02kyrgyz
Kyrgyzstan Opposition Leader Freed
March 19, 2002
Kyrgyzstan Opposition Leader Freed
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 4:04 p.m. ET
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (AP) -- An opposition lawmaker whose jailing touched
off Kyrgyzstan's bloodiest street protests in a decade was freed Tuesday
pending a court ruling, hours after a late-night clash that raised the
death toll in two days of violence to five.
Prosecutors released Azimbek Beknazarov but barred him from leaving the
country. The Interior Ministry said he went to Kerben, the southern town
where Monday night's violence erupted, and urged thousands of supporters
camped out there to avoid further unrest.
Beknazarov was arrested in January on charges of abuse of power for
failing to open a criminal case into a killing when he was a prosecutor.
His supporters say he was arrested because he has criticized President
Askar Akayev's government.
Akayev, hailed by Western governments in the early 1990s as a reformer in
a region of authoritarian rulers, has cracked down on dissent in recent
years. U.S. troops are deployed in the former Soviet republic to support
the anti-terrorism campaign in nearby Afghanistan.
On Sunday, at least four protesters were killed in fighting between police
and demonstrators who gathered in Karadzigach, a village near Kerben in
the impoverished Jalalabad region, to demand Beknazarov's release.
Fifteen protesters were hospitalized and 47 police were injured, the
Central Asian nation's prosecutor general said Monday.
It was the first time that an opposition protest turned violent in 10
years of independence for Kyrgyzstan.
One more protester was killed late Monday when a crowd of about 5,000
tried to storm the regional police headquarters in Kerben, Interior
Minister Temirbek Akmataliyev said. Thirteen policemen and six
demonstrators were injured, he said.
Police and protesters blamed each other for both outbreaks of violence.
In Kerben, the crowd threw stones at police and set two police officers'
homes on fire, Akmataliyev said. Emil Aliyev of the opposition party
Ar-Namys said protesters broke windows and set fires only after the
shooting was over and police had left.
Before Beknazarov arrived in Kerben following his release, Prime Minister
Kurmanbek Bakiyev spoke to the demonstrators there and urged them to
disperse peacefully.
Bakiyev later said on state television that the government had fulfilled
the protesters' main demands by releasing Beknazarov and dismissing an
unpopular regional official.
He also promised to fulfill their demands for the improvement of
electricity supplies to the region and changes in the nation's land laws.
Beknazarov's arrest has stirred up the longtime rivalry between southern
Kyrgyzstan, where he made his political career, and the north, where most
members of the government come from.
Poverty is rife in the south, which is part of the ethnically mixed and
densely populated Fergana Valley -- a source of social and political
tension for all of Central Asia and site of deadly riots in the late
1980s.
Copyright 2002 The Associated Press | Privacy Information
Economist.com
Central Asia
The dead dog warning
May 30th 2002 | ALMATY
From The Economist print edition
Perils of the opposition
WHEN Respublika, an independent-minded newspaper, criticised the Kazakhstan
authorities, the editor received a funeral wreath with her name on it. Then the
body of a beheaded dog was hung on a window at the newspaper's premises, with a
warning note attached to it. Last week the premises were destroyed by fire.
While Respublika's voice may have been interrupted, the attackers have also
caused what could be long-term damage to Kazakhstan's reputation as a stable
country and a developing democracy. The business weekly is close to Democratic
Choice, an opposition movement, and has been highly critical of the arrest of
one of its leaders, Galymzhan Zhakiyanov, who has been accused of corruption
when he was a regional official.
Such charges are fairly common in Central Asia, a convenient way for
authoritarian presidents to dispose of their political opponents. But
suppressing dissent can also be dangerous, as the government of neighbouring
Kirgizstan has found.
In January, a then little-known member of the Kirgiz parliament, Azimbek
Beknazarov, was accused of abusing his power in a previous post. Two months
later, five people were shot dead by police while demonstrating against his
trial. Mr Beknazarov was subsequently released, but the protests continued. A
state commission found that senior officials were to blame for the five deaths.
The prime minister, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, and his cabinet resigned on May 22nd. In
response, President Askar Akaev sought “co-operation” with opposition
politicians.
Kirgizstan is a much smaller and poorer country than Kazakhstan, but there are
political similarities between the two. Their presidents have been in power
since the Soviet period. After independence in 1991, Mr Akayev and Nursultan
Nazarbaev of Kazakhstan initially put their countries on the path of democracy.
But as the years went on, they moved to authoritarian rule, stifled the media,
installed members of their families in key positions, and became increasingly
allergic to opposition.
Still the opposition refuses to go away. In oil-rich Kazakhstan it is mostly
driven by business groups who want a piece of the pie. In Kirgizstan opposition
groups see themselves as the voice of the ordinary people. Either way, the
opposition is a force the government finds it dangerous to ignore.
