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Report on Eastern Europe, Russia, Caucasus and Central Asia - issue # 11/2010

Kyrgyzstan 2005 – 2010: history repeats itself [Focus over the riots and the overthrown of the Government in Kyrgyzstan]

by Giovanni Cadioli - Tuesday 13 April 2010 - 4430 letture

CIA World Factbook, Kyrgyzstan [maps and dates about politics, military and economy]

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/kg.html

[2005’s events]

Oppositiontakes over Kyrgyz city

Published: Tuesday, March 22, 2005

JALAL ABAD, Kyrgyzstan — President Askar Akayev ordered a probe Monday into alleged election violations that have triggered demands for his resignation and weeks of increasingly violent protests across this ex-Soviet republic.

Police, security forces and local officials in the nation’s second-largest city, Osh, fled Monday in the face of about 2,000 demonstrators, some armed with clubs and Molotov cocktails, some shouting: "Akayev, Go!" The protesters seized the governor’s office, regional police and security stations.

The opposition has also taken control of government buildings in four other cities and towns across Kyrgyzstan’s impoverished south, said Interior Ministry spokesman Nurdin Jangarayev. "This is a new day in our history," exulted Omurbek Tekebayev, an opposition official in Osh.

"Power in Osh has been taken over by people! ... I congratulate you on our victory and urge you to maintain order," another opposition member, Anvar Artykov, told the crowd.

On Sunday, protesters in the town of Jalal-Abad burned much of the police headquarters, freed 70 detained protesters and occupied the governor’s office.About 15,000 people were demonstrating peacefully in Jalal-Abad on Monday, a local government spokesman said, and the Interior Ministry said hundreds more were rallying in at least two other towns in this nation of 5 million.No casualties were reported Monday. Police denied media reports that four officers had been beaten to death. Nevertheless, the opposition demonstrations forced Akayev to take action.He ordered the Central Election Commission and the Supreme Court to investigate the poll, telling them "to pay particular attention to those districts where election results provoked extreme public reaction and tell people openly who is right and who is wrong," said a statement from his office. "The disputes need to be solved fully and fairly."

Protests against Akayev, who has led this mainly Muslim nation for 15 years, began after parliamentary elections on Feb. 27, and swelled after subsequent run-offs that the opposition and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said were seriously flawed. The Kyrgyz government has denied the accusation, and Russia joined the fray on Monday.

In Moscow, the Foreign Ministry condemned the protests, saying that "extremist forces must not be allowed to use political instability to create a threat to the democratic foundations of Kyrgyz statehood."It also rebuked the OSCE for its critical evaluation of the Kyrgyz elections, urging it to "be more responsible in formulating its conclusions to prevent destructive elements from using these assessments to justify their lawless actions."

A Central Asia expert with the Russian newspaper Vremya Novostei, Arkady Dubnov, said the situation in Kyrgyzstan was irreversible. "The only question now is when the government will be changed," he told Ekho Mosvky radio. "What is happening today in Kyrgyzstan ... it is the result of an absolute lack of professionalism on the part of the current authorities."He called the protests "another link" in the chain of political change sweeping through the former Soviet Union. Peaceful revolutions have swept former Soviet republics Georgia and Ukraine in the past two years.

On Monday, Ukraine recalled its envoy to Kyrgyzstan because of a letter he wrote in support of the regional governor of Jalal-Abad.

"I hope that common sense will prevail in the minds of people, which have been clouded by unjust and empty views," Oleksandr Baldynyuk wrote, according to Ukraine’s Unian news agency.

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Dmytro Svystkov said Baldynyuk’s "position contradicted the position of official Ukraine."Abdil Seghizbayev, an Akayev aide, vowed that security forces would not take action against the protesters, but said peace talks would only be possible after order is restored.

"Neither the authorities nor opposition leaders can control the crowd right now," he said. "If an (opposition) leader emerges who can control the protesters, the government will be ready to talk to him." Kyrgyzstan’s opposition parties have long been fractured along regional lines and have resisted moves to unite them. With pressure on Akayev to step down, rival opposition leaders are positioning themselves as possible successors.The opposition has charged that Akayev, who is prohibited from seeking another term, planned to manipulate the parliamentary vote to gain a compliant legislature that would amend the constitution to allow a third term. The 60-year-old leader has denied wanting another term.

Akayev was long regarded as the most reform-minded leader in ex-Soviet Central Asia and the country won praise for its comparative openness. But the leader in recent years has shown increasing signs of cracking down. In 2002, his reputation was tarnished after police killed six demonstrators who were protesting the arrest of an opposition lawmaker.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/21/world/asia/21iht-kyrgy.html

Crisis Grips Kyrgyzstan; Ousted Chief Is in Russia

Published: March 27, 2005

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, March 26 - Two days after President Askar Akayev fled Kyrgyzstan, the country was mired in a parliamentary crisis as members from the old and newly elected Parliament vied for power. Moscow confirmed that Mr. Akayev had been welcomed in Russia, where he went after a groundswell of protests across the country against vote-rigging in legislative elections that ended with a runoff on March 13. But he has not resigned as president and Kyrgyzstan’s new authorities are struggling to establish the legal foundation of their rule. One Westerner praised the new authorities for quickly restoring order to Bishkek, the capital, but cautioned that the world was waiting to see whether the previously fragmented opposition could establish a cohesive hold on power. ’’Everybody realizes the vulnerability if the replacement of Akayev’s regime shows that they can’t work together,’’ he said.

Kyrgyzstan’s Supreme Court has not registered members of Parliament who won seats in the contested elections, leaving power with the previous Parliament, which on Friday appointed the opposition leader Kurmanbek Bakiyev as interim prime minister and acting president in Mr. Akayev’s absence. On Saturday, the Parliament set presidential elections for June 26.

But amid protests from new members of Parliament, Mr. Bakiyev, members of the Supreme Court and other leaders signed a memorandum on Saturday acknowledging the legitimacy of most of those new members, saying that only the legitimacy of some of those elected in the recent vote needed clarification. The memorandum caused widespread confusion between the competing lawmakers, who met on separate floors of the Parliament building.

’’We need to compromise,’’ the deputy speaker of the old Parliament, Kubat Baibolov, who was re-elected in the recent vote, told members of the new Parliament. ’’If we don’t compromise, we will have a war.’’ Later, Mr. Baibolov, shuttling between the rival Parliament meetings, said the memorandum was signed Saturday to placate the new members, many of whom are powerful businessmen. Some legislators have suggested enlarging the Parliament to include old and new members, but that would require a constitutional amendment. The events in the Parliament building unfolded as 3,000 of President Akayev’s supporters set out from his home region to march on the capital, Reuters reported. Unconfirmed reports late in the day said the protesters had been turned back, but the prospect of such a challenge clearly rattled the country’s new government.

Unconfirmed reports also said that officials had uncovered a plot to assassinate Mr. Bakiyev, who said he would run in the June elections. The Kremlin said that Mr. Bakiyev asked for Russian help in stabilizing the situation in the country in a phone call with President Vladimir V. Putin on Saturday.

After a request by Mr. Bakiyev, Mr. Putin ’’stated that given the friendly relations between the Russian and Kyrgyz peoples, that he is ready to consider concrete proposals to help stabilize the situation in Kyrgyzstan,’’ Mr. Putin’s spokesman was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency.

Mr. Bakiyev resigned as prime minister in 2002 after the police fired into a crowd of 1,500 demonstrators protesting the arrest of a parliamentary leader. The streets of Bishkek were quiet Saturday, with no evidence of the looting that occurred Friday.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9906E5D6143FF934A15750C0A9639C8B63

U.S. Helped to Prepare the Way for Kyrgyzstan’s Uprising By CRAIG S. SMITH

Published: March 30, 2005

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, March 29 - Shortly before Kyrgyzstan’s recent parliamentary elections, an opposition newspaper ran photographs of a palatial home under construction for the country’s deeply unpopular president, Askar Akayev, helping set off widespread outrage and a popular revolt in this poor Central Asian country.

The newspaper was the recipient of United States government grants and was printed on an American government-financed printing press operated by Freedom House, an American organization that describes itself as "a clear voice for democracy and freedom around the world." In addition to the United States, several European countries - Britain, the Netherlands and Norway among them - have helped underwrite programs to develop democracy and civil society in this country. The effort played a crucial role in preparing the ground for the popular uprising that swept opposition politicians to power.

"Of course, this infrastructure had an influence," said one European election observer. "People now believe they have rights, and they were not scared because the repressive capacity of the system was weak." After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Kyrgyzstan quickly became an aid magnet with the highest per-capita foreign assistance level of any Central Asian nation. Among the hundreds of millions of dollars that arrived came a large slice focused on building up civil society and democratic institutions.

Most of that money came from the United States, which maintains the largest bilateral pro-democracy program in Kyrgyzstan because of the Freedom Support Act, passed by Congress in 1992 to help the former Soviet republics in their economic and democratic transitions. The money earmarked for democracy programs in Kyrgyzstan totaled about $12 million last year.

Hundreds of thousands more filter into pro-democracy programs in the country from other United States government-financed institutions like the National Endowment for Democracy. That does not include the money for the Freedom House printing press or Kyrgyz-language service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, a pro-democracy broadcaster. "It would have been absolutely impossible for this to have happened without that help," said Edil Baisolov, who leads a coalition of nongovernmental organizations, referring to the uprising last week. Mr. Baisolov’s organization is financed by the United States government through the National Democratic Institute.

American money helps finance civil society centers around the country where activists and citizens can meet, receive training, read independent newspapers and even watch CNN or surf the Internet in some. The N.D.I. alone operates 20 centers that provide news summaries in Russian, Kyrgyz and Uzbek.

The United States sponsors the American University in Kyrgyzstan, whose stated mission is, in part, to promote the development of civil society, and pays for exchange programs that send students and non-governmental organization leaders to the United States. Kyrgyzstan’s new prime minister, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, was one. All of that money and manpower gave the coalescing Kyrgyz opposition financing and moral support in recent years, as well as the infrastructure that allowed it to communicate its ideas to the Kyrgyz people.

The growing civil society, meanwhile, began to have an awakening effect on the country’s population just as Mr. Akayev and his family grew increasingly enamored of their power. "If none of this had been here, the family would have remained in power and people probably would have remained passive, as they have in other Central Asian countries," said Jeffrey Lilley, who runs the local office of the International Republican Institute, a United States-financed pro-democracy organization.

Alexander Kim, editor in chief of the opposition newspaper that printed the photos of the president’s house, knows the problem well: in 1999, Mr. Akayev’s son-in-law took control of Mr. Kim’s first newspaper, which he and other employees had bought from the state during the privatizations earlier that decade.

He says the son-in-law used fraudulent means, but he was never able to prove it in court. So Mr. Kim went on to found another newspaper, which went through several incarnations as the government tried to prevent him from publishing. He has been helped by about $70,000 in American government grants, mostly to pay for newsprint.

The problem, though, was finding a press: they were all controlled by the government and refused to print newspapers from the opposition. Then Mike Stone, Freedom House’s representative in Kyrgyzstan, arrived.

"When Freedom House opened their printing press, it was the end of our problems," Mr. Kim said. By January this year, Mr. Kim had begun national distribution of the newspaper, called MSN, for My Capital News. Opposition candidates in the parliamentary elections bought truckloads of the papers to distribute as campaign literature.

Those Kyrgyz who did not read Russian or have access to the newspaper listened to summaries of its articles on Kyrgyz-language Radio Azattyk, the local United States-government financed franchise of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

Other independent media carried the opposition’s debates. Talk shows, like "Our Times," produced in part with United States government grants, were broadcast over the country’s few independent television stations, including Osh TV in the south, where the protests that led to Mr. Akayev’s ouster began. Osh TV expanded its reach with equipment paid for by the State Department.

"The result is that the society became politicized, they were informed," Mr. Kim said. "The role of the NGO’s and independent media were crucial factors in the revolution."

As corruption grew worse, the country’s nongovernmental organizations began speaking out, and Mr. Akayev grew wary of the foreign pro-democracy assistance he had long allowed.

The published pictures of his house outraged him. Mr. Stone, who runs the printing press, was summoned to the Foreign Ministry and berated. A week later, just before the press began printing a 200,000-copy special issue of MSN, the power at the press went out. Radio Liberty was also taken off the air, ostensibly because the government was putting its frequency up for auction.

Mr. Akayev began suggesting that the West was engaged in a conspiracy to destabilize the country. A crudely forged document, made to look like an internal report by the American ambassador, Stephen Young, began circulating among local news organizations. It cast American-financed pro-democracy activities as part of an American conspiracy. "Our primary goal," the document read, "is to increase pressure upon Akaev (sic) to make him resign ahead of schedule after the parliamentary elections."

But Mr. Akayev, who had begun his presidential career as an advocate of democracy, did not go further.

The American Embassy sent Freedom House two generators the day after the power went out, allowing the press to print nearly all of the 200,000 copies of MSN’s special issue. The power was restored on March 8, and Mr. Kim’s newspaper became one of the primary sources of information for the mobilizing opposition.

MSN informed people in the north of the unrest in the south. The newspaper also played a critical role in disseminating word of when and where protesters should gather.

"There was fertile soil here, and the Western community planted some seeds," said one Western official. "I’m hoping these events of the past week will be one of those moments when you see the fruits of your labors."

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/30/international/asia/30kyrgyzstan.html

Leader Wins 88% of Vote in Kyrgyzstan

Published: July 12, 2005

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, July 11 - Kurmanbek S. Bakiyev, a former opposition leader who had become interim president of Kyrgyzstan, was declared Monday to be the winner of the presidential election by a landslide, capturing nearly 90 percent of the ballots cast.

Mr. Bakiyev’s overwhelming victory marked a consolidation of the revolution this spring that forced out the former president, Askar Akayev, and gave the interim president the mandate he sought to begin work on Kyrgyzstan’s abundant problems.

With more than 99 percent of the votes counted in the six-way race, Mr. Bakiyev had 88.7 percent of the vote, the Kyrgyzstan election commission reported. His closest competitor received less than 4 percent.

"It was a persuasive victory of our people," he said at a news conference. "The trust that people displayed in us is high, and obliges us to do many things."

Mr. Bakiyev faces pressing concerns, both domestically and abroad. The most pressing is the fate of more than 400 Uzbek refugees who fled to Kyrgyz soil after surviving a bloody crackdown in May following a prison break and antigovernment demonstrations in Andijon, Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan has been pressing to have 131 of the refugees returned. Western governments and human rights organizations warn that would violate international conventions and endanger the refugees. As interim president, Mr. Bakiyev equivocated on the question of the refugees’ fate. He is under intense pressure from Uzbekistan, upon which Kyrgyzstan depends in part for fuel and trade.

