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You knew this was coming: Kanye West has been chastised by a human rights group for performing in Kazakhstan last weekend. He was reportedly paid in the neighborhood of three million dollars for his appearance at the wedding of Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev‘s grandson.
Human Rights Foundation President Thor Halvorssen calls Kazakhstan a “human rights wasteland,” adding that “someone like Kanye, who makes a living expressing his views, would find himself in a prison” under Nazarbayev’s rule.
The group compares the Kanye concert to a performance by Jennifer Lopez earlier this summer in Turkmenistan, a country that has also been cited for human rights violations.
The chairman of the HRF, Garry Kasparov, states, “The millions of dollars paid to Kanye came from the loot stolen from the Kazakhstan treasury. He has supported numerous charities throughout his career, including a few specifically focused on international human rights work. Kanye has entertained a brutal killer and his entourage. Will he follow J-Lo’s lead and simply remain hypocritically oblivious to the plight of some of the world’s most oppressed people?”
Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio
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