Copyright © 2002 The Economist Newspaper and The Economist Group. All
rights reserved.
Economist.com
A new force in Central Asia
Americans in a strange land
May 2nd 2002 | BISHKEK
From The Economist print edition
2
Will intervention foster democracy?
Reuters
SIX months ago, Manas airport, near Bishkek, the capital of Kirgizstan, was as
sleepy and dilapidated as the country itself. Now it buzzes with activity as
soldiers, pilots and engineers from the United States and seven other countries
erect tents, tinker with aircraft engines and equip bombers with their lethal
payloads. Whether the Kirgiz realise it or not, a piece of military history is
being made by the multi-national force of 1,900 (and rising) which has encamped
at Manas airport and renamed their bit of it after Peter Ganci, the New York
fire chief who died in last September's terrorist attack.
The tent city at Manas is engaged in a combat operation at present directed
against the caves of Afghanistan, nearly 1,000km (620 miles) away. A dozen
bombers, six American and six French, support the war against remnants of the
Taliban regime and the al-Qaeda network. There are tanker aircraft supplied by
Australia and France, and transporters from Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark and
Norway. South Korea has sent a medical team. Despite the tents, the base has a
far from makeshift look. It is under American commanders who seem to be quickly
mastering the tricky art of integrating forces from a number of nations. Their
boss, Donald Rumsfeld, the American defence secretary, flew in to give the
troops a pep talk (picture above). The place where he spoke was given a homely
touch with an enormous Stars and Stripes.
But marshalling its forces is just one of the challenges facing the American-led
coalition as it hunkers down in Central Asia. The Americans, and to a lesser
extent their western allies, are being drawn deep into the internal politics of
a region with huge potential to change for better or worse. However diplomatic
the westerners try to be, the arrival of their armies is transforming the scene.
Kirgizstan illustrates this in microcosm. The expenditure so far at Manas, just
by the Americans, on items such as fuel, gravel, food and makeshift beds, is
conservatively estimated at $16m: a tidy sum in a country of 4.9m where many
people live in poverty. As Kirgizstan's president, Askar Akaev (once
optimistically hailed as Central Asia's Thomas Jefferson because of his
democratic words), becomes increasingly despotic, local people grumble that the
Americans have boosted his power by buying fuel from businesses close to the
seat of power. Americans retort that they have tried to spread their custom
widely, while realising that, wherever they shop, they are bound to make
enemies.
Central Asia's growing strategic importance for America and its friends is also
affecting the region's atmosphere in more subtle ways. At least in the short
term, all the region's leaders feel their bargaining power with the West has
palpably risen since the start of the war in Afghanistan. Human-rights
campaigners and opposition politicians fear that they will be sidelined by the
United States as it seeks to favour the local strongmen.
In fact, the American State Department does speak up when it feels that human
rights and democratic procedures are being ignored. In Kirgizstan the American
embassy gave at least moral support to an opposition activist who died on hunger
strike in February. It protested over the detention in January of an opposition
figure, Azimbek Beknazarov. The State Department has been pressing President
Akaev to set up a fair inquiry into the killing by police of at least six
unarmed demonstrators in March.
Neighbouring Uzbekistan is the other Central Asian state that has provided a
base, at Khanabad, for western forces fighting in Afghanistan. It is the most
populous state in the region, with the toughest army. The fact that the Uzbeks
3
have enough security forces to police borders and suppress Islamist extremists
makes them attractive partners for western forces. Or so say some American
policymakers in Washington. They argue that America should back and harness the
Uzbeks' regional ambitions. But for those who care about human rights,
Uzbekistan is a nightmare; there are thousands of political prisoners.
Then there is Kazakhstan, a vast, energy-rich country where democracy is by no
means a lost cause, but which has suffered some serious setbacks recently. The
Kazakh opposition, like the opposition in Kirgizstan, is convinced that the
high-handed behaviour of the rulers of Central Asia is a side-effect of the
region's growing geopolitical importance. With no mean skill, the Kazakh
president, Nursultan Nazarbaev, has used the Afghan war to play off the various
bidders for influence in his country. America has obtained permission for its
military aircraft to fly over Kazakhstan and to use Kazakh airfields for
stopovers. Mr Nazarbaev's views will no doubt have been noted in connection with
an American plan, disclosed this week, to maintain a long-term
“footprint” in
Central Asia. The Americans may be thinking of storing weapons in the region and
of having access to airfields.
Donald Rumsfeld called on Mr Nazarbaev last weekend during his tour of the
region. The defence secretary's trip has not been popular everywhere. A few days
before Mr Rumsfeld's visit, Iran's President Muhammad Khatami had grumbled to Mr
Nazarbaev that “the presence of any foreign power in any region causes
concern”.