What is at stake, said Jerzy Skuratowicz, the United Nations resident coordinator here, is the reputation of the country in the opening moments of a new presidency. "The way that Kyrgyzstan will deal with the refugees will basically be part of the image that will make the world understand whether Kyrgyzstan is one of the countries that will do what it says, and whether it is a country that will live within the rule of law," he said.

Mr. Bakiyev must also make a decision about a United States military base at the airport outside the capital. The base supports the Pentagon’s operations in Afghanistan.

Last week the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, an alliance of Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, demanded that the United States set a date for the withdrawal of its military from Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.

Mr. Bakiyev also avoided providing a direct answer about this issue, indicating only that he supported the alliance’s position and saying it was possible to discuss a timetable for withdrawal, suggesting a degree of flexibility.

Domestically, Mr. Bakiyev faces a slate of post-Soviet problems, including economic malaise, soaring unemployment, systemic corruption, near universal poverty and decaying infrastructure. Hundreds of thousands of Kyrgyz have left the country in search of work, and its population is becoming younger and in need of new jobs. Still, Mr. Bakiyev said people would have patience as he began his five-year term, because they "see that the problems emerged not yesterday and not three months ago."

His position is not enviable. As he seeks to invigorate the economy and attract investment, Mr. Bakiyev will work with a Parliament that came to office this spring in tainted elections, and in which people have little faith. Two-thirds of those surveyed in a pre-election poll of 1,000 citizens by InterMedia, a Washington-based research firm, said they wanted new parliamentary elections.

Although election observers from local and international organizations noted that the conduct of the election on Sunday was an improvement over the parliamentary elections, it was not without considerable flaws. The observers said progress had been most evident in allowing free expression and assembly during the campaign, and in sharply reducing vote-buying, which had been widespread in parliamentary elections. But there were signs of vote-count manipulation and ballot stuffing.

Kimmo Kiljunen of Finland, head of the observer delegation from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, said a particular concern was the trimming of voter lists. A presidential election is not valid unless 50 percent of registered voters cast ballots. The official turnout announced by the Central Election Commission was 74.7 percent, a figure so high that Mr. Kiljunen called it "implausible." Observers said election officials at polling places reduced the registration lists before and during election day in an effort to make it easier to reach the 50-percent threshold. Such conduct would raise questions about the integrity of the political culture that Mr. Bakiyev has inherited.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/12/international/asia/12kyrgyzstan.html

[Chronicle of the events & the eastern point of view]

The internet site of the Kyrgyz Government [out of work since the overthrow of President Bakiyev]

http://www.gov.kg/

Bakiyev inaugurated as Kyrgyz president for second term

13:34 02/08/2009

BISHKEK, August 2 (RIA Novosti) - Kyrgyzstan’s newly re-elected leader, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, was sworn in as president on Sunday. The inauguration took place at the government building in Bishkek, and was attended by lawmakers and the president of the neighboring Central Asian republic of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev. The Kyrgyz Constitutional Court ruled on Thursday that the July 23 presidential election was carried out in line with the country’s constitution. However, opposition parties and European monitors said the vote was flawed.

According to the Central Election Commission, Bakiyev won 76% of the vote, while opposition candidate Almazbek Atambayev came second with 8.4%.

Bakiyev, 59, came to power in 2005 after leading street protests that forced his predecessor, the long-serving Askar Akayev, into exile, but has since come under pressure over a perceived failure to tackle economic problems and increasingly authoritarian stance. Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe monitors in Kyrgyzstan said last week’s election failed to meet international standards, and cited cases of ballot box stuffing, inaccuracies in the voter lists, multiple voting, and other irregularities.

The OSCE also said Bakiyev used administrative resources to ensure his reelection, and that campaigning was uneven, with candidates having unequal access to media.

Observers from former Soviet republics said no major violations had been registered.

http://en.rian.ru/world/20090802/155703051.html

UN chief urges more respect for rights, freedoms in Kyrgyzstan

19:07 03/04/2010

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Saturday called for the government of Kyrgyzstan to show greater respect for human rights and freedom of the press.

The United Nations chief is in Kyrgyzstan as part of a tour of the five former Soviet Central Asian states. He held talks with President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, as well as the country’s foreign minister and parliament speaker.

"Quite frankly, ladies and gentlemen, recent events have been troubling, including the past few days. I repeat: all human rights must be protected, including free speech and freedom of the media," Ban said in a speech to Kyrgyzstan’s parliament.

The past few weeks have seen a local television channel taken off air after a police raid, an opposition newspaper shut down by the authorities and the seizure of computers at a video news web portal, allegedly for using pirated software.

Ban said he had raised the issue with Bakiyev, who did not speak to the media after their meeting.

"I also urged the president to orient his policies to promote the democratic achievements of Kyrgyzstan, including its free press," he said, recalling the days when the country was seen as a beacon of democracy in Central Asia.

The UN head praised Kyrgyzstan for its role in stabilizing the situation in Afghanistan, where international forces are operating under a UN mandate. A U.S. military transit center at Kyrgyzstan’s Manas airbase is central to the International Security Assistance Force’s Afghan operations.

The head of the UN will stay in Bishkek until Sunday morning, when he is to fly to Uzbekistan. He started his Central Asian tour in Turkmenistan on Friday.

BISHKEK, April 3 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100403/158422410.html

Kyrgyz protesters seize local administrative building

14:00 06/04/2010

Protesters in Kyrgyzstan have seized a governmental building in the city of Talas, local government representative said.

"About 1,000 protesters entered the building of the local government in Talas to meet with the governor, however, he deserted the building," the spokesman said. "At the moment, people are inside the building." He said the protesters want to elect a "people’s" governor.

Kyrgyzstan, where Russia and the United States both have military bases, has been in a state of constant instability since the current President Kurmanbek Bakiyev came to power after the so-called tulip revolution, toppling his long-serving predecessor Askar Akayev in 2005. The opposition has accused Bakiyev of tightening his grip on power while failing to bring stability and economic growth. His party won most seats in parliament in the early December 2007 election after two years of political upheaval.

BISHKEK, April 6 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100406/158452213.html

Kyrgyz opposition fears government may use force against civilians

16:53 06/04/2010

The Kyrgyz opposition fears the country’s government may use force against civilians, the country’s opposition leader said.

The Kyrgyz opposition is currently holding a rally and has seized a governmental building in the city of Talas.

Ata-Meken opposition party leader Omurbek Tekebayev said that military and air bases have become more active. "Helicopters and planes are taking off and landing all the time," he said. "We do not rule out that the government may use military force against civilians," he continued.

The Kyrgyz government pledged to harshly suppress unconstitutional actions carried out by protesters.

Tekebayev said that the opposition planned to hold regional congresses in different cities of the country on April 7.

"However, unfortunately the republic’s authorities perceived this initiative as hostile," he said adding that some representatives of the opposition had been arrested.

Tekebayev said that Ata-Meken deputy head Bolot Sherniyazov was arrested on Tuesday morning creating a wave of protests among citizens in the country. Protestors demanded Sherniyazov’s release and soon authorities were forced to meet those demands.

However, the protesters have continued the rally and entered the local government building in Talas.

Kyrgyz police said that an "unruly crowd of people, many of whom were intoxicated, without inhibition entered the building of the regional administration and some time later left [the building]."

However, some sources said that the protesters are at the moment in front of the regional police building, which is surrounded by Special Forces armed with various equipment, including tear gas, to prevent the protesters from entering the building.

Kyrgyz Prime Minister Daniyar Usenov has confirmed that the protesters seized the Talas government building but refuted reports in Western media saying that they had also taken hostages.

The Kyrgyz prosecution office has opened a criminal case against the riot organizers.

BISHKEK, April 6 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100406/158453960.html

Kyrgyz authorities subdue rioters in Talas, protestors dispersed

20:13 06/04/2010

Kyrgyz authorities have subdued rioters in the city of Talas by running the crowds off using tear gas, Kyrgyz Interior Minister Moldomusa Kongantiyev said on Tuesday.

"Police authorities have the situation in Talas under control. The people who were pushed from the city’s central square took off down different streets and were throwing rocks at police. There were a lot of drunks and people with Molotov cocktails, therefore, it was necessary for the police to intervene," the minister said at a press conference. He said the situation in the republic was stable.

BISHKEK, April 6 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100406/158456111.html

Kyrgyz authorities subdue, disperse rioters in Talas

20:26 06/04/2010

Kyrgyz authorities have subdued rioters in the city of Talas by running the crowds off using tear gas, Kyrgyz Interior Minister Moldomusa Kongantiyev said on Tuesday.

Kongantiyev said that after the riots in Talas, all of the activities by the United People’s Movement are considered unlawful and any attempts to continue protests on Wednesday would be stopped.

"They have violated constitutional order, they have taken over an administrative building, broken windows, used Molotov cocktails and held the governor for some time," the interior minister said describing the rioters’ actions.

He said the situation in the republic was stable.

Kyrgyz Prime Minister Daniyar Usenov earlier on Tuesday confirmed that the protesters seized the Talas government building but refuted reports in Western media saying that they had also taken hostages.

BISHKEK, April 6 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100406/158456270.html

Kyrgyz rioters again seize Talas administration building

21:27 06/04/2010

Rioters in the Kyrgyz city of Talas have again seized the building of the local government, eyewitnesses told RIA Novosti on the phone on Tuesday.

"The rioters have again seized the administrative building and burned a police car on the square," one eyewitness said, adding that the vehicle "continues to burn."

There have been unconfirmed reports that the first floor of the administrative building has also been set on fire.

Other eyewitnesses have said they saw rioters attack two police authorities on the city’s main square and that the rioters have turned into an uncontrollable mob.

Kyrgyz Interior Minister Moldomusa Kongantiyev said earlier that the authorities had subdued the rioters in Talas and the situation in the country was under control.

BISHKEK, April 6 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100406/158456755.html

Kyrgyz authorities arrest opposition party members

21:37 06/04/2010

Law enforcement agents have arrested several Kyrgyz opposition leaders, rights activists said on Tuesday.

The leader of the opposition Ata-Meken party, Omurbek Tekebayev, was arrested near a rights organization office. "Men with automatic weapons detained Tekebayev, put him into a car and took him to an undisclosed location," a rights activist said.

Ata-Meken’s vice-chairman, Bolot Sherniyazov, who was participating in the riot in Talas, was also detained, Kyrgyz Interior Minister Moldomusa Kongantiyev told journalists.

BISHKEK, April 6 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100406/158456811.html

Twenty-four rioters injured in clashes with police in Kyrgyzstan - media

00:36 07/04/2010

Twenty-four people have been injured in clashes with police in the riot-hit Kyrgyz city of Talas, the local Kabar news agency has said. Protesters, who accuse the country’s government of tightening the grip on power while failing to bring stability and economic growth, seized on Tuesday the Talas government building. Police dispersed the protesters with tear gas and reported that the situation had been taken under control.

The Kabar news agency said those injured were taken to surgery and trauma units of a local hospital. One of them is reportedly in a heavy condition.

Law enforcement agents have arrested several opposition leaders, including the leader of the opposition Ata-Meken party, Omurbek Tekebayev, the party’s vice-chairman, Bolot Sherniyazov, as well as all leaders of the opposition United People’s Movement.

Kyrgyz Interior Minister Moldomusa Kongantiyev said earlier on Tuesday that after the riots, all of the activities by the United People’s Movement are considered unlawful and any attempts to continue protests on Wednesday would be stopped. He said all the rioters would be brought to trial.

Almazbek Atambayev, the former prime minister and current leader of the Social Democratic Party, was detained Tuesday evening in his home. A journalist and a cameraman of the local television company StanTV, who were interviewing the politician when police arrived, were also detained. They were later freed, but the camera was seized.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100407/158458476.html

Kyrgyz police, opposition supporters clash in Bishkek

09:56 07/04/2010

Some 200 protesters clashed with police in the capital of Kyrgyzstan on Wednesday outside an opposition headquarters.

The police used riot equipment and dogs to deal with the protesters, many of whom were detained and taken away in buses.

Several Kyrgyz opposition leaders were arrested on Tuesday following violent protests in the city of Talas.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100407/158461378.html

Kyrgyz prime minister protests Russian media reporting of riots

11:45 07/04/2010

Kyrgyzstan is disappointed with the way the Russian media has covered the political unrest in the country, the prime minister said on Wednesday, saying he had complained to the Russian ambassador.

Daniyar Usenov said that during a meeting with Moscow’s ambassador in Bishkek he had expressed his displeasure over the way Russian media had reported the riots in Talas, accusing them of bias.

"Mass media that do not cover the situation objectively are our enemies," Usenov said at a news conference.

According to a Russian diplomat in Bishkek, the ambassador rejected the prime minister’s complaint.

"During the talks, the ambassador conveyed to the leadership of the republic that Russian mass media coverage of the situation in Kyrgyzstan was restrained and unbiased," the official told RIA Novosti In the latest disturbances on Wednesday, a group of protesters clashed with police outside an opposition headquarters in the Kyrgyz capital and more than a thousand people held a rally in front of the regional governmental building in Naryn in the center of the country.

On Tuesday, rioters in the western city of Talas seized the local government building. The Kyrgyz authorities sent additional police forces to Talas and the Interior Ministry said the situation was under control, but later witnesses said activists had again seized the administrative building.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100407/158462398.html

Kyrgyz protesters march on central square, government headquarters

11:53 07/04/2010

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti) - A large number of demonstrators marched to the Kyrgyz government headquarters on Bishkek’s central square on Wednesday.

The protesters have seized several riot police vehicles and were driving them in front of the marchers, waving opposition party flags from them.

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100407/158462698.html

Police disperse protesters in Kyrgyz capital, gunshots heard

12:03 07/04/2010

Law enforcement personnel have begun dispersing protesters who gathered in the central square of the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek near the government building.

The sounds of gunshots and stun grenades can be heard. People are fleeing the square. Police authorities put the number of protesters at several thousand people.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100407/158462827.html

Russia urges Kyrgyz protesters, government to avoid violence

12:59 07/04/2010

Russia called on Wednesday for the authorities and protesters in Kyrgyzstan which was stormed by protest actions organized by the country’s opposition supporters to avoid violence, Russian Foreign Ministry official representative said. "As we are interested in preserving political stability in a country that is friendly to us, we consider it important to resolve the issues raised by the current situation by legal means," Andrei Nesterenko said, adding that Russia urged both sides to avoid violence and bloodshed.

