I was born in Kazakhstan. Where people hate Jews and drink horse urine, if not so much in reality even more so in fiction.

Borat Sagdiyev, a fictional journalist played by the British comic Sacha Baron Cohen (a.k.a Ali G) on Da Ali G Show, has been causing the Kazakh government some discomfort. On several occasions, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry has expressed concern over the fact that Borat portrays Kazakhstan as a backwards country full of uncouth, sexist people.

Should the Kazakh government be taking Borat so seriously?

Even before watching an episode of the show, I knew the melody and the lyrics of its absurd song about my homeland by heart. It is a bit disturbing that most people start singing it the second I mention my birthplace. The debate over whether Borat is offensive or not is a bit pathetic, as is his sense of humor. Though members of the Dartmouth Borat Alliance may not agree (the man enjoys quite a strong following on this campus with 79 members in the Facebook group), I am amused only by the trivial and irrelevant manner in which the comedian portrays Kazakhstan.

I must admit that I laughed watching Borat’s ridiculous episodes full of poor humor and rampant misinformation. But why did Baron Cohen choose Kazakhstan as a target of his ridicule? In his clips, he repeats “Dziekuje” and “Jak sie masz?” - Polish for “thank you” and “how are you,” respectively. I have not seen a native Kazakh in any of his clips (though I have admittedly not watched many episodes), nor have I seen any traditional Kazakh attire or customs. The strange Middle Eastern fiddlers in the show have somehow found themselves in the Central Asian steppe land, and Borat’s native village seems to have been transported from Eastern Europe. So what is Borat really making fun of?

The answer to this question remains a matter of opinion. The Kazakh government takes Borat quite seriously, responding to his jokes in a public manner. Yerzhan Ashykbayev, Kazakh Foreign Ministry spokesperson, even invited Borat to visit Kazakhstan “to see for himself” how civilized Kazakhstan truly is.

I cannot blame the young country for being concerned about its image. Since its independence in the early 90s after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Kazakhstan has yet to establish its place in the international arena. Few Americans know that it is the richest Central Asian country, or that Kazakhstan has great economic prospects. Anton Kunayev ’08 (also from Kazakhstan), shares the Kazakh government’s well-founded sensitivity: “Take the United States, for example. It has so much coverage that jokes like [the ones on Da Ali G Show] will not compromise its image in the world. However, a country like Kazakhstan that receives very little exposure may end up with a damaged reputation.”

How many people know that Kazakhstan is the world’s ninth largest nation or that it is incredibly diverse ethnically? The country’s population is only about 50% ethnic Kazakh. The rest is Russian (30%), Ukranian (4%), Uzbek (3%), German (3%), Tatar, Uygur, and others. Despite this diversity, the country has not had significant racial conflict or nationalist movements and has hosted several conferences on freedom and acceptance of all religious beliefs.

In any case, Americans seem to believe that Ali G really does not seek to insult Kazakhstan in any way. In fact, they say, he ridicules the average American’s ignorance and inability to question his material. One of Borat fan, David Short ‘09, assures me that he really does not believe “that rape, shooting small animals and table tennis are real national sports of Kazakhstan.” The only people that should feel stupid in the end, he says, should be Americans. Lack of questioning on the part of Americans, however, may be the reason of Kazakhstan’s discomfort. If Americans don’t question the material but laugh at it, won’t many of them actually internalize the misinformation? Of course, most Americans realize Ali G exaggerates everything on the show, but do they know that none of his claims have much substantial support? Won’t they begin to believe Kazakhstan is a misogynist, racist, and savage nation? I doubt many (if any at all) will take the time to find out the truth about Kazakhstan.

One mystery still remains: why did Ali G chose Kazakhstan as his target? Is it because choosing an African nation would be too politically incorrect? Or because the Cold War sentiment makes it easy to use “one of those” countries as a target? Or did he choose a country no one has ever heard of, has a funny name, and is far away enough to portray as backward?

David told me that the publicity resulting from the Borat movie might actually be positive for Kazakhstan, because otherwise, no one in America would even know the country exists. But is this the way Kazakhstan wants to make its international mass-media debut?