But Mr Rumsfeld has a thick skin; and anyway he would have been given a kindly
welcome by Mr Nazarbaev.
Russia, meanwhile, has offered a reminder that Kazakhstan, like the rest of
Central Asia, used to be part of the Soviet empire. It has offered to train
thousands of Kazakh army officers, and to sell arms at concessionary prices.
Joint war games between Russia, Kazakhstan, Kirgizstan and Tajikistan (the
members, along with Belarus and Armenia, of a collective-security pact) are
becoming more frequent; Kazakhstan's vast firing ranges offer a perfect setting
for mock warfare.
Reuters
Under two flags
Much of the “collective security” was designed to defend the region
against the
Taliban and its Islamic allies. Mr Nazarbaev saw the Taliban-linked Islamists in
Uzbekistan as a “direct and substantial threat” to Kazakhstan if the
zealots had
not been kicked out of Kabul, according to Marat Tazhin, the president's head of
national security. Along with the Central Asian states, Russia, China and even
Iran will agree that the defeat of the Taliban, the regional bogeyman, has taken
a bit of heat out of the region's competition, the revived “great
game”—a
19th-century term much used (and overused) in recent times.
Nonetheless, Mr Tazhin and other Kazakh officials are at pains to stress that
the threat from Afghanistan's former rulers (and related scourges, such as the
huge stocks of heroin they accumulated) has yet to be vanquished. The security
chief believes that several thousand Taliban fighters may have escaped the
latest battles; and argues that the new Afghan government, however worthy, may
be too weak to stop the export of heroin, which mostly reaches Europe via
Central Asia.
Even before the conflict in Afghanistan enhanced its importance, Kazakhstan was
a force in regional politics. Last year, its GDP growth was nearly 13.2%. It has
attracted well over $12 billion in foreign investment, nearly half from American
oil companies. While there have been rumblings of economic nationalism from
Kazakh politicians, the country is still committed to building a market economy.
The American Commerce Department said recently that the country is doing some of
the right things to build one.
4
As Kazakhstan's energy bonanza becomes more apparent, so too does the
intensity of its internal infighting
But as Kazakhstan's energy bonanza becomes more apparent, so too does the
intensity of its internal infighting—to the embarrassment of the country's
western friends. President Nazarbaev has dealt ruthlessly with signs of dissent
within the economic and political elite that formed a close-knit team during the
early years of Kazakh independence. In March, Mukhtar Ablyazov, a former energy
minister and businessman with substantial media interests, was jailed on vaguely
formulated corruption charges. Another opposition figure, Galymzhan Zhakiyanov,
took refuge in the French embassy after being accused of similar offences. He
left the embassy after western ambassadors won an assurance that he would be
kept under house arrest in Almaty. But the authorities broke their promise and
moved him to the more remote Pavlodar—a move that drew diplomatic protests from
several western countries. Nurbulat Masanov, an opponent of the regime, says the
relatively mild western reaction to these events convinced the authorities that
they could continue to squelch the opposition.
Both the jailed politicians were prominent members of Democratic Choice for
Kazakhstan. Another source of democratic ideas is Akezhan Kazhegeldin, an exiled
former prime minister. His web-sites are eagerly read by Kazakhs around the
world but are jammed in his homeland.
Kasymzhomart Tokaev, the foreign minister, insists that the recent detentions
are not harbingers of a one-party state: the government fully recognises the
opposition's right to exist, and outsiders should not be over-hasty to interfere
in judicial proceedings. But the arrests, and the closure of several media
outlets, have led to what a western diplomat calls a “narrowing of the
political
space” at a time when it should be broadening. A former Kazakh minister, now a
dissident, believes that westerners are naive about Central Asia.
The West doesn't understand our leaders. They are old communists who talk
about democracy when they are abroad but use a different language at home.
At least one of Mr Nazarbaev's aides has said publicly that the president will
not be able to cope with an increasingly broad-based opposition by means of
repression alone; some compromise will be needed if the country is to remain
united and stable. Other observers, including some westerners, believe the
president's crackdown may succeed, at least in the short term. They point to the
absence of mass protest. The country, they point out, does not have the
desperate poverty that has fuelled dissent in Kirgizstan.
Yerlan Karin, a rising star among Kazakhstan's geopolitical pundits, believes
that as well as giving the region's governments a short-term boost, the war in
Afghanistan has sharpened all Central Asia's pre-existing problems, from the
burgeoning drug trade, to tension with China over agitation by nationalist
Uighurs, based in Kazakhstan and active in nearby Xinjiang. He predicts that
traditional tensions between Uzbeks and Kazakhs could resurface, as could
competition for the water resources of Kirgizstan and Tajikistan.