MOSCOW, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100407/158463810.html

At least two killed, some 100 injured in riots in ex-Soviet Kyrgyzstan

13:29 07/04/2010

At least two people were killed and some 100 injured in riots in the capital of the ex-Soviet Central Asian state of Kyrgyzstan on Wednesday.

Gunshots were heard as police dispersed a large number of demonstrators who marched to the government headquarters on Bishkek’s central square.

The protesters seized several riot police vehicles and drove them in front of the marchers, waving opposition party flags from them. The sounds of gunshots and stun grenades were heard as people fled the square.

Police estimated there were several thousand protesters. They attempted to ram the fence surrounding the government building in central Bishkek using the riot police vehicles.

Security measures were stepped up in Bishkek, including at the government building and Bishkek mayor’s office after some 200 protesters clashed with police outside an opposition headquarters. Russia called for the authorities and protesters in Kyrgyzstan to avoid violence.

"As we are interested in preserving political stability in a country that is friendly to us, we consider it important to resolve the issues raised by the current situation by legal means," Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko said, adding that Russia urged both sides to avoid violence and bloodshed.

Major political unrest started in Kyrgyzstan last month, with opposition forces accusing the government of tightening its grip on power while failing to bring stability and economic growth.

Many local and international journalists witnessed the clashes as the opposition had announced it would hold a news conference after police and activists clashed on Tuesday in the western Kyrgyz city of Talas and several opposition leaders were arrested.

Protesters seized the regional administration building in the western city of Talas on Tuesday, and the unrest spread on Wednesday to the central town of Naryn and Tokmak, 50 kilometers east of Bishkek. Activists in Naryn said several thousand people rallied in front of the local governmental building.

Adilet Eshenov said the protesters had entered the building and held talks with the governor. He added that the police had not tried to stop the demonstrators.

The Kyrgyz Interior Ministry denied the government building in Naryn had been occupied, but confirmed the protests were going ahead. "There is no seizure. An unauthorized rally is being held in front of the regional administration building, attended by 1,200-1,300 people. There have been no public order arrests," a spokesperson told RIA Novosti. Witnesses said protesters in Tokmok seized a Chuysk regional governmental building and some police officers had been injured. Almazbek Atambayev, the former prime minister and current leader of the Social Democratic Party, was detained at his home on Tuesday evening. A journalist and a cameraman of the local television company StanTV, who were interviewing the politician when police arrived, were also detained. They were later released, but the camera was seized.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100407/158464556.html

State of emergency imposed in Kyrgyz capital

13:51 07/04/2010

Kyrgyz authorities have imposed a state of emergency in the capital Bishkek where clashes between police and rioters continue, a spokesman for the Bishkek city hall said on Wednesday.

"A state of emergency was imposed in the city. All residents are recommended to remain home," he said.

At least five people were killed and some 100 injured in clashes between the police and protesters who gathered at the square in front of the Kyrgyz government building.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100407/158465032.html

Kyrgyz state TV building seized in Bishkek

15:13 07/04/2010

Kyrgyz protesters have seized the building of the state television channel in the capital, Bishkek, channel employees said on Wednesday. They told RIA Novosti that the building had been ransacked, and that some of the staff had escaped while others remain trapped inside. It was earlier reported that the channel had gone off the air. Channel 5, a private TV company, has also stopped broadcasting.

Russian TV channels broadcast in Kyrgyzstan are still on air.

Kyrgyz authorities have imposed a state of emergency in Bishkek and Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has signed a decree imposing a curfew as clashes continue between rioters and police in the capital, where at least six people have been killed and some 100 injured.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100407/158466105.html

Kyrgyz opposition leaders appear on state TV

16:23 07/04/2010

Kyrgyz opposition representatives and human rights activists appeared on the state TV channel KTR that resumed broadcasting on Wednesday. Kyrgyz protesters earlier seized the building of the state television channel in the capital, Bishkek. Broadcasting was interrupted for approximately one hour.

Authorities have imposed a state of emergency in Bishkek and Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has signed a decree imposing a curfew as clashes continue between rioters and police in the capital, where at least six people have been killed and some 100 injured.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100407/158466963.html

Detained Kyrgyz opposition leaders released in Talas - opposition member

16:34 07/04/2010

Two opposition leaders, Temir Sariev and Isa Omurkulov, detained earlier during riots in the city of Talas in the ex-Soviet Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan, have been released, one of the former detainees said on Wednesday.

"We will now hold talks with the Prosecutor General and the head of the national security service. We will demand the halting of gunfire and release of opposition [party members] detained earlier," Sariev said. Authorities have imposed a state of emergency in Bishkek and Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has signed a decree imposing a curfew as clashes continue between rioters and police in the capital, where at least six people have been killed and some 100 injured.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100407/158467202.html

At least 17 dead, over 140 injured in riots in Kyrgyzstan [Summary]

17:24 07/04/2010

At least 17 people have died and another 142 are injured in ongoing riots on Wednesday in Bishkek, the capital of the ex-Soviet Central Asian state of Kyrgyzstan, Kabar local news agency said.

Most of the victims died of gunshot wounds, the agency said quoting the Kyrgyz health ministry. But as yet there is no official confirmation of the number of causalities. Other local media said 21 people were killed, but did not give source for their figure.

The office of the Attorney General in Bishkek has been set on fire. President Bakiyev has declared a state of emergency and the Kyrgyz parliament has urged citizens to be reasonable and condemned the destructive activities, Kabar said.

Most of the opposition leaders, detained earlier during riots in the country’s northwestern town of Talas have been released, a human rights activist said.

Kyrgyz protesters have seized the building of the state television channel KTR in the capital, Bishkek. Broadcasting was interrupted for approximately one hour, but since then Kyrgyz opposition representatives and human rights activists have appeared on the TV channel.

State TV employees told RIA Novosti that protesters seized the building, which had been ransacked. They said some staff had escaped but others were trapped inside.

Some reports say that protesters have also seized government buildings in the Chuysk, Narynsk and Issyk-Kul regions. Police estimated there were several thousand protesters on the streets of the capital. Some attempted to ram the fence surrounding the government building using riot police vehicles while others drove around in a bus and a Red Cross vehicle with the windows knocked out. Russia called for the authorities and protesters in Kyrgyzstan to avoid violence.

Kyrgyz Prime Minister Daniyar Usenov said he was disappointed with the way the Russian media has covered the political unrest in the country and officially complained to the Russian ambassador. According to a Russian diplomat in Bishkek, the ambassador rejected the prime minister’s complaint.

A Russian deputy foreign minister said the Foreign Ministry opposes recent falsifications in the media which try to link the ongoing unrest in Kyrgyzstan with a certain Russian stance.

Major political unrest started in Kyrgyzstan last month, with opposition forces accusing the government of tightening its grip on power while failing to bring stability and economic growth.

The situation escalated on Tuesday, when several opposition leaders were arrested after police and activists clashed in the western city of Talas, and the unrest spread on Wednesday to the central town of Naryn and Tokmak, 50 kilometers east of Bishkek.

At a news conference in Bishkek on Wednesday, Usenov called the protests in Talas, where protesters seized the regional administration building, a crime against the state.

"We are not talking about opposition’s protest actions but about committing state crimes," the prime minister said, adding that Kyrgyz Interior Minister Moldomusa Kongadiev arrived in Talas on Wednesday morning and additional police forces had been sent to the city. Activists in Naryn said several thousand people rallied in front of the local governmental building.

Adilet Eshenov said the protesters had entered the building and held talks with the governor. He added that the police had not tried to stop the demonstrators.

The Kyrgyz Interior Ministry denied the government building in Naryn had been occupied, but confirmed there were protests in the city. "There is no seizure. An unauthorized rally is being held in front of the regional administration building, attended by 1,200-1,300 people. There have been no public order arrests," a spokesperson told RIA Novosti. Witnesses said protesters in Tokmok seized a Chuysk regional governmental building and some police officers had been injured. Almazbek Atambayev, the former prime minister and current leader of the Social Democratic Party, was detained at his home on Tuesday evening. A journalist and a cameraman of the local television company StanTV, who were interviewing the politician when police arrived, were also detained. They were later released, but the camera was seized. Kyrgyzstan, where Russia and the United States both have military bases, has been unstable since President Kurmanbek Bakiyev came to power after the so-called tulip revolution, toppling his long-serving predecessor Askar Akayev in 2005.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon visited the country last week as part of a tour of former Soviet Central Asia and called on the authorities to do more to protect human rights and press freedom.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100407/158468210.html

Rioters storm Parliament in Kyrgyzstan capital

17:38 07/04/2010

Rioters led by opposition leader Omurbek Tekebayev have stormed the country’s Parliament in the capital of the ex-Soviet Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan on Wednesday.

Ex-Parliamentary speaker Tekebayev, one of the opposition leaders, was released earlier in the day after being detained by Kyrgyz authorities.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100407/158468470.html

Kyrgyz government and opposition to negotiate

17:45 07/04/2010

Opposition and government in the ex-Soviet Central Asian state of Kyrgyzstan agreed to hold negotiations after a day of clashes, local news agency quoted a senior government official as saying.

"Preliminary consultations between the official authorities and oppositional leaders on halting the clashes have started," Elmurza Satybaldiyev, the state advisor on defense and security told Kyrgyz news agency 24.kg

MOSCOW, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100407/158468601.html

Kyrgyz opposition demands govt. transfer power to it - opposition leader

19:07 07/04/2010

The Kyrgyz opposition whose supporters seized a number of state organizations in the capital Bishkek has demanded the government transfer power to it, an opposition leader said Wednesday.

"Today we went to a meeting with the government so they would lay down their arms and transfer power," Ata-Meken opposition party leader Omurbek Tekebayev said on national television now controlled by protestors.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100407/158470358.html

Government and opposition in Kyrgyzstan to start talks [Summary]

19:17 07/04/2010

Government and opposition in the ex-Soviet Central Asian state of Kyrgyzstan agreed to start talks after a day of clashes in the capital Bishkek in which at least 17 people died, a Kyrgyz governmental official said on Wednesday.

"We have received several proposals [for talks]. The opposition leaders are now getting together to discuss the possibility of negotiations," the leader of an oppositional party Ak-Shumkar, Temir Sariyev, told journalists.

In spite of forthcoming negotiations, rioters stormed the Kyrgyz parliament in Bishkek. Among them is opposition leader and former parliament speaker Omurbek Tekebaev, who was detained earlier by authorities and released on Wednesday.

At least 17 people have died and another 197 are injured in ongoing riots on, Kabar local news agency said quoting medical officials. However Kyrgyz opposition member Talay Efenaliyev told Ekho Moskvy radio station on Wednesday that at least 50 people have been killed in the riots, most of them young.

The office of the Attorney General in Bishkek has been set on fire. Rioters near the government headquarters have got hold of an armed vehicle and may storm the government headquarters, Kabar news agency said.

President Bakiyev has declared a state of emergency and the Kyrgyz parliament has urged citizens to be reasonable and condemned the destructive activities, Kabar said.

Most of the opposition leaders, detained earlier during riots in the country’s northwestern town of Talas have been released, a human rights activist said.

State TV employees told RIA Novosti that protesters seized the building, which had been ransacked. They said some staff had escaped but others were trapped inside.

A Russian deputy foreign minister said the Foreign Ministry opposes recent falsifications in the media which try to link the ongoing unrest in Kyrgyzstan with a certain Russian stance.

Major political unrest started in Kyrgyzstan last month, with opposition forces accusing the government of tightening its grip on power while failing to bring stability and economic growth.

At a news conference in Bishkek on Wednesday, Usenov called the protests in Talas, where protesters seized the regional administration building, a crime against the state.

Adilet Eshenov said the protesters had entered the building and held talks with the governor. He added that the police had not tried to stop the demonstrators.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon visited the country last week as part of a tour of former Soviet Central Asia and called on the authorities to do more to protect human rights and press freedom.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100407/158470448.html

Kyrgyz opposition forms government led by ex-FM Otunbayeva

20:21 07/04/2010

The Kyrgyz opposition has formed a government of national confidence led by ex-foreign minister Roza Otunbayeva, the AKIpress news agency reported on Wednesday.

Protests, which started in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday, spread to other regions of the Central Asian country, including the capital Bishkek. At least 30 people were killed and some 300 injured, according to health authorities.

The opposition, whose supporters seized a number of state establishments in Bishkek, has demanded that the government transfer power to it.

MOSCOW, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100407/158471447.html

Death toll in Bishkek rises to 40, some 400 injured - health ministry

20:28 07/04/2010

The number of people killed in the Bishkek clashes has increased to at least 40, while some 400 are injured, the Kyrgyz health ministry said on Wednesday.

Protests, which started in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday, spread to other regions of the Central Asian country, including the capital Bishkek.

The opposition, whose supporters seized a number of state establishments in Bishkek, has demanded that the government transfer power to it.

MOSCOW, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100407/158471619.html

Kyrgyz opposition claims govt. has resigned, no official confirmation

21:27 07/04/2010

A Kyrgyz opposition leader claimed on Wednesday that the official government has resigned and that President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has left the capital Bishkek, but there has been no official confirmation. "We went into the government building for talks; [Premier] Usenov wrote a declaration stating the government’s resignation," Temir Sariyev told Russian journalists.

"Bakiyev left the building. It is not known where he went. He is not in Bishkek," he said.

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100407/158472072.html

Russia not involved in Kyrgyz events - Putin

21:45 07/04/2010

Russia has played no role in the events in Kyrgyzstan, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday.

"Neither Russia nor your humble servant nor Russian officials have anything to do with these events," he said at a news conference. Putin also said that the events in Kyrgyzstan caught him "off guard." Protests, which started in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday, have spread to other regions of the Central Asian country, including the capital Bishkek.

A number of Kyrgyz opposition leaders said earlier that Putin had expressed support for the protesters.

The opposition, whose supporters seized a number of state establishments in Bishkek, claimed that the official Kyrgyz government had resigned and they had taken full power in the country. At least 40 people have been killed and 400 injured in clashes between protesters and police in the capital, Bishkek.

"No matter what is going on there - it’s Kyrgyzstan’s domestic affair. The only thing I ask is that the authorities and opposition demonstrate restraint and refrain from violence," Putin said.

He also said that Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev had repeated mistakes made by his predecessor, Askar Akayev.

"When President Bakiyev came to power [after the so-called tulip revolution in 2005], he harshly criticized the toppled president, Akayev, for nepotism and giving his relatives top economic posts. I get the impression that Bakiyev has fallen into the same trap," Putin said. Kyrgyzstan, where Russia and the United States both have military bases, has been unstable since Bakiyev took office but major political unrest began in Kyrgyzstan last month when opposition forces accused the government of tightening its grip on power while failing to bring stability and economic growth.

