Zhanna Urazbakhova is a well-known Kazakhstani lawyer
and human rights advocate whose name became a symbol of the fight for women's
rights following the landmark Saltanat Nukenova case. However, her career is
much more than just one high-profile case — it is the result of 15 years of
hard work, hundreds of complex financial and criminal cases, teaching, and
daily dedication to human lives.
In this video, Zhanna sincerely shares her personal
story. You will learn about her childhood in Almaty, her mother who dedicated
her life to science, her parents' divorce, and how her childhood love for
Agatha Christie's detective stories shaped her destiny. Zhanna honestly opens
up about the hardships she faced: what it was like to attend university while
pregnant, traveling to Astana in freezing winter for exams, and falling just
one point short of getting her attorney's license on the first try — and how
she refused to give up.
We talk about how the Saltanat case became a turning
point in the modern history of Kazakhstan, why protecting women's rights is not
a war against men, and how Zhanna manages to remain a loving mother of three, a
wonderful wife, and avoid burnout while carrying the weight of other people's
pain.
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