Assuming he is even half-right, the Americans and their allies will be asking
what sort of polity will be best placed to cope with these problems? A brittle,
authoritarian state like Uzbekistan or a semi-democracy, as once seemed likely
for Kirgizstan? As American pilots return to their new Central Asian bases after
unloading their bombs on the Afghan mountainside, that is a problem that faces
their political masters back home.
Copyright © 2002 The Economist Newspaper and The Economist Group. All
rights reserved.
5
Economist.com
Central Asia
The dead dog warning
May 30th 2002 | ALMATY
From The Economist print edition
Perils of the opposition
WHEN Respublika, an independent-minded newspaper, criticised the Kazakhstan
authorities, the editor received a funeral wreath with her name on it. Then the
body of a beheaded dog was hung on a window at the newspaper's premises, with a
warning note attached to it. Last week the premises were destroyed by fire.
While Respublika's voice may have been interrupted, the attackers have also
caused what could be long-term damage to Kazakhstan's reputation as a stable
country and a developing democracy. The business weekly is close to Democratic
Choice, an opposition movement, and has been highly critical of the arrest of
one of its leaders, Galymzhan Zhakiyanov, who has been accused of corruption
when he was a regional official.
Such charges are fairly common in Central Asia, a convenient way for
authoritarian presidents to dispose of their political opponents. But
suppressing dissent can also be dangerous, as the government of neighbouring
Kirgizstan has found.
In January, a then little-known member of the Kirgiz parliament, Azimbek
Beknazarov, was accused of abusing his power in a previous post. Two months
later, five people were shot dead by police while demonstrating against his
trial. Mr Beknazarov was subsequently released, but the protests continued. A
state commission found that senior officials were to blame for the five deaths.
The prime minister, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, and his cabinet resigned on May 22nd. In
response, President Askar Akaev sought “co-operation” with opposition
politicians.
Kirgizstan is a much smaller and poorer country than Kazakhstan, but there are
political similarities between the two. Their presidents have been in power
since the Soviet period. After independence in 1991, Mr Akayev and Nursultan
Nazarbaev of Kazakhstan initially put their countries on the path of democracy.
But as the years went on, they moved to authoritarian rule, stifled the media,
installed members of their families in key positions, and became increasingly
allergic to opposition.
Still the opposition refuses to go away. In oil-rich Kazakhstan it is mostly
driven by business groups who want a piece of the pie. In Kirgizstan opposition
groups see themselves as the voice of the ordinary people. Either way, the
opposition is a force the government finds it dangerous to ignore.
Copyright © 2002 The Economist Newspaper and The Economist Group. All
rights reserved.
6
IMF Insists Upon Raising Taxes in Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan, November 14, 2002 [ 20:03 ]
By Vlada Elnina, TCA contributor, TCA
BISHKEK (TCA). The Kyrgyz parliament has insisted upon
increasing the budget revenues, while the IMF experts
have insisted upon raising taxes in Kyrgyzstan.
During their visit to Kyrgyzstan, the IMF mission headed
by John Odling-Smee, director of the European II
Department, met with the Kyrgyz parliament members to
discuss an important problem - the parliament has
increased the budget revenues in the draft 2003 budget.
According to IMF's Tapio Saavalainen, this concerns the
IMF experts because the budget revenue forecast has
become too optimistic.
The draft 2003 budget overestimates tax collection by
300-400 million soms, Marat Sultanov, chairman of the
parliament's Budget Committee, told a news conference.
The government plans to get another 700 million soms in
dividends from its stakes in industrial companies.
However, this is rather unrealistic, since in the
previous years dividends did not even reach 100 million
soms.
Abdygany Erkebayev, Speaker of the parliament's
Legislative Assembly, admitted that the Kyrgyz MPs and
the IMF have mutual understanding but not in all
aspects. He emphasized that today Kyrgyzstan is almost
in the last place in the CIS in terms of economic growth
and still can not reach a 7% growth level, even though
in the early 1990s the country's prospects looked very
promising.
The IMF experts are also concerned with this low growth
rate, but they consider this situation temporary.
Do not forget that gold makes for 40% of Kyrgyzstan's
export, and Kumtor has decreased its gold production,
said Tapio Saavalainen. Another reason is a decreased
electricity export. Because of heavy rains last spring,
Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan did not need much water from
Kyrgyzstan as before (this water is used for generation
electricity).
By the way, according to Reuters, Cameco Corporation
finished the 3rd quarter of 2002 with low indicators due
to a sharp decrease of gold production at the Kumtor
gold mine in Kyrgyzstan because of an accident which
occurred in the summer. In the 3rd quarter 2002,
Cameco's profit decreased to seven million Canadian
dollars from 15 million in the same period last year.