SMOLENSK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20100407/158472404.html

Kyrgyz opposition claims government has resigned

Apr 7, 2010 21:48 Moscow Time

A Kyrgyz opposition leader claimed on Wednesday that the government has resigned and that President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has left the capital Bishkek, but there has been no official confirmation. “We went into the government building for talks, and Premier Usenov wrote a declaration stating the government’s resignation," Temir Sariyev was quoted by Russia’s RIA-Novosti as saying on Wednesday evening. Sariyev confirmed that ex-Foreign Minister Roza Otunbayeva is currently at the helm of the just-formed “Government of People’s Trust.”

http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/04/07/6131514.html

Kyrgyz opposition says it has taken full power in the country

21:52 07/04/2010

A government formed by opposition in the ex-Soviet Central Asian state of Kyrgyzstan said it has taken full power in the country after a day of unrest in which over 40 people were killed, the opposition-nominated premier said on Wednesday.

"(Prime Minister Daniyar) Usenov has signed a resignation letter. Power is fully in the control of the opposition," Rosa Otunbayeva said. "The whereabouts of (President Kurmanbek) Bakiyev are unknown."

BISHKEK, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100407/158472444.html

Medvedev calls Kyrgyz events extreme form of public protest

23:14 07/04/2010

The Russian president said on Wednesday that the clashes in Kyrgyzstan were an extreme form of public protest and called the Central Asian country Russia’s strategic partner, Dmitry Medvedev’s press secretary said.

"This is Kyrgyzstan’s domestic affair but the form this protest has taken points to an extreme level of public outrage with the authorities," Natalya Timakova quoted him as saying.

The protests, which started in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday, spread to other regions of the Central Asian country, including the capital Bishkek. Some 47 people have been killed and 400 injured, according to health authorities.

"The president thinks that most important thing is that further deaths are prevented and control over the country is restored," she added. A government formed by opposition in Kyrgyzstan said it has taken full power in the country while the whereabouts of the country’s president, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, remain unknown.

"Kyrgyzstan has been and remains Russia’s strategic partner so we will closely follow the developments in the republic," Timakova said. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said earlier that Bakiyev had repeated mistakes made by his predecessor, Askar Akayev.

"When President Bakiyev came to power [after the so-called tulip revolution in 2005], he harshly criticized the toppled president, Akayev, for nepotism and giving his relatives top economic posts. I get the impression that Bakiyev has fallen into the same trap," Putin said. Kyrgyzstan, where Russia and the United States both have military bases, has been unstable since Bakiyev took office but major political unrest began last month when opposition forces accused the government of tightening its grip on power while failing to bring stability and economic growth.

MOSCOW, April 7 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20100407/158473387.html

Washington says closely monitors situation in Kyrgyzstan

05:13 08/04/2010

Washington is closely monitoring the situation in the Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan, where bloody protests left at least 47 people killed and some 400 injured, the U.S. Department of State said. The protests against the ruling government, initiated by the country’s opposition, began in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday spreading to other regions of the country, including the capital Bishkek, on Wednesday. Opposition has declared it assumed full power in Kyrgyzstan.

"Clearly we are monitoring very closely the situation in Bishkek regarding these protests... We urge all parties to show respect for the rule of law and resolve differences in a peaceful, orderly, and legal manner," Assistant Secretary Philip Crowley told a daily press briefing. He said the U.S. airbase in Kyrgyzstan as well as the embassy continues to function normally under the current circumstances.

"As I understand it, right now the transit center at the Manas airport is functioning normally. We’ve put out a Warden Message regarding our own Embassy personnel and all Embassy personnel remain accounted for... Right now, as far as I know, the Embassy is functioning normally," Crowley said.

The United States uses an airbase in Manas outside Kyrgyzstan’s capital, Bishkek, to support its operations in nearby Afghanistan.

MOSCOW, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100408/158475651.html

Crowds ransack Kyrgyz government headquarters

08:44 08/04/2010

Crowds have set fire to and looted parts of the government headquarters in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek, a RIA Novosti journalist reported from the scene.

The development comes after the opposition claimed full control of the country following riots that left at least 65 people dead.

Around 1,000 people are currently in the square in front of the building and looters are carrying equipment and carpets out of the building. Smoke can be seen rising from the sixth and seven floors - home to the presidential offices.

A blood-splattered portrait of President Kurmanbek Bakiyev is hanging from a fence in front of the government building.

Fires are raging across the city and shopping centres and shops have been looted. Similar scenes are reported throughout the former Soviet republic

The opposition, which is due to give a news conference at 11:00 a.m. (05:00 GMT), has called for calm and urged a halt to the looting. Opposition-nominated premier Rosa Otunbayeva has said that Prime Minister Daniyar Usenov has signed a letter of resignation and the whereabouts of Bakiyev are unknown.

Despite the chaos, Bishkek mayor Nariman Tulyeev has said that vital services will be maintained. Street sweepers, out as usual on Thursday morning, could be seen clearing up the debris from three days of violent protests.

Major political unrest started in Kyrgyzstan last month, with opposition forces accusing the government of tightening its grip on power while failing to bring stability and economic growth.

The situation escalated on Tuesday, when several opposition leaders were arrested after police and activists clashed in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas, and the unrest spread on Wednesday.

BISHKEK, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100408/158476658.html

Kyrgyzstan’s opposition says takes over from president, cabinet

10:02 08/04/2010

The head of Kyrgyzstan’s provisional authorities declared on Thursday that they were dismissing parliament and taking over from the president and the government.

Opposition-nominated premier Roza Otunbayeva made the statement at a press conference. She said the provisional government will be effective for six months.

BISHKEK, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100408/158477132.html

Kyrgyz opposition says armed forces, border guards side with it

10:16 08/04/2010

Kyrgyzstan’s government formed by the opposition said Thursday the country’s armed forces and border guards have moved over to the opposition.

Ismail Isakov, defense minister in the provisional authorities, made the statement at a press conference.

Opposition-nominated premier Roza Otunbayeva said the opposition controls four regions in the Central Asian country out of seven. She also said President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has not given up his post and is trying to organize resistance in the country’s south where he has support and a residence.

BISHKEK, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100408/158477280.html

Kyrgyz police join provisional government

10:45 08/04/2010

Police have joined the provisional government in the ex-Soviet Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyz provisional Interior Minister Bolotbek Sherniyazov said. "Police authorities have come under the control of the people," Sherniyazov said. "All military forces and police are prepared to ensure security."

Earlier on Thursday the opposition said the army and border guards had also joined them.

BISHKEK, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100408/158477911.html

Kyrgyz provisional authorities dismiss parliament, take over from president, govt.; 74 killed in protests [Summary]

11:42 08/04/2010

The head of Kyrgyzstan’s provisional authorities declared on Thursday that they were dismissing parliament and taking over from President Kurmanbek Bakiyev and his government after a day of bloody protests in the capital of the ex-Soviet Central Asian state. Opposition-nominated premier Roza Otunbayeva told a press conference the provisional government will work for six months to stabilize the situation and prepare changes in the constitution. The opposition accuses Bakiyev of mishandling the impoverished country and encouraging nepotism. Protests, that have so far left at least 74 people dead and more than 500 injured, are ongoing. They started in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday after a few opposition leaders were arrested and spread to other regions of the country, including the capital Bishkek, on Wednesday. Later the arrestees were released but it did not stop the protests. National TV, parliament and government buildings were seized by protestors. They also burnt Bakiyev’s residence in Bishkek.

Opposition claims to be in control

Unrest continues

A RIA Novosti correspondent at the scene reported on Thursday that crowds have set fire to and looted parts of the government headquarters in capital Bishkek. Around 1,000 people gathered in the square in front of the building and looters were carrying equipment and carpets out of the building. Smoke could be seen rising from the sixth and seven floors, where the presidential offices are. A blood-splattered portrait of Bakiyev was hanging from a fence in front of the government building. Fires were raging across the city and shops have been looted. Similar scenes have been reported throughout the country. The opposition called for calm and urged people to stop looting. Despite the chaos, Bishkek mayor Nariman Tuleyev has said that vital services would be maintained. Street sweepers, out as usual on Thursday morning, could be seen clearing up the debris from three days of violent protests. Major political unrest started in Kyrgyzstan last month when the opposition forces accused the government of tightening its grip on power while failing to bring stability and economic growth. The situation escalated on Tuesday, when several opposition leaders were arrested after police and activists clashed in the northwestern town of Talas, and the unrest spread to other parts of the country on Wednesday. Opposition supporters on Wednesday seized a number of state organizations in Bishkek. The government and opposition leaders held talks, but the Kabar news agency reported that they failed.

Reaction

Both Russia and the United States both have military bases in Kyrgyzstan and have taken an interest in the events there. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Wednesday that the clashes in Kyrgyzstan were an extreme form of public protest and called the Central Asian country Russia’s strategic partner. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called on the Kyrgyz government and opposition to restrain from violence. Putin also denied claims by a number of Kyrgyz opposition leaders that he had expressed support for the protestors. He said Russia has played no role in the events in Kyrgyzstan. The United States expressed concern over the mass disorders in the country and said it was closely watching the situation. It also called on all sides to refrain from violence and display restraint.

BISHKEK, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100408/158478552.html

Russian airbase in Kant unaffected by unrest in Bishkek - Russian Air Force

12:15 08/04/2010

The Russian airbase in Kant, around 20 kilometers (12 miles) outside the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek, is continuing to function normally, a Russian Air Force spokesman, Vladimir Drik, said on Thursday.

"The airbase is operating under a routine training schedule. There have been no incidents with Russian air garrison personnel registered. No one has been injured," Drik said.

Protests, which started in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday, spread to other regions of the country, including the capital Bishkek. The protests, which have so far left at least 74 people dead and more than 500 injured, are continuing throughout the country.

Earlier a source in Russia’s Defense Ministry said the Russian airbase was put on high alert, while the U.S. Department of State said the airbase in Kyrgyzstan’s Manas, used by the United States for its operations in Afghanistan, is continuing to function normally.

MOSCOW, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100408/158478979.html

Putin speaks on phone with Kyrgyz opposition-nominated premier

12:28 08/04/2010

MOSCOW, April 8 (RIA Novosti) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Thursday spoke on the phone with Kyrgyz opposition-nominated premier Roza Otunbayeva, Putin’s spokesman said.

Dmitry Peskov said Otunbayeva told Putin that her country needs economic assistance, and that Putin said Russia is ready to offer humanitarian aid.

"It is important to note that the conversation was held with Otunbayeva in her capacity of the head of a national confidence government," Peskov said.

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100408/158479220.html

Russia throws weight behind provisional Kyrgyz govt. [Summary]

14:02 08/04/2010

Russia on Thursday threw its weight behind the provisional Kyrgyz government, which took power in the capital and several regions of the ex-Soviet Central Asian state after two days of violent protests in which 74 people died and more than 500 were injured. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin spoke on the phone with Kyrgyz opposition-nominated premier Roza Otunbayeva, who asked Moscow for economic assistance, Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. "It is important to note that the conversation was held with Otunbayeva in her capacity as the head of a national confidence government," Peskov said. He said Putin told Otunbayeva that Russia was ready to offer humanitarian aid to Kyrgyzstan. Otunbayeva declared earlier on Thursday that her provisional government was dismissing parliament and taking over from President Kurmanbek Bakiyev and his government. She told a press conference the provisional government will work for six months to stabilize the situation, prepare changes in the constitution and hold presidential elections. The opposition accuses Bakiyev of mishandling the impoverished country and encouraging nepotism. The protests began in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday after a few opposition leaders were arrested, and spread to other regions of the country, including the capital Bishkek, on Wednesday. On Thursday, they are still ongoing. Later the arrestees were released but it did not stop the protests. National TV, parliament and government buildings were seized by protestors. They also burnt Bakiyev’s residence in Bishkek.

Opposition claims to be in control

Kyrgyzstan’s government formed by the opposition said Thursday the country’s armed forces, border guards and police have moved over to the opposition side. Otunbayeva said the opposition, whose powerbase is in the north of the country, controls four out of Kyrgyzstan’s seven regions. She added that President Bakiyev has not given up his post and is trying to organize resistance in the country’s south where he traditionally has more support. "The situation with Bakiyev remains unclear. He has not resigned and is in Jalal-Abad now. He is trying to consolidate the electorate to continue resistance," Otunbayeva said. Another former Kyrgyz premier Felix Kulov, who leads the Ar-Namys opposition party, said on Thursday that Bakiyev has to resign and go on trial and called for amendments in the constitution and restricted presidential power in the republic. "There can be no doubt that the order to shoot to kill was given by President Bakiyev, who controlled all law enforcement organizations in the country. Dozens of our compatriots were killed and hundreds wounded. Kurmanbek Bakiyev [...] has no moral or legal right to remain on his post," a statement from Kulov’s party said. "The Ar-Namys party believes that [...] it is necessary to start the process of constitutional reform to restrict the exclusive power of the head of state [...] We cannot repeat the mistakes of the past when one person usurped power," the statement said. Otunbayeva said the provisional government has abolished the country’s development, investment and innovation agency that was until recently headed by Bakiyev’s younger son Maxim. The agency controlled almost all financial flows coming to the republic from abroad. Otunbayeva’s deputy Temir Sariyev said Kyrgyzstan’s national bank will temporarily manage a number of banks previously run by Bakiyev’s entourage. "This was done to stop funds being pumped out of the republic," he said. Some 500 people gathered for a rally in Osh, where Bakiyev has a residence, to demand the president’s resignation, an eyewitness told RIA Novosti on the phone. Bakiyev was earlier said to be in Osh. There have also been reports that he could have left the country. Several thousand supporters of Bakiyev have gathered for a rally in the southern city of Jalal-Abad and are waiting for the president to deliver a speech, a source in the city’s authorities told RIA Novosti. Bakiyev has made no statements so far.

Unrest continues

A RIA Novosti correspondent at the scene reported on Thursday that crowds have set fire to and looted parts of the government headquarters in capital Bishkek. Around 1,000 people gathered in the square in front of the building and looters carried equipment and carpets out of the building. Smoke could be seen rising from the sixth and seven floors, where the presidential offices are. A blood-splattered portrait of Bakiyev was hanging from a fence in front of the government building. Fires raged across the city and shops have been looted. Similar scenes have been reported throughout the country. The opposition called for calm and urged people to stop looting. Despite the chaos, Bishkek mayor Nariman Tuleyev has said that vital services would be maintained. Street sweepers, out as usual on Thursday morning, could be seen clearing up the debris from three days of violent protests. Major political unrest started in Kyrgyzstan last month when the opposition forces accused the government of tightening its grip on power while failing to bring stability and economic growth. Opposition supporters on Wednesday seized a number of state organizations in Bishkek. The government and opposition leaders held talks, but the Kabar news agency reported that they failed.

