister, any talk of possibly easing punishment would be appropriate only if the number of drunk drivers were steadily declining. However, the statistics from recent years cited by Lepekha show the opposite trend.
"If we could say that our situation is sharply improving, then there would be something to discuss. Just look at the statistics. In 2023, we stopped 22,000 drivers for drunk driving. In 2024, 24,700, and in 2025, 25,300. So we are saying: this is such a severe measure, but it does not stop people, people still drive," Lepekha said.
In the incomplete 2026, according to his data, police identified 17,100 drivers in a state of intoxication. The deputy minister believes that softening punishment could lead to an increase in such violations.
In addition, Igor Lepekha cited data on road accidents involving drunk drivers: over the past year, there were 670 such accidents, in which 56 people died.
"Let's ask the relatives of the people who died after being hit by drunk drivers. How would they react to these issues? To amnesty, to reduction, to softening? Our position is unchanged. We will definitely not raise the question of reducing the period of license deprivation," Igor Lepekha said.
Earlier, Kursiv wrote that Kazakhstan wants to introduce a points system for drivers who regularly violate the rules and ignore fines. For repeated serious violations, a driver's license may be suspended for one year.