The gold production in 2002 would decrease by 200,000
ounces.
We do not think that the IMF policy is too tough, said
Saavalainen. Over the past year Kyrgyzstan's money
supply has increased by 35%, but the fiscal deficit has
7
not reduced in 2002 but has grown.
It is planned to reduce the budget deficit by 0.5% of
GDP every year. The main task is decreasing the
country's foreign debt and maintaining a low inflation
rate. Today, Kyrgyzstan's foreign debt is US $1.5
billion. The country needs nearly US $23 million to pay
interests on the debt this year (for this purpose
Kyrgyzstan has received a US $18 million grant).
John Odling-Smee thinks the low GDP in Kyrgyzstan would
mean an appropriate revenue level. Under the present
legislation, budget revenues are collected
insufficiently, which testifies to the weak state
administration system that need reform to provide for
economic growth.
To increase budget revenues by 16%-17% in 2003 (upon
which the parliament insists), taxes must also be
raised. So it is planned to introduce the VAT for
agricultural products. The parliament is resisting the
adoption of this tax because the agrarian sector employs
mostly poor citizens producing products enough only to
make both ends meet.
However, the previous IMF mission said the agricultural
sector has many loopholes for tax evasion, so it's time
to introduce the VAT in agriculture. The new tax will
concern mostly large producers and exported agricultural
products will be exempted from VAT, which would
encourage local farmers to work for export.
Of course, the VAT for agricultural products would raise
prices next year, admitted Saavalainen, but the budget
provides for compensation measures. The monthly aid to
poor citizens would be raised by 20%. Salaries of
budget-paid employees would grow by 8%. This would mean
a real growth of the citizens income, since inflation is
expected at 4.2%.
Other bad news. Next January will see the adoption of
the real estate tax aimed to "strengthen the financial
situation of local government bodies and assist in
fiscal decentralization". The Kyrgyz government plans
that this tax would collect 100 million soms. Two-thirds
of this amount are intended for the national budget and
one-third to local budgets. The IMF experts, however,
demand this tax to gather 250 million soms. At a news
conference, Tapio Saavalainen made it clear that the IMF
experts do not care about social problems that may arise
in connection with the real estate tax. In their
opinion, it is not an overtax.
The IMF experts also discussed another increase of
electricity tariffs and introducing the VAT for public
utilities. This will not be done now, but Tapio
Saavalainen said there is a program to raise the tariffs
to the payback level.
The government will cancel the VAT for medications, to
improve the quality of medicines and reduce their
8
contraband.
The meeting considered the issue of raising pensions.
This would be done in April. The next IMF mission is to
come to Kyrgyzstan in February to monitor the budget
fulfillment and tax collection. Depending on the
financial situation of the Social Fund, the IMF would
recommend a new pension size.
The IMF experts revealed a debt of the Social Fund
before the fund of compulsory medical insurance, which
hinders the health care reform. They set a schedule for
paying this debt.
First of all, the IMF experts insist on improving tax
administration. They demand exercising tougher control
of large taxpayers and introducing self-calculation of
taxes at large enterprises, which would encourage them
to switch to an international accounting standard.
Kyrgyzstan is also standing on the threshold of banking
reform. Today the country badly needs domestic
investments, but the citizens do not trust local banks.
The banking reform must strengthen banking control,
develop the necessary legislation, privatize state-owned
banks, and improve the settlement system.
Copyright © 1999-2002
The Times of Central Asia
Kyrgyzstan Police Crush Protest, Detaining 100
November 17, 2002
Kyrgyzstan Police Crush Protest, Detaining 100
By REUTERS
ISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, Nov. 16 (Reuters) — The police in Kyrgyzstan today
detained about 100 opposition protesters demanding the resignation of the
president, and the authorities warned that the country could be heading
for civil war.
The political situation in Kyrgyzstan, an impoverished, largely agrarian
nation of five million people, has been volatile since March 17, when five
opposition protesters were killed and dozens wounded in fierce clashes
with the police in the country's rebellious south.
Tussles broke out today as the police tried to stop a column of more than
100 opposition supporters marching to a central avenue from a bustling
market place in the capital, Bishkek, to hold a rally there.
The police, who were unarmed, finally managed to drag nearly all the
protesters into buses and drove them away. Bishkek, a city of 800,000,
appeared calm later, but reinforced police units patrolled main streets
and government buildings.
Officials quickly condemned the opposition action. "The actions of
political schemers, several parliamentary deputies and a bunch of
intriguers, are aimed at destabilizing the situation," Prime Minister
Nikolai Tanayev said at a news conference. He accused the protesters of
trying to seize power "by unconstitutional means."