Reaction

Both Russia and the United States both have military bases in Kyrgyzstan and have taken a keen interest in the events there. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Wednesday that the clashes in Kyrgyzstan were an extreme form of public protest and called the Central Asian country Russia’s strategic partner. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called on the Kyrgyz government and opposition to restrain from violence. Putin also denied claims by a number of Kyrgyz opposition leaders that he had expressed support for the protestors. He said Russia has played no role in the events in Kyrgyzstan. The United States expressed concern over the mass disorders in the country and said it was closely watching the situation. It also called on all sides to refrain from violence and display restraint. Kyrgyzstan has been unstable since Bakiyev took office after the so-called tulip revolution in 2005, but major political unrest began in Kyrgyzstan last month when opposition forces accused the government of tightening its grip on power while failing to bring stability and economic growth. Kyrgyzstan’s first post-Soviet president Akayev, toppled in 2005, said the country’s south, where Bakiyev has support, will not back him in his clash with the opposition. Otunbayeva was one of the key figures of the 2005 tulip revolution, which led to the overthrow of then President Akayev. A Russian Air Force spokesman, Vladimir Drik, said on Thursday that the Russian airbase in Kant, around 20 kilometers (12 miles) outside the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek, is functioning normally. "The airbase is operating under a routine training schedule. No incidents have been registered involving Russian air garrison personnel. No one has been injured," Drik said. Earlier a source in Russia’s Defense Ministry said the Russian airbase was on high alert, while the U.S. Department of State said the airbase in Kyrgyzstan’s Manas, used by the United States for its operations in Afghanistan, is continuing to function normally.

MOSCOW, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100408/158480874.html

Russia sends some 150 paratroopers to its airbase in Kyrgyzstan - General Staff

14:42 08/04/2010

Russia has sent some 150 paratroopers to its Kant airbase in the ex-Soviet Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan to ensure the safety of families of Russian military staff, the General Staff chief Nikolay Makarov said.

Protests in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek have left at least 74 people dead and more than 500 injured.

"The president has decided to send two companies of paratroopers there and some 150 people have arrived in Kant," Makarov, who is with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in Prague for the signing of a new arms cut deal, said.

Earlier a source in Russia’s Defense Ministry said the Russian airbase was put on high alert, while the U.S. said its Manas airbase in Kyrgyzstan was continuing to function normally.

Russian Air Force spokesman Vladimir Drik said the Russian airbase in Kant, around 20 kilometers (12 miles) outside the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek, is also continuing to function normally.

PRAGUE, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100408/158481793.html

Runaway Kyrgyz leader says has no real power, but refuses to resign

17:22 08/04/2010

Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who fled the capital Bishkek amid violent opposition protests in which more than 70 people were killed, said on Thursday he had no real power, but refused to resign, local news agency 24.kg reported.

"I declare that as a president I did not and will not lay down my duties," the agency quoted Bakiyev’s statement as saying.

"At the moment I have no opportunity to influence the situation in the country," he added, acknowledging that the armed forces, police and security services have taken the opposition side.

He is now believed to be hiding in southern Kyrgyzstan, his traditional powerbase. His political foes have formed a government led by Roza Otunbayeva and promised to hold new presidential polls in six months.

MOSCOW, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100408/158484725.html

Kyrgyz interim authorities order police to shoot at looters

21:11 08/04/2010

Kyrgyzstan’s interim interior minister authorized the police on Thursday to open fire on looters who have rampaged through Bishkek’s streets during two days of rioting.

"I issued an order to open fire on looters," Bolotbek Sherniyazov said on state TV.

The protests began in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday and spread to other regions of the country, including Bishkek, on Wednesday.

At least 75 people have been killed and more than 1,400 injured during the riots. The opposition formed a provisional government and claimed it had the support of the country’s armed forces, border guards and police. Eyewitnesses told the 24.kg news agency that special police units had headed for to a southern area of Bishkek where a big crowd was looting expensive homes and shops.

Armed rioters earlier burned the house of former prime minister Daniyar Usenov and attempted to seize the police headquarters.

Roza Otunbayeva, named prime minister by the opposition, ordered the interim interior minister to ensure Bishkek’s streets were patrolled overnight.

"The situation in the city has improved slightly," she said. "We have the strength to get through this night."

BISHKEK, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100408/158487684.html

Obama condemns violence in Kyrgyzstan - White House

01:19 09/04/2010

U.S. President Barack Obama has condemned violence that has taken place in protest-hit Kyrgyzstan and called for the restoration of peace and order in the republic, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs has said.

"The President has been closely following the events in Kyrgyzstan, and continues to monitor the situation with his National Security Team. We urge that calm be restored to Bishkek and other affected areas in a manner consistent with democratic principles and with respect for human rights," Gibbs said in a statement.

Obama is currently in the Czech capital, Prague, where a signing ceremony of the new Russian-U.S. strategic arms reduction treaty took place on Thursday.

"We deplore the use of deadly force by some of the security services against the demonstrators and by some demonstrators and continue to be concerned by ongoing looting and disorder," Gibbs said, adding "the United States looks forward to continuing our productive relationship with the people of Kyrgyzstan and the renewal of Kyrgyzstan’s democratic path."

Protests began in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday and spread to other regions of the country, including the capital, Bishkek, on Wednesday and Thursday.

At least 75 people have been killed and more than 1400 injured in the unrest, which has seen the opposition take power and name Roza Otunbayeva the country’s new prime minister.

Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who has fled Bishkek and is hiding in the country’s south, said on Thursday he no longer has any real power but vowed not to resign. He has said he is ready for talks with the self-appointed provisional government.

The government has promised to hold presidential elections in six months time.

WASHINGTON, April 8 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100409/158489751.html

SCO calls for restoration of peace in Kyrgyzstan

07:57 09/04/2010

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) has expressed concern over the situation in Kyrgyzstan, which has been hit by bloody civil unrest, and called for the early restoration of peace in the Central Asian state.

Opposition protests began in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday and spread to other regions of the country, including the capital, Bishkek, on Wednesday and Thursday. At least 75 people have been killed and more than 1400 injured in the unrest.

"The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation is expressing concern over the recent events in the Kyrgyz Republic which have caused human casualties, and conveying sincere condolences to the families and friends who have lost their loved ones. Peace, security and political stability in the Kyrgyz Republic, that is a member state of the SCO and a close neighbour to other SCO states, is of overriding importance for the whole region," the organization’s secretary-general, Muratbek Imanaliev, said in a statement published on the SCO’s website.

The Kyrgyz opposition, which has taken power in the country and named Roza Otunbayeva the new prime minister, has claimed to have the support of the armed forces, border guards and police.

Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who has fled Bishkek and is now hiding in the country’s south, said on Thursday he no longer has any real power but vowed not to resign. He has said he is ready for talks with the self-appointed provisional government.

"The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation is hoping for the earliest restoration of law and order, national harmony, and also believes that this matches the interests of the people of Kyrgyzstan and will benefit the maintenance of peace and stability in the SCO region," the organization, which comprises Russia, China, and Central Asian republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, said.

Earlier, Russia and the United States, which both have military bases in Kyrgyzstan, expressed concern over the recent events in the country.

BEIJING, April 9 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100409/158492872.html

Kyrgyz interim deputy premier flies to Moscow for talks

10:29 09/04/2010

A delegation from Kyrgyzstan led by interim First Deputy Prime Minister Almazbek Atambayev departed for Moscow Friday morning to hold talks with Russian officials, the provisional government press service said. There is no official information on who Atambayev will meet with in Moscow.

"The format of the meetings is yet unknown," the press service said. On Thursday, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin held a telephone conversation with Kyrgyz opposition-nominated premier Roza Otunbayeva who told Putin that her country needed economic assistance to deal with "the difficult situation" in the country. Putin said Russia was ready to offer humanitarian aid.

Otunbayeva assumed power in the ex-Soviet Central Asian nation stormed by recent nation-wide protests and formed a six-month interim government until elections are held.

Protests began in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday and spread to other regions of the country, including the capital, Bishkek. At least 75 people were killed and more than 1,400 injured in the unrest.

On Wednesday, Putin criticized Bakiyev’s policies, saying he had repeated mistakes made by his predecessor, Askar Akayev. Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who fled Bishkek and is hiding in the country’s south, said on Thursday he no longer had any real power but vowed not to resign. He has said he is ready for talks with the self-appointed provisional government.

In 2009, Russia allocated a $2 billion soft loan to Kyrgyzstan and $150 million in financial assistance. The leaders of both countries denied suggestions that the loan was linked to Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev’s plans to close a U.S. military base located a short distance from Bishkek.

BISHKEK, April 9 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100409/158493913.html

Kyrgyz provisional government not to hold talks with Bakiyev

16:42 09/04/2010

The provisional Kyrgyz government will not negotiate with toppled president Kurmanbek Bakiyev, Kyrgyz opposition-nominated premier told journalists on Friday.

"We don’t even plan to hold talks with him" Roza Otunbayeva said, adding that Bakiyev’s intentions to retrieve power were "unrealistic dreams."

Earlier on Thursday Bakiyev told Ekho Moskvy radio station he would not lay down his duties.

Experts say that if Bakiyev keeps a hold on the south of the country, where he traditionally has the most support, a civil war between the north and the south could be a possibility.

"There are lots of extremely wealthy people who fattened their wallets under the previous government. They are giving arms to new recruits. You can see outbreaks of violence all over the city" Otunbayeva told journalists.

She said that three explosive devices had been found in public places in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek and had probably been laid by Bakiyev’s supporters.

However, Otunbayeva stressed that the provisional government would not allow a civil war.

"We are now using our strengths to the maximum, we are mobilized, we have resources, equipment and the capability not to allow a civil war," she said.

At least 75 people have been killed and more than 1400 injured in the unrest, which began on Tuesday in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas and spread on Wednesday and Thursday to other regions of the country, including Bishkek. The armed forces, police and security services have sided with the opposition.

BISHKEK, April 9 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100409/158498970.html

Kyrgyzstan: economic indicators

17:39 09/04/2010

http://en.rian.ru/infographics/20100409/158499590.html

Interim Kyrgyz government holds first talks with President Bakiyev

19:03 10/04/2010

The Kyrgyz provisional government has held its first talks with President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who fled the capital after violent protests, a OSCE special envoy said on Saturday.

"The provisional government is ready to hold talks, and the first attempt to do so was held yesterday," Zhanybek Karibzhanov told journalists. "I don’t know the results, but the main thing is that the process has begun," he added.

Bakiyev has said he will not resign. Experts say that if he keeps a hold on the south of the country, where he traditionally has the most support, a civil war between the north and the south could be a possibility.

Protests against Bakiyev and his government began in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday and spread to other regions of the country including the capital, Bishkek, on Wednesday and Thursday. At least 79 people died and more than 1,500 were injured in the unrest.

BISHKEK, April 10 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100410/158511638.html

Kyrgyz interim government may bring charges against president

20:36 10/04/2010

Kyrgyzstan’s provisional government may begin the process of bringing criminal charges against President Kurmanbek Bakiyev as early as Saturday evening, the ex-Soviet republic’s temporary premier said.

Three days of violent protests that began in Kyrgyzstan on Tuesday left at least 79 people dead and over 1,500 injured.

The riots led to Bakiyev fleeing the capital, Bishkek, for the south of the country.

"It’s probable that this evening the provisional government will consider an order to bring Bakiyev and all the members of his family to criminal responsibility," Roza Otunbayeva told journalists.

The OSCE special envoy said earlier on Saturday that the provisional government and Bakiyev had held their first talks. However, he was unable to say what the outcome of the meeting was.

Azimbek Beknazarov, who oversees the police and military for the temporary government, told RFE/RL’s Russian service that the country’s interim authorities were planning to strip Bakiyev of his immunity from persecution.

BISHKEK, April 10 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100410/158512703.html

Death toll in Kyrgyzstan unrest rises to 81 - interim Health Ministry

12:14 11/04/2010

The number of deaths resulting from the unrest in Kyrgyzstan has reached 81, the provisional Health Ministry press secretary said on Sunday.

"Overnight two more people died of bullet wounds in Kyrgyz hospitals," Elena Bayalinova said.

Mourning processions are currently being held in downtown Bishkek. The interim government has taken upon itself to cover burial expenses of those killed during the protests.

President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has said he will not resign. Experts say that if he keeps a hold on the south of the country, where he traditionally has the most support, a civil war between the north and the south could be a possibility.

BISHKEK, April 11 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100411/158521708.html

Bakiyev urges UN to send peacekeepers to Kyrgyzstan

14:26 11/04/2010

Overthrown Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev urged the United Nations on Sunday to send its peacekeepers to the Central Asian republic to prevent further riots following the recent uprising that killed 81 people.

The president who fled the capital after his government was overthrown in the April 7-8 riots said in an interview with RIA Novosti that the work of the Interior and Defense Ministries in Kyrgyzstan had been paralyzed and the republic would be unable to cope with any fresh riots on its own.

Bakiyev also said he did not believe the ongoing investigation in the republic into the recent riots was objective and urged the establishment of an international independent commission.

Kyrgyzstan’s provisional government is considering arresting Bakiyev and put him on trial for the deaths of 81 people during the uprising. "If an international independent commission, which will carry out a full investigation, says in its conclusion that the president is to blame, I am prepared to bear full responsibility before my people," he said.

DZHALALABAD, April 11 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100411/158523199.html

Overthrown Kyrgyz president Bakiyev feels responsible for riots

23:57 11/04/2010

Overthrown Kyrgyz president Kurmanbek Bakiyev who fled Kyrgyzstan’s capital Bishkek following mass riots said Sunday he feels personal responsibility for the unrests that left over 80 killed.

Protests began in the northwestern Kyrgyz town of Talas on Tuesday and spread to other regions of the country including the capital, Bishkek, on Wednesday and Thursday. More than 1,500 people were injured. The opposition formed an interim government and said the armed forces, police and border guards moved over to its side.

"Of course, I feel responsibility for what happened. I am the president and such things happen. I can’t say there is no fault of mine. My fault is that I let it happen," Bakiyev told RIA Novosti.

He added that had he known about the protests beforehand, he would have prepared and not let the events happen as they did.

"I watched the funeral on TV and felt great anguish," Bakiyev said. Bakiyev, who is in the country’s south and does not want to resign, also warned against trying to use military force against him as unconfirmed reports emerged that a special forces unit could fly in to Jalal-Abad soon with the purpose to detain Bakiyev.