Hundreds of protesters arrived from the south earlier in the week for the
9
unauthorized rally, which they called a people's congress, hoping
thousands of Bishkek residents would support their call for President
Askar Akayev's resignation and punishment of those guilty of the March
deaths.
The authorities have branded the rally planners "a mob" and the rally a
"motley gathering" staged by "political extremists."
The government resigned in May after Mr. Akayev acknowledged that top
officials were to blame for the civilian deaths in March. The opposition
then spurned an invitation to join a coalition cabinet.
They also scorned an amnesty law intended to placate the opposition by
absolving both sides involved in the March clashes.
Finally, opposition leaders ignored a constitutional assembly convened by
Mr. Akayev in an effort to restore calm by promising to delegate some of
his powers to Parliament.
Despite the tough standoff, Mr. Akayev, an urbane 58-year-old physicist,
still enjoys strong support in his native north and from the sizable
Russian-speaking minority.
An opposition leader, Azimbek Beknazarov, whose arrest led to the clashes
with the police in March, said today that the opposition would press ahead
with its banned congress despite the restrictions and security precautions
taken by the authorities.
"We will meet either in Osh," a southern regional center, he said, "or
beyond the country's borders, or secretly in Kyrgyzstan."
First Deputy Prime Minister Kurmanbek Osmonov said of the opposition
tactics today: "What is going on now is mere political blackmail. Their
actions look like mutiny."
Copyright The New York Times Company | Permissions | Privacy Policy
Country Guide / The Times of Central Asia#economicDaily news
from Central Asia!
Wednesday, Nov 27, 2002
State Structure:
Executive branch:
Chief of state: President Askar AKAYEV (since 28 October
1990).
Many new persons have appeared in the government in
comparison with the previous Cabinet which was dismissed
on May 22 immediately after the resignation of Prime
Minister Kurmanbek Bakiyev was accepted.
According to the decree of President Askar Akayev the
following people were appointed as ministers:
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Askar Aitmatov, former head of the foreign policy
department in the presidential administration.
Minister of Internal Affairs
Bakirdin Subanbekov, former head of the regional
Interior Department.
Minister of Foreign Trade and Industry
Sadriddin Dzhienbekov who earlier headed the State
Committee for state property management and attracting
direct investments.
Minister of Education and Culture
10
Ishenkul Boldzhurova, the rector of the Bishkek
Humanitarian University.
Minister of Justice
Daniyar Narynbekov - former Chairman of the republican
Supreme Court of Arbitration.
Minister of Justice
Daniyar Narynbekov - former Chairman of the republican
Supreme Court of Arbitration.
Minister of Health Mitalip Mamytov and Minister of
Agriculture, Water Management and the Processing
Industry Alexander Kostyuk have preserved their posts.
Defence Minister
Esen Topoyev remained on this post.
The resignation of former Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan
and his Cabinet was accepted at the session of the
Kyrgyz Security Council on May 22. At that session the
Security Council considered the conclusions of the State
Commission, which investigated the tragic events in the
Aksy region on March 17 when five people were killed and
dozens injured during the dispersal of the protest
demonstration.
At that time, apart from the Prime Minister, the head of
the presidential administration and the Interior
Minister who took upon them the responsibility for the
tragedy sent in resignations.
On May 30, the Assembly of People's Representatives of
Jogorku Kenesh approved the candidature of Nikolai
Tanayev, proposed by President Askar Akayev, to the post
of Prime Minister. Nikolai Tanayev was First Vice Prime
Minister in the previous government. That day Vice Prime
Ministers of the new government were also appointed.
Administrative divisions: 7 oblasts (singular - oblast);
Batken Oblast, Chuy Oblast (Bishkek), Jalal-Abad Oblast,
Naryn Oblast, Osh Oblast, Talas Oblast, Ysyk-Kol Oblast
(Karakol)
Legislative branch: bicameral Supreme Council or Jogorku
Kenesh consists of the Assembly of People's
Representatives (70 seats; members are elected by
popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the
Legislative Assembly (35 seats; members are elected by
popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Assembly of People's Representatives - last
held 20 February and 12 March 2000 (next to be held
February 2005); Legislative Assembly - last held 20
February and 12 March 2000 (next to be held February
2005)
Governmental Resources
Economic Overview:
Kyrgyzstan is a small, poor, mountainous country with a
predominantly agricultural economy. Cotton, wool, and
meat are the main agricultural products and exports.
Industrial exports include gold, mercury, uranium, and
electricity. Kyrgyzstan has been one of the most
progressive countries of the former Soviet Union in
carrying out market reforms. Following a successful
stabilization program, which lowered inflation from 88%
11
in 1994 to 15% for 1997, attention is turning toward
stimulating growth. Much of the government's stock in
enterprises has been sold. Drops in production had been
severe since the breakup of the Soviet Union in December
1991, but by mid-1995 production began to recover and
exports began to increase. Pensioners, unemployed
workers, and government workers with salary arrears
continue to suffer. Foreign assistance played a
substantial role in the country's economic turnaround in
1996-97. Growth was held down to 2.1% in 1998 largely
because of the spillover from Russia's economic
difficulties, but moved ahead to 3.6% in 1999 and an
estimated 5.7% in 2000. The government has adopted a
series of measures to combat such persistent problems as
excessive external debt, inflation, and inadequate
revenue collection.
Industries: small machinery, textiles, food processing,
cement, shoes, sawn logs, refrigerators, furniture,
electric motors, gold, rare earth metals.
Agriculture - products: tobacco, cotton, potatoes,
vegetables, grapes, fruits and berries; sheep, goats,
cattle, wool.
Exports - commodities: cotton, wool, meat, tobacco;
gold, mercury, uranium, hydropower; machinery; shoes.
Imports - commodities: oil and gas, machinery and
equipment, foodstuffs.
Investors: Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkey, China, Germany,
Canada, and USA.
GENERAL INFORMATION:
Facts at a Glance, Flag Description, State Symbol,
National Anthem, Country Map, Survival Info, Embassies,
Passport and Visa, Money and Costs, Public Holidays,
Voltage, Weight, Metric System, Useful links
COUNTRY PROFILE:
Geography, Environment, Provinces, Main Cities, Climate,
History, State Structure, Economic Overview, Export,
Import, Investors, Special Topic, Picture gallery
TO AND IN:
How to get there, Air, Road, Culture & Arts, Manas,
Museums, Theaters, Cinemas, National music samples,
Where to stay, Telephone and Fax, Mobile Phones,
Telecommunication, Kyrgyz Cuisine, Hotels, Computer
Games, Leisure, National games, Recreation
possibilities, ABC, Phrases
Copyright © 1999-2002 The Times of Central Asia
Kyrgyz Head Warns of Bloody Clashes, Won't Resign
November 20, 2002
Kyrgyz Head Warns of Bloody Clashes, Won't Resign
By REUTERS
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Filed at 10:12 a.m. ET
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (Reuters) - Kyrgyzstan's embattled President Askar
Akayev, facing mounting calls from opposition protesters to resign, warned
Wednesday of renewed bloody clashes and indicated he had no intention of
stepping down.
Last week hundreds of opposition members arrived in the capital Bishkek to
stage a ``kurultai,'' or popular congress, to demand Akayev's resignation
and the punishment of officials responsible for the March deaths of five
protesters.
Tussles with police broke out at the weekend and several dozen protesters
were detained briefly, while the rest were sent back to far-flung southern
regions.
Akayev, a soft-spoken 58-year-old physicist once viewed by the West as the
most liberal ruler in despotic ex-Soviet Central Asia, broke a week's
silence Wednesday by branding his political opponents ``instigators who
whip up tensions.''
``To all appearances, these people will not stop at the danger of shedding
once again the blood of innocent citizens,'' Akayev told a meeting of
Kyrgyz ethnic groups.
Political tension in the impoverished, agrarian nation of five million has
been simmering since March when five opposition protesters were killed and
dozens wounded in fierce clashes with police in the country's rebellious
south.
The government fell in March after Akayev acknowledged that senior
officials were to blame for the civilian deaths.
Akayev said the authorities would ``take all adequate measures to avert
attempts to shatter stability'' and signaled that he had no plans to
resign before the end of his term in 2005, despite the growing opposition
pressure.
``I believe that in 2005...the nation will make the choice which answers
best to its interests,'' Akayev said.
President since 1990, Akayev was re-elected for a final term by a
landslide vote in 2000. The elections were branded by Western governments
and human rights bodies as flawed.
``In 2000, these (opposition) people indeed voted against Akayev, but the
majority did not back them, and does not support them today,'' he added.
Akayev made no mention of dialogue with the opposition, although he has
called repeatedly for compromise and offered concessions in recent months.
In the latest standoff with the authorities, the opposition has so far
shown no intention of backing down and says it will press ahead with its
planned kurultai and other protest actions.
Copyright Reuters Ltd. | Privacy Policy
News / The Times of Central AsiaDaily news from Central Asia!
Reforms, Corruption, and Development
Kyrgyzstan, December 07, 2002 [ 10:30 ]
By Giorgio Fiacconi,TCA Publisher, TCA
BISHKEK (TCA). Last week an international conference on
fighting corruption was held in Bishkek. Participants
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from several European and Asian countries discussed
possible strategies to fight this persistent and
overbearing problem. The participation of
representatives of Transparency International gave the
conference a more global profile and impact.