"I don’t recommend them to talk to me from the position of force," he said.

Experts say that if Bakiyev keeps a hold on the south of the country, where he traditionally has the most support, a civil war between the north and the south could be a possibility.

JALAL-ABAD, April 11 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/exsoviet/20100411/158529079.html

Kyrgyzstan hopes to get more than $150 million aid from Russia

11:34 12/04/2010

Russia should give Kyrgyzstan more than $150 million aid, a first deputy prime minister in the interim government said on Monday following talks in Moscow.

Almazbek Atambayev flew to Russia for discussions after the Kyrgyz opposition took control of the country last week, ousting the government of President Kurmanbek Bakiyev.

“During the talks I said that last year when there was absolute peace and quiet Kyrgyzstan received $150 million from Russia. In the current difficult situation the grant must be bigger,” he said, adding that he “met with understanding” from the Russian side.

“We were assured that Kyrgyzstan is a fraternal country for Russia, and Kyrgyz problems are Russian problems,” Atambayev said at a news conference. “The day after tomorrow an interim government delegation headed by Deputy Prime Minister Temir Sariyev will fly to Moscow for talks.”

Last Thursday, the day the opposition took control of the government in Bishkek, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone with the new interim prime minister. Roza Otunbayeva told him that Kyrgyzstan needed help and Putin said Russia was ready to provide humanitarian aid.

BISHKEK, April 12 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20100412/158535146.html

Kyrgyz interim gov’t expects more economic aid from Russia

First Deputy Prime Minister of the interim Kyrgyz government told reporters Monday that the government expected more economic aid from Russia due to the current situations.

"In the peace time in 2009 Kyrgyzstan had been allocated 150 million dollars, and in the developed situation, naturally, aid will be bigger," said Almazbek Atambayev at a press conference.

The deputy prime minister in charge of economic affairs said a delegation will fly to Moscow on Wednesday, seeking solutions to the suspension of oil products and more grants.

Meanwhile, Atambayev said the interim leaders mulled special operation against President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who fled to the south.

He also pledged to stick to all international commitments, including the agreement between Kyrgyzstan and the United States on the transit center at Manas airport.

"I believe that in a year’s time the U.S. will be withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan and we will settle the issue of the presence of the center in Kyrgyzstan in a civilized way together with the U.S. government," he said.

On Sunday, the interim government announced the removal of several ambassadors, including those to Russia, the United States and Turkey.

Marat Bakiyev, brother of President Bakiyev and previous ambassador to Germany and Norway, was also discharged, said the state-run Kyrgyz news agency.

Last week, thousands of protesters clashed with security forces throughout the country, driving out local governments and seizing government headquarters in Bishkek.

Bakiyev fled to the south and opposition parties formed an interim government led by Roza Otunbayeva, former foreign minister.

Source: Xinhua

http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90777/90851/6947848.html

[The western point of view]

Kyrgyzstan: Clashes With Police

By REUTERS

Published: April 6, 2010

Protesters rampaged through a regional government headquarters on Tuesday, fighting off riot police officers and demanding the resignation of President Kurmanbek Bakiyev. Police firing tear gas and rubber bullets briefly took back the building in the northwestern town of Talas, freeing the regional governor who had been taken hostage, but a crowd of 3,000 returned to retake the building after nightfall.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/07/world/asia/07briefs-kyrgyzstan.html

Upheaval in Kyrgyzstan Could Imperil Key U.S. Base

By CLIFFORD J. LEVY

Published: April 7, 2010

Opposition politicians, speaking on state television after it was seized by protesters, said they had taken control of the government after a day of violent clashes that left more than 40 people dead and more than 400 wounded. The instability called into question the fate of a critical American air base in the country.

Riot police officers fired rounds of live ammunition into angry crowds of demonstrators who gathered around government buildings to rally against what they termed the government’s brutality and corruption, as well as a recent decision to increase utility rates sharply. Witnesses said that the police seemed to panic, and that there was no sign of supervision. In several cases, demonstrators wrested their weapons away from them.

By early Thursday morning, opposition officials occupied many government buildings in Bishkek, and were demanding that the president, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, sign a formal letter of resignation. Mr. Bakiyev has issued no public remarks since the protests began. An official at the Bishkek airport said Mr. Bakiyev was flying to Osh, a major city in the southern part of the country.

A coalition of opposition parties said a transition government would be headed by a former foreign minister, Roza Otunbayeva. “Power is now in the hands of the people’s government,” she said in a televised address on Wednesday evening.

Those same opposition leaders were angered last spring when Obama administration officials courted Mr. Bakiyev — who they admitted was an autocrat — in an ultimately successful attempt to retain rights to the military base, Manas, used to supply troops in Afghanistan. President Obama even sent him a letter of praise.

Russia had offered Mr. Bakiyev a sizable amount in new aid, which the United States interpreted as an effort to persuade him to close the base in order to limit the American military presence in Russia’s sphere of influence. After vowing to evict the Americans last year, Mr. Bakiyev reversed course once the administration agreed to pay much higher rent for the base.

An American official said late on Wednesday that flights into the base at Manas had been suspended. Lt. Cmdr. Bill Speaks, a spokesman for United States Central Command, said late on Wednesday that some troops and equipment scheduled to transit from Manas to Afghanistan were likely to be delayed because of the government upheaval and that the military was preparing to use other routes.

The American attitude toward Mr. Bakiyev ruffled opposition politicians in Kyrgyzstan, who said it was shameful for the United States to stand for democratic values in the developing world while maintaining an alliance with him.

The Kyrgyz president’s son, Maksim, had been scheduled to be in Washington on Thursday for talks with administration officials. The opposition views the younger Mr. Bakiyev as a vicious henchman for his father, and was infuriated that he was granted an audience. The State Department said late on Wednesday that it had canceled the meetings. Opposition leaders have been divided in recent weeks over whether they would continue to allow the American military base to remain, but it seems clear that they harbor bitterness toward the United States. And neighboring Russia, which has long resented the base, has been currying favor with the opposition.

“The political behavior of the United States has created a situation where the new authorities may want to look more to Russia than to the United States, and it will strengthen their political will to rebuff the United States,” said Bakyt Beshimov, an opposition leader who fled Kyrgyzstan last August in fear for his life.

Mr. Beshimov was one of numerous opposition politicians and journalists who in recent years have been threatened, beaten and even killed. Kyrgyzstan, with five million people in the mountains of Central Asia, is one of the poorest countries of the former Soviet Union, and has long been troubled by political conflict and corruption. Mr. Bakiyev himself took power in 2005 after the Tulip Revolution, one of a series of so-called color revolutions that seemed to offer hope of more democracy in former Soviet republics. Since then, the Kyrgyz human rights situation has deteriorated. Mr. Bakiyev easily won another term as president last year, but independent monitors said the election was tainted by extensive fraud.

Tensions in Kyrgyzstan have been brewing for months, and seemed to be touched off in the provincial city of Talas on Tuesday by protests over soaring utility rates. Then on Wednesday, thousands of people began massing in Bishkek, where they were met by heavily armed riot police officers. Dmitri Kabak, director of a local human rights group in Bishkek, said in a telephone interview that he was monitoring the protest when riot police officers started shooting. “When people started marching toward the presidential office, snipers on the roof of the office started to open fire, with live bullets,” Mr. Kabak said. “I saw several people who were killed right there on the square.”

Dinara Saginbayeva, a Kyrgyz health official, said in a telephone interview that the death toll could rise, and that more than 350 people had been wounded in Bishkek alone. Opposition leaders said as many as 100 people may have died.

While the fighting was raging, security forces still loyal to the president arrested several prominent opposition leaders, including Omurbek Tekebayev, a former speaker of Parliament, and Almazbek Atambayev, a former prime minister and presidential candidate. They were later released after the government’s resistance appeared to wither. While opposition leaders have promised to pursue a less authoritarian course, Central Asia has not proved fertile ground for democracy. Mr. Bakiyev himself took office declaring that he would respect political freedoms.

Whatever happens domestically, a new government will have decide how to balance the interests of the United States and Russia, which both have military bases in Kyrgyzstan and want to maintain a presence in the region. Paul Quinn-Judge, Central Asia project director for International Crisis Group, a research organization, said Russia had stoked anti-American sentiment in Kyrgyzstan in recent months, often over the issue of the base.

Nevertheless, Mr. Quinn-Judge said he suspected that opposition politicians would in the end decide to permit the base, though not before giving the United States a hard time. “My gut feeling is that it can be smoothed over,” he said. “But they have got to move fast to reach out to the opposition, and do it with a certain degree of humility.” Elisabeth Bumiller contributed reporting from Washington.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/08/world/asia/08bishkek.html

Crowd Mourns Victims in Kyrgyzstan

By MICHAEL SCHWIRTZ and CLIFFORD J. LEVY

Published: April 9, 2010

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan — Crowds gathered in the center of this traumatized capital city on Friday for a memorial to the scores of people who died this week in deadly protests that forced the president to flee the capital. In front of looted and burned government buildings, they demanded that the president formally resign, though he has insisted that he will not.

Kyrgyzstan’s ousted but defiant President Kurmanbek Bakiyev spoke to a reporter on Friday in the southern Kyrgyz city of Jalalabad. More Photos »

“We are hungry but proud, and we will never back down,” said one of the mourners, a 50-year-old teacher named Ishenbek Ashirov, who was standing near piles of flowers that marked the places where antigovernment demonstrators were shot on Wednesday.

People held impromptu prayer services near bloodstains still visible on the fence around the main government building. A light post was pocked with bullet holes, apparent evidence of the live ammunition that the riot police had fired on the thousands of people who were protesting what they termed the repressive rule of the Kyrgyz president, Kurmanbek Bakiyev.

The police attack provoked a fierce backlash, and the demonstrators soon overwhelmed the officers and took control of important government buildings. By late in the day on Wednesday, Mr. Bakiyev had fled, and the opposition had effectively taken control of the capital. Officials said at least 68 people had died and more than 400 had been wounded in the fighting.

“Kyrgyzstan now has a unique chance to try to build a democracy for the second time,” said one of the mourners, Ravil Bikeyev, 57, a businessman, referring to the so-called Tulip Revolution of 2005, which carried Mr. Bakiyev into office. President Bakiyev had promised to allow democracy to flourish in Kyrgyzstan, only to become what human rights groups called an increasingly repressive autocrat. “The first time, we failed, and Bakiyev usurped all the power,” Mr. Bikeyev said.

President Bakiyev’s whereabouts were unknown on Friday, but the protesters said he had to be dealt with harshly.

“He is now seeking guarantees for his life, and the lives of his children,” said Demir Kadyrkulov, 42. If Mr. Bakiyev returns, it will be “blood for blood. People will tear him to pieces.”

The United States Embassy in Bishkek said Friday that it was closed to the public but still operational. The embassy said in a statement that it had moved some personnel and their families to the large American military base on the outskirts of the city, though they were not expected to be sent out of the country.

“We continue to urge calm and nonviolence,” the embassy said. “We are in active discussions with all parties to encourage peaceful and orderly behavior.”

A spokesman for United States Central Command said Friday that flights had resumed at an American military base in Kyrgyzstan that serves as a major point in the military supply chain to Afghanistan.

On Thursday, the transitional government in Kyrgyzstan declared that it was in charge, but the president issued veiled threats that suggested the country could face renewed instability.

Thursday’s events were dominated by two compelling and contrary figures in Kyrgyz politics: the interim leader, Roza Otunbayeva, a bespectacled former diplomat who once taught Marxist-Leninist theory before embracing Western mores; and President Bakiyev, the streetwise president, who has long been steeped in the country’s clan rivalries and boasted in an interview last year that he feared “absolutely nothing.”

Ms. Otunbayeva, 59, took the stage first, calling a news conference with her opposition colleagues to issue a series of directives that she said would calm the country. “You can call this a revolution. You can call this a people’s revolt,” she said. “Either way, it is our way of saying that we want justice and democracy.”

Like her colleagues at the news conference, Ms. Otunbayeva — who once backed Mr. Bakiyev before breaking with him early in his tenure — urged the president to acknowledge that he was through and to resign. But a few hours later, Mr. Bakiyev, 60, emerged to make clear that he had no intention of doing so.

Mr. Bakiyev left the capital on Wednesday after thousands of opposition protesters, infuriated by rising utility costs and a government they saw as repressive and corrupt, seized control.

On Thursday, he issued a statement saying that the opposition was solely responsible for the violence the day before. Then he gave an interview to a radio station in Moscow in which he maintained that he had widespread support among the Kyrgyz people, though he conceded that he no longer commanded the government.

“In a few days it will become evident that those who imagined themselves as leaders — they are unable to lead,” he said. “They have pushed the country into such an abyss, into such a mess, that they will have to answer for it.”

All the while, Mr. Bakiyev offered no hint as to his whereabouts. Opposition leaders speculated that he had retreated to the south of Kyrgyzstan, where he has longstanding family ties. They said they were worried that he would try to gather supporters and try to retake the capital, though that seemed unlikely for now — the armed forces, the security services and the police appear to have pledged loyalty to the interim government.

Mr. Bakiyev’s proclamations seemed to fall on deaf ears in Bishkek, where Ms. Otunbayeva announced that the interim government would administer the affairs of state for six months before a presidential election.

Ms. Otunbayeva said the status of the American military base in Bishkek, which plays an important role in supplying the war effort in Afghanistan, would not immediately change, though she warned that the issue was still being debated in the interim government. In interviews on Thursday, opposition politicians said that Ms. Otunbayeva, a former foreign minister and ambassador to the United States and Britain, was chosen as interim leader because she is considered to be a compromiser who is not politically ambitious and does not have a strong base of domestic support, having spent so many years abroad. The politicians, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the situation was in such flux, said they believed that she would be unable to amass power, leaving the field open for the presidential election.

Aleksandr Knyazev, a prominent political expert in Bishkek and a former student of Ms. Otunbayeva’s, said he thought of her as highly conscientious and honest. He said that she seemed more European than Central Asian, and that she spoke better Russian and English than Kyrgyz.

“She does not understand the Kyrgyz mentality and lacks clan support,” Mr. Knyazev said. “I doubt that she will run for president. Judging by her skills, she would make a good Parliament speaker.”

While Kyrgyz politicians struggled for control, the United States and Russia on Thursday also seemed to be maneuvering for advantage in Kyrgyzstan, which is the only country in the world that has both American and Russian military bases. The Kremlin has long been bothered by the presence of the Americans in a region it calls part of its zone of influence.