Meanwhile in Kyrgyzstan, debate about the new
Constitution and several reforms under the proposed
Matrix 3 are ongoing. One wonders what kind of impact
all this will have on the development of the country,
the attraction of foreign investment, the creation of
jobs and finally the reduction of poverty.
This closing year has witnessed new approaches and
initiatives, changes that, if effected, may create a
"new" Kyrgyzstan. Hopefully, a country where the rule of
law will prevail over personal interest and clans, a
place where democracy will restore faith in
Institutions, a country where civil and human rights
will be not merely discussed, but will assume their
deserving role in society.
At present, Kyrgyzstan is operating under the turmoil of
opinions and a disharmony that in a few cases has gotten
out of control. The presence of the American coalition
forces and now the Russian forces will certainly help
keep an apparent stability. But this is not enough. What
can be done to bring something creative to the present
situation and, above all, to speed up those initiatives
that would augur well a new democracy?
Reforms, corruption and development are three aspects of
the present situation that are interrelated and need to
be solved hand in hand. The problem of corruption will
not be solved unless real action is taken in reforming
the judiciary system and various laws. In some cases
this also requires changing the Constitution in order to
guarantee a separation between the presidential power,
the executive and the judiciary system. From the other
perspective, the attraction of investment also depends
on how foreign and local investors perceive Kyrgystan's
economic climate and stability. Consequently many
actions taken by certain parts of the opposition are not
always conducive to developing a proper climate for
investment. So development is delayed and poverty levels
remain static.
There are various initiatives under way that should be
carefully considered. The proposed constitutional
amendments are certainly a bold step forward if the new
Constitution is to reflect the expectation of the people
and move in the right direction. Initially proposed in
August, they were supposed to be completed quickly. We
wrote that people needed to be consulted and that more
time was required to generate balanced results. After a
few extensions for a national debate, a referendum has
been fixed for the 2nd January 2003. But the proposed
text still requires modifications.
There are several articles that must be modified before
they are submitted to the referendum, in particular
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article 19 on seizure of properties. This paves the way
for abuses by State organizations. With the new
amendment, seizure of property will simply depend on the
existing law and will not require a court decision.
Although in the present system the court may not be
completely independent, it is clear that it still
represents some protection for the citizen against any
Government abuses. With the new article such protection
will disappear, further weakening the possibility of a
fair trial.
In article 83 the supreme court is given the authority
to question any decision of the lower courts through
reviews over a three year period irrespective of whether
there has been an appeal or not. Again this amendment
will certainly not contribute to a fair judiciary and
will be subject to abuses, thus opening the door to
corruption.
Another issue related to reforms is the well known
Matrix to attract foreign investment. Introduced in 2001
in order to eliminate barriers that hinder foreign and
local investment, it is now in its third revision. The
Matrix, originally conceived following the complaints of
a group of local investors, has, meanwhile, distanced
itself from the interests of businessmen, resulting in
difficulties attracting direct private investment. With
people talking already about the fourth or fifth matrix,
before it having achieved the long awaited foreign
investment, one can only hope that the exercise does not
turn into a soap opera.
If some steps forward have been made in smoothing-out
the problems, many are of the opinion that the private
sector and foreign investors that have been behind the
first proposal have been left behind. The fact remains
that the new matrix seems completely controlled by the
donor participants and no space at all is allocated to
the real businessmen, those that will generate the much
needed direct investment.
For example the IBC (International Business Council),
instrumental in formulating the first Matrix in 2001, no
longer even features as a sounding board. The Matrix is
not getting the type of consultation that (based on
experience) only IBC members can provide. The matrix
claims to be available to discuss any initiative with
representatives of the business community, but it is not
yet clear to whom this is addressed, since the foreign
business community and its Council has been completely
ignored during the course of Matrix 2.
Let's hope that the issue will be reversed with - soon
to be launched - Matrix 3. In any case it should be
clear that unless the Matrix is able to redress the
complaints of those investors already in the country, it
will be impossible to attract new ones.
The National poverty Reduction Strategy (NPRS) and the
Comprehensive Development Framework of the Kyrgyz
Republic (CDF) do require much more than a simple
15
declaration and a paper plan, they require action that
was wholly missing in the last twelve months. We had
various conferences and donor countries committed a
large sum of money but it remain to be seen how it will
work. There are plans and projects, but investors and
the general public see things differently: things are
the same and, in some cases, worse.
The various initiatives and proposed reforms have not
yet been able to transfer to the general public,
businessmen and country analysts the feeling that some
thing is changing or is going to change. The shadow
economy is very strong and the overall market remains
ridden with corruption. The judiciary does not function
(to say the least) and unemployment is on the rise. A
sense of frustration pervades the economy and the
opinion of the general public and this is not going to
change with cosmetic improvements but instead requires
real action that