Mr. Bakiyev repeatedly sought to pit the United States and Russia against each other in order to extract more financial aid from both. Last year he upset the Kremlin when he agreed to evict the American base, then changed his mind after the Obama administration agreed to a steep increase in the rent and other favors.

In recent months, Mr. Bakiyev’s relations with Russia collapsed, and the Russian government increased the cost of energy that it provided to Kyrgyzstan. Russia’s state-controlled news media, which is widely followed in Kyrgyzstan, had also been conducting an intense campaign against Mr. Bakiyev, portraying him as a corrupt dictator.

Russia reached out to the opposition on Thursday, effectively recognizing it as the government. Prime Minister Vladimir V. Putin spoke with Ms. Otunbayeva, and a senior Russian lawmaker, Sergei M. Mironov, called another prominent Kyrgyz opposition leader, Omurbek Tekebayev.

It did not appear that the United States took similar steps, though the State Department said that diplomats from the American Embassy in Bishkek were meeting with opposition leaders.

At her news conference, Ms. Otunbayeva said the interim government was examining the agreements governing the American base. “We still have some questions about it,” she said. “Give us time and we will listen to all the sides and solve everything.”

Mr. Tekebayev said in a telephone interview that any decisions on the base would be made collectively by the opposition. He said he had a positive attitude toward the United States, but he acknowledged that the opposition had lingering resentments over what he said was the willingness of American diplomats to overlook Mr. Bakiyev’s human rights record in order to protect the base.

“The U.S. government does not and did not criticize Bakiyev, or express any negative opinions about him,” Mr. Tekebayev said. “The embassy here was warned several days ago that this would happen. They knew it, and they didn’t do anything about it.”

Michael Schwirtz reported from Bishkek, and Clifford J. Levy from Moscow.

Kyrgyzstan Opposition Says Rule Will Last 6 Months

CLIFFORD J. LEVY

Published: Friday, April 9, 2010 at 6:30 a.m.

MOSCOW — After a day of bloody protests against the repressive rule of the president of Kyrgyzstan, which forced him to flee the capital of Bishkek, an opposition leader said on Thursday that a transitional government had taken over, dissolved parliament and would remain in power for six months.

The unrest which erupted on Wednesday seemed to pose a potential threat to a critical American air base supporting the NATO campaign in nearby Afghanistan. But Roza Otunbayeva, a former foreign minister who has emerged as head of a coalition of opposition groups, was quoted on Thursday as saying the supply line would not be immediately affected.

“Its status quo will remain in place,” Reuters quoted her as saying at a news conference in the Parliament building. But she warned: “We still have some questions on it. Give us time and we will listen to all the sides and solve everything.”

Opposition politicians, speaking on state television after it was seized by protesters Wednesday, said they had taken control of the government after a day of violent clashes that left more than 40 people dead and more than 400 wounded. Some news reports on Thursday put the death toll at more than 60.

The Associated Press and Russian news reports quoted her as saying an interim government would rule for six months.

“You can call this revolution. You can call this a people’s revolt. Either way, it is our way of saying that we want justice and democracy,” she said. The unrest threatened to have regional consequences and neighboring Uzbekistan closed its border with Kyrgyzstan, Reuters reported.

http://www.ocala.com/article/20100409/ZNYT03/4093000/-1/news?Title=Kyrgyzstan-Opposition-Says-Rule-Will-Last-6-Months

Kyrgyzstan pledges to honour security deals, US says

The US says Kyrgyzstan’s interim leader has promised to honour key security agreements, days after she came to power following a bloody uprising.

US officials said Roza Otunbayeva had vowed not to interrupt operations from a military base the US uses to supply troops and supplies to Afghanistan.

The US stopped troop movements from the base, near the capital Bishkek, last week during an anti-government revolt. Protesters overthrew the president last week but dozens died in the uprising.

The base, in Manas, is leased from the Krygyz government, but opposition leaders had hinted before they came to power that the current lease could be shortened.

Thousands of coalition troops pass through the base each month on their way to Afghanistan.

Russia also has an airbase in Kyrgyzstan, and the presence of both has been the focus of debate in recent months.

US state department official Philip Crowley said Ms Otunbayeva had spoke to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton over the telephone to reassure her.

"Ms Otunbayeva confirmed that the Kyrgyz administration will honour previous agreements regarding the Manas transit centre," he said. Ms Otunbayeva, a former foreign minister, earlier told the BBC’s Kyrgyz service that her interim government would keep to its international commitments.

"We’ll work in the same regime, the same manner which the work has been done," she said.

The violence was the culmination of weeks of discontent over rising prices and allegations of corruption in Kyrgyzstan.

Clashes in Bishkek and other towns left at least 78 dead and more than 1,600 injured.

Ousted President Kurmanbek Bakiyev is believed to be in hiding in the south of the country.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8613899.stm

Kyrgyz president vows to fight attempts to seize him

Kyrgyzstan’s ousted leader Kurmanbek Bakiyev tells supporters there will be bloodshed if interim government tries to arrest him

Monday 12 April 2010 09.23 BST

Almaz Atambayev, the first deputy leader of Kyrgyzstan’s interim government said a special operation would be launched against the ousted leader Kurmanbek Bakiyev. Photograph: Vladimir Pirgov/Reuters Kyrgyzstan’s deposed president has rallied supporters in his home village and warned any attempt to seize him would result in bloodshed. About 500 people gathered today in a muddy field in Kurmanbek Bakiyev’s native village of Teyit, a week after he fled the capital, Bishkek in the face of an uprising.

At least 81 people died last week when a confrontation between police and protesters exploded into gunfire and chaos. Protesters stormed government buildings and Bakiyev fled to his native southern region. He has refused to step down and the rally in Teyit brought an array of speakers who vowed their support.

Kyrgyzstan’s interim government said it was planning a special operation against Bakiyev, who remained defiant.

"Let them try to seize me. Let them try to kill me," Bakiyev told reporters after addressing a rally of supporters in his home village. The interim government says he must step down or possibly face arrest. "We are preparing a special operation [against Bakiyev]," Almaz Atambayev, the first deputy leader of the interim government, told reporters in Bishkek.

"But he is hiding behind a human shield ... We hope we can carry it out without the deaths of civilians," Atambayev said. He refused to give any further details about the operation or to say when it would take place. Speaking to reporters before the rally, Bakiyev said he had spoken to an envoy from the United Nations to ask for peacekeepers to be sent. "I ... expressed a request for the United Nations to introduce its peacekeeping forces in the north of the republic to prevent any further escalation of the situation there."

The self-proclaimed government has said Russia is its key ally and some leading ministers have said the US lease on its air base could be shortened, raising speculation Moscow could try to use the base as a lever in relations with Washington.

Pentagon officials say the Manas airbase is key to the war against the Taliban, allowing round-the-clock flights in and out of Afghanistan. About 50,000 troops passed through it last month.

Kyrgyzstan’s interim government said that Russia had pledged to provide financial aid to the new leadership.

"We reached agreement on a solid grant," said Atambayev, who visited Moscow at the end of last week. "Kyrgyzstan, for Russia, is a brother country."

The head of interim government, Roza Otunbayeva, said yesterday that Bakiyev must face trial, rescinding an earlier offer of security guarantees for him. The statement reflected the toughening of the new authorities’ stance as they grow increasingly impatient with the ousted Bakiyev’s refusal to step down.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/apr/12/kyrgyz-president-vow-fight-seize

[The Italian point of view]

Kirghizistan, Bakiev lascia il paese

L’opposizione: "Formato nuovo governo"

Assalto al Parlamento e violente manifestazioni contro il presidente. Occupati la sede della tv e il palazzo dei servizi di sicurezza. Giallo sulla sorte del ministro dell’Interno: vittima di un’aggressione. secondo alcune fonti è morto, secondo altri è ostaggio dei ribelli.

BISHKEK - Il governo del Kirghizistan si è dimesso e il presidente Kurmanbek Bakiev ha lasciato il Paese. Lo annuncia l’opposizione, che ha costituito un nuovo esecutivo guidato dall’ex ministro degli Esteri Roza Otunbaieva, dopo una giornata di scontri violenti, a seguito delle imponenti manifestazioni di protesta contro Bakiev, che il premier Daniyar Ussenov ha provato a sedare proclamando lo stato d’emergenza. In serata la polizia di frontiera ha annunciato la chiusura del confine con il Kazakistan. E sono stati sospesi i voli militari americani nella base aerea di Manas, che serve da appoggio logistico alle operazione della Nato in Afghanistan, Paese vicino al Kirghizistan.

Nel piccolo e povero Paese ex sovietico dell’Asia centrale oggi si è verificata un’escalation della tensione, con l’assalto ai centri del potere. Tra le cause della mobilitazione antigovernativa, un’impennata del prezzo degli idrocarburi attribuita alla corruzione dell’esecutivo. Secondo i leader dell’opposizione, l’esercito ha sparato sulla folla e i morti sarebbero almeno cento. Cifre diverse da quelle diffuse dal ministero della Sanità, che ammette "almeno" 40 persone uccise e oltre 400 ferite. Negli ospedali stanno arrivando decine di feriti, quasi tutti giovani. Fonti giornalistiche sul luogo affermano che i manifestanti hanno preso il controllo del Parlamento nella capitale Bishkek. Alcuni gruppi hanno poi puntato sulla sede dei servizi di sicurezza. Sarebbe stato dato alle fiamme il primo piano della sede della procura generale. Le stesse fonti raccontano di truppe dell’esercito che sparano contro la folla, le migliaia di dimostranti che assediano la sede del governo.

Parla il nuovo premier. L’agenzia Interfax riporta le prime dichiarazioni di Roza Otunbaieva, il nuovo primo ministro del Kirghizistan. "Abbiamo il controllo nella repubblica. Non si sa dove sia andato il presidente (Bakiev, ndr)", ha affermato il primo ministro, aggiungendo che il nuovo governo non è stato ancora formato e che comunque lei lo guiderà ad interim per sei mesi. "Abbiamo distribuito i principali incarichi tra noi e lavoreremo per garantire la stabilità della situazione". L’obiettivo del governo provvisorio, ha detto ancora, è di "mantenere la stabilità, salvare vite e prevenire i saccheggi".

"Formato un nuovo governo". Dall’opposizione arriva l’annuncio che conferma la fuga del presidente kirghizo Bakiev dalla capitale Bishkek. "Siamo entrati nell’edificio del governo per avere dei colloqui. Il premier Daniar Ussenov ha firmato il documento di dimissioni", dice Temir Sariev, uno dei leader dell’opposizione, parlando alla tv di stato occupata. Bakiev ha lasciato la sede del governo verso una destinazione ignota, non si trova più nella capitale". Il nuovo esecutivo è guidato da Roza Otunbayeva, ex ministro degli Esteri e protagonista della "rivoluzione dei tulipani" nel marzo 2005. Sariev ha spiegato che la coalizione dei leader politici ha concordato la nomina di un nuovo primo ministro, un nuovo ministro degli Interni e un nuovo capo della sicurezza. Umurbek Tekebaiev, figura di spicco del partito Ata-Meken, ha affermato una milizia verrà formata per garantire l’ordine pubblico a Bishkek e nel paese. "Il Kirghizistan - ha concluso - ha dovuto affrontare oggi una questione di vita o di morte e abbiamo scelto la vita".

Bakiev ha lasciato il paese. Bakiev è fuggito a bordo di un piccolo aereo. Lo ha riferito un funzionario dell’aeroporto della capitale. Prima di questa testimonianza, le notizie sulla fuga di Bakiev erano contrastanti. La prima a dare l’annuncio era stata la radio russa Eco di Mosca, secondo cui Bakiev aveva lasciato il Paese alle 20 locali, le 17 italiane. Smentita dell’agenzia di stampa Interfax, fonte vicina all’entourage del presidente: il capo di Stato non ha lasciato la capitale ma è nella sede del governo. La stessa agenzia Interfax riportava che la residenza di Bakiev a Bishkek era stata saccheggiata e incendiata. Un gruppo di persone - aveva spiegato Interfax - si è introdotto nell’abitazione del presidente portando via in grossi sacchi di plastica, vestiti, lenzuola, stoviglie e caricato sulle spalle dei tappeti.

Prudenza Usa. Un portavoce del Dipartimento di Stato dichiara che gli Usa ritengono il vecchio governo ancora al potere in Kirghizistan. "Continuiamo a ritenere che il governo resti al potere" dice il portavoce P. J. Crowley, aggiungendo che gli Stati Uniti non hanno informazioni a supporto di una presa del potere da parte dell’opposizione.

Putin: "Noi non c’entriamo". Il premier russo Vladimir Putin nega qualsiasi ruolo della Russia nei tumulti in Kirghizistan: "Il potere russo non ha alcun rapporto con gli eventi in corso in Kirghizistan né la Russia, né il vostro umile servitore, né altre personalità ufficiali russe hanno nulla a che fare con questi eventi. Sembra che Bakiev - aggiunge il premier russo - si stia dando l’accetta sui piedi, come fece Akaiev a suo tempo". Putin ha poi invitato le autorità kirghise e l’opposizione ad astenersi dalle violenze.

Casa Bianca, appello alla calma. L’amministrazione Usa si dice preoccupata, "seguiamo la situazione da vicino - dichiara il portavoce della sicurezza nazionale Mike Hammer - siamo preoccupati dalle notizie delle violenze e dei saccheggi e facciamo appello a tutte le parti perché evitino la violenza e esercitino moderazione".

Il ministro aggredito. Incerta la sorte del ministro dell’Interno Moldomussa Kongantiev. Inizialmente dato per ucciso dalle percosse ricevute dai contestatori a Talas, dove ieri erano avvenuti i primi disordini, la sua morte viene smentita da un portavoce del ministero dell’Interno del Kirghizistan, che sta cercando di verificare se Kongantiev sia ancora nelle mani degli oppositori. Secondo l’agenzia russa Interfax, nell’aggressione contro il ministro sono stati coinvolti anche il vicepremier Zhaparov e il governatore della regione.

I negoziati. Sull’altro fronte, Temir Sariev, uno dei leader dell’opposizione, ha dichiarato alla radio indipendente Azattyk che sono in corso negoziati con il governo e di aver partecipato a un colloquio con il primo ministro, Daniar Ussenov, con il capo del Consiglio per la sicurezza dello stato, Murat Sutalinov, e con il procuratore Tursunkulov. "E’ stato raggiunto un accordo fra le parti - dice Sariev - le autorità smetteranno di sparare sui cittadini e libereranno i capi dell’opposizione arrestati". A conferma dell’accordo, l’agenzia di stampa governativa Kabar ha dato l’annuncio della scarcerazione di Umurbek Tekebaiev, leader del principale partito d’opposizione, l’Ata-Meken. Tekebaiev "è libero e sta andando a riunirsi ai suoi sostenitori presso la sede dell’amministrazione regionale". In precedenza, proprio il procuratore Tursunkulov, aveva annunciato che Tekebaiev e l’ex candidato presidente che sfidò Bakiev, Almazbek Atambaiev, erano stati arrestati e "incriminati per gravi crimini".

L’assalto alla tv. Il premier Ussenov ha dichiarato davanti al parlamento di Bishkek il regime d’emergenza imponendo il coprifuoco e la chiusura di negozi e scuole. Preso d’assalto anche il palazzo della televisione. Dopo alcune ore di blackout le trasmissioni sono riprese, ma ad andare in onda sono i militanti dell’opposizione con brevi interventi.

Scontri in tutto il Paese. Disordini e saccheggi soprattutto a Talas, 50 chilometri a nordovest di Bishkek. A Narin, nel centro del paese, i manifestanti hanno preso il controllo di alcuni edifici pubblici. In tumulto anche alcuni villaggi. Da Mosca, Andrei Nesterenko, portavoce del ministero degli Esteri russo, ha chiesto di "astenersi dalla violenza".

Il presidente contestato. Bakiev è giunto al potere nel marzo 2005 grazie a una rivoluzione che rovesciò il corrotto regime di Askar Akaiev e a una trionfale vittoria elettorale. Ma, nel corso della sua rocambolesca presidenza, si è velocemente adeguato alla deriva autoritaria che aveva contribuito ad abbattere. "Aveva una reputazione di dirigente comunista capace di riportare l’ordine. Ma è diventato l’ostaggio delle sue stesse ambizioni e del suo clan" spiega Alexei Malachenko, specialista di Asia Centrale al centro Carnegie di Mosca. Così, se all’esterno del paese Bakiev viene visto come l’abile politico che specula sulla rivalità Usa-Russia per il controllo di un territorio montagnoso, privo di sbocchi al mare ma strategicamente nevralgico, all’interno del Kirghizistan è accusato di perpetuare le cattive abitudini del suo predecessore. E nel 2007, in occasione delle legislative anticipate che gli hanno dato una maggioranza schiacciante in Parlamento, contro Bakiev vengono rivolte le stesse accuse di frode elettorale che aveva cavalcato nel 2005. Le presidenziali del 23 luglio 2009, chiuse con la sua rielezione con il 76,43% dei voti, sono state criticate anche dagli europei e giudicate non democratiche dall’Osce.

(07 aprile 2010)

http://www.repubblica.it/esteri/2010/04/07/news/stato_d_emergenza_in_kirghizistan-3172935/

Kirghizistan, sciolto il Parlamento, l’opposizione forma governo provvisorio

Gli scontri di ieri hanno provocato 75 morti e oltre mille feriti. La leader del nuovo esecutivo Otunbayeva: "La base militare Usa di Manas resterà aperta".

A Bishkel la folla saccheggia gli edifici istituzionali. Dalla fuga, il presidente Bakiyev annuncia: "Non mi dimetto".

BISHKEK - Dopo le proteste, gli scontri di ieri e le vittime, a Bishkek in Kirghizistan la tensione resta alta. L’opposizione ha sciolto il Parlamento e formato un governo provvisorio che rimarrà in carica per i prossimi sei mesi come annunciato dall’ex ministro degli Esteri e leader dell’opposizione, Roza Otunbayeva, da ieri alla guida dell’esecutivo. Le proteste non si arrestano: secondo quanto riferito dal comandante militare di Bishkek, Turat Madalbekov, centinaia di persone hanno assaltato il quartiere delle ambasciate della capitale, "la folla sta devastando le residenze, stiamo cercando di fermarli e di cacciare gli assalitori fuori dalla città diplomatica". Testimoni riferiscono che nel pomeriggio sono stati uditi nuovi colpi d’arma da fuoco nei pressi del quartier generale della polizia. Al momento non si ha notizia di vittime o feriti. Intanto alcune dichiarazioni del presidente kirghizo Kurbanbek Bakiyev, fuggito ieri dalla città, sono state pubblicate dall’agenzia di stampa 24KG. Il paese, dice il presidente fuggito, "è sull’orlo di una catastrofe umanitaria e le forze armate sono sotto il controllo dell’opposizione, incapaci di riportare la pace". Ed ha parlato di "ingerenze esterne" nel colpo di Stato, che sarebbe stato possibile, appunto, solo con un contributo di altri stati: "Mi auguro che non ci sia la mano di Mosca. Non voglio dirlo e non voglio neppure crederlo".

Il nuovo governo. Otunbayeva in mattinata ha avuto un colloquio telefonico con il premier russo Vladimir Putin. Ha poi spiegato che il nuovo governo assumerà anche la funzione legislativa, abrogando le leggi elettorali e sui partiti che avevano permesso al presidente Bakiyev di assicurarsi la maggioranza in Parlamento. Verranno inoltre avviati dei negoziati con lo stesso Bakiyev.

L’opposizione nei palazzi del potere. L’opposizione ha preso il controllo della sede del governo, ieri teatro di scontri sanguinosi. L’edificio non è più controllato dalle forze di sicurezza e centinaia di abitanti stamane entrano ed escono in grande tranquillità dalla cosiddetta "Casa Bianca". Ma le violenze hanno lasciato numerose tracce nelle strade di Bishkek e soprattutto un tragico bilancio in termini di vite umane: secondo fonti ufficiali, 75 persone hanno perso la vita e oltre mille sono rimaste ferite.

Il ruolo dei militari. Questa mattina il ministro della Difesa del governo a interim, Ismail Isakov, ha assicurato che l’esercito e le guardie di frontiera sono tutte sotto il suo controllo. "La forza militare non sarà mai più impiegata per risolvere problemi interni", ha aggiunto. "Tutte le regioni - ha aggiunto Otunbayeva - sono sotto il nostro controllo, ma stiamo ancora lavorando su Osh e Jalalabad". La ex ministro degli Esteri ha garantito che la base militare americana di Manas, fondamentale per le operazioni militari in Afghanistan, resterà aperta. La Nato ha comunque sospeso, seppur temporaneamente, i voli. L’Uzbekistan ha intanto chiuso la frontiera con il Kirghizistan bloccando il transito di persone e merci.

Bakiyev: "Non mi dimetto". Quanto al presidente fuggitivo - che ieri ha lasciato la capitale Bishkek e si sarebbe rifugiato nel sud del Paese, a Osh secondo alcune fonti, a Jalalabad, sua città natale, secondo altre - Bakiyev rifiuta di dimettersi e affida le sue parole all’agenzia kirgiza 24KG: "Come presidente non mi tolgo i poteri e non intendo nascondermi dietro lo stato di immunità presidenziale". Si dice "pronto a rispondere per i tragici eventi, ma solo nel caso in cui la mia colpa sarà provata nel corso di indagini obiettive e imparziali. Come garante della Costituzione - continua - in caso di ulteriore destabilizzazione nel Paese, tutta la responsabilità ricade sull’opposizione che sarà punita secondo la legge". Nel comunicato Bakiyev ammette che "come presidente, attualmente sono privo della possibilità di influenzare la situazione nel Paese" e invita la popolazione alla calma e a non farsi influenzare dalle provocazioni. "Oggi la cosa più importante è fermare la collera della folla". La leader dell’opposizione si è detta pronta a "negoziare" le dimissioni di Bakiyev e ha sottolineato che "i suoi affari qui sono finiti". Poi un accenno alle persone morte negli scontri: "Sono vittime del suo regime".

La situazione a Bishkek. La situazione nella capitale è tutt’altro che tranquilla. Bolot Sherniazov, ministro dell’Interno del nuovo governo ad interim, ha dato ordine di usare le armi contro gli sciacalli - la capitale è teatro da ieri di vandalismi e saccheggi. Tra le rovine della Casa Bianca, la residenza del presidente fuggito, si aggirano decine di persone, rubando quello che trovano, termosifoni compresi. Sui muri è comparsa la scritta "Morte a Bakyiev", mentre alcuni arringano la folla: "Ricordate come vivevano! Ricordate i diamanti, quando noi riuscivamo a malapena a sopravvivere". Nell’edificio presidenziale, ieri dato in parte alle fiamme, tutte le finestre sono in frantumi e la folla ha disperso, nei prati davanti al palazzo, migliaia di carte e documenti. All’esterno, in centinaia vagano tra le carcasse delle auto e dei camion usati ieri per forzare l’ingresso nell’edificio. Stessa sorte per altri palazzi istituzionali: all’esterno i pochi vigilantes rimasti invitano la folla ad andarsene. E alcuni giornalisti, nel palazzo del governo, si sono sentiti dire: "Andate via, qui non c’è più nulla da prendere, dovevate arrivare prima".

(08 aprile 2010)

http://www.repubblica.it/esteri/2010/04/08/news/kirghizistan_8_aprile-3189258/

Furti, sciacalli e vendette, il Kirghizistan è in fiamme

Elezioni entro sei mesi. Il presidente in fuga a Jalalabad: "Golpe straniero" .

Il nuovo premier a interim è una donna, Roza Otunbajeva, che ha già ricevuto l’ok della Russia.

dal nostro inviato NICOLA LOMBARDOZZI

BISHKEK - Con la benedizione, arrivata all’alba di ieri da Vladimir Putin in persona, la rivoluzione del Kirghizistan è teoricamente finita in trionfo, ma per la gente della ex repubblica sovietica nel cuore dell’Asia centrale sono giorni terribili di paura e di violenza. Nella capitale Bishkek, folle incontrollabili di manifestanti esaltate dal profumo di vittoria incendiano case, saccheggiano negozi, si abbandonano a pestaggi senza pietà contro ogni sospetto di simpatia con il regime appena crollato. Sono armati di bastoni e di qualsiasi corpo contundente raccattato per le strade devastate. Ma qualcuno ha anche armi vere e proprie a giudicare dagli spari che si sentono echeggiare senza tregua in ogni zona della città.

Per fermare lo sciacallaggio il governo rivoluzionario ha dato ordine di uccidere chiunque venga sorpreso a rubare in negozi e case abbandonate. Centinaia di volontari si stanno radunando in una specie di milizia popolare per riportare l’ordine "con ogni mezzo". Slogan vendicativi e dichiarazioni minacciose urlate ad ogni angolo di strada fanno temere una lunga caccia all’uomo e una serie di vendette a catena. E negli ultimi due giorni i morti sarebbero già più di cento.

Roza Otunbajeva, capo del nuovo governo di salute pubblica, promette elezioni entro sei mesi e garantisce di avere la situazione sotto controllo anche se, per il momento, non ritiene opportuno apparire in pubblico e affida i suoi messaggi a Twitter e ai siti Internet. Il presidente ormai deposto Kurmanbek Bakijev, fuggito ieri notte nella cittadina natale di Jalalabad, proclama di non sentirsi sconfitto ma sta trattando per salvare almeno la vita dei suoi cari, la moglie, due figlie, sette fratelli. E da Radio Eco di Mosca accusa: "Questo è un colpo di Stato con ingerenze esterne. Non voglio indicare un Paese concreto, ma senza forze esterne è praticamente impossibile compiere questa operazione ben coordinata".

Con spicciativa durezza la signora Otunbajeva ha risposto che l’incolumità personale sarà garantita soltanto all’ex presidente e solo se farà in fretta a dimettersi formalmente da una carica che non ha più. In un clima sempre più da guerra civile il Cremlino ha deciso di inviare 150 paracadutisti dei corpi scelti a rinforzare la base militare russa nella città di Kant, poco distante da quella americana di Manas snodo cruciale per i rifornimento delle truppe Usa in Afghanistan.

Proprio ieri mattina, mentre Obama era ancora in volo per Praga, Putin ha telefonato alla Otunbajeva , che pure era stata sua feroce avversaria al tempo della rivoluzione dei tulipani del 2005. Ha riconosciuto le ragioni dell’opposizione, ha promesso immediati e cospicui aiuti umanitari ma soprattutto ha cancellato l’aumento dei prezzi del petrolio russo che sono stati la causa scatenante della rivolta popolare. Il prezzo del petrolio e del gas si rivela ancora una volta un’arma decisiva della Russia nella gara con gli Stati Uniti per la conquista delle aree di influenza. Tra i programmi immediati del nuovo governo provvisorio c’è adesso di annullare le miliardarie privatizzazioni di enti statali per l’energia e per le telecomunicazioni decise dal presidente Bakjiev e finite quasi tutte in orbita statunitense. Contemporaneamente la premier ha tranquillizzato il Pentagono dicendo che la base di Manas resterà aperta.

Roza Otunbajeva conosce bene la necessità del Kirghizistan di barcamenarsi tra una grande e potenza e l’altra. Sessant’anni, ma ne dimostra meno, sposata e madre di due figli, è un volto notissimo ai kirghizi. Docente di Materialismo dialettico alla facoltà di Filosofia nell’era sovietica, è entrata in politica proprio nelle fila del Pcus brillando per personalità e per clamorosi colpi di scena. Ministro degli Esteri del Kirghizistan sovietico, poi di quello indipendente del filo russo Akayev, mollò tutto accusando il presidente di eccessivo autoritarismo. Nel 2005 fu l’anima della rivolta che cacciò proprio Akayev e che insediò il filo occidentale Bakijev. Ma due anni fa passò nuovamente all’opposizione denunciando il nepotismo, la corruzione del governo e coalizzando sotto la sigla Ata-Zhurt tutte le forze di opposizione. Tra le denunce, la catena incredibile di parenti del presidente inseriti nei posti chiave del potere: un fratello capo dei servizi segreti, il figlio Maksim a gestire di fatto i poteri di primo ministro attraverso la gestione della gestione per gli investimenti e l’innovazione, cugini ed elementi di clan familiari in tutti i ministeri e bene sette modifiche in cinque anni alla costituzione liberale post sovietica con la chiusura dei giornali d’opposizione, la limitazione delle libertà personali fino all’abolizione del voto e la nomina diretta di funzionari, governatori locali e perfino del successore alla presidenza, il figlio prediletto Maksim. Maksim è certamente il più odiato dalla folla che impazza per le vie di Bishkek. Ed è l’unico elemento della famiglia Bakijev a sentirsi al sicuro. Si trova infatti negli Stati Uniti, a Washington, dove proprio ieri doveva presiedere un forum di imprenditori americani dal tema "Opportunità in Kirghizistan". All’ultimo momento il convegno è stato rinviato senza annunciare una nuova data.

(09 aprile 2010)

http://www.repubblica.it/esteri/2010/04/09/news/reportage_lombardozzi-3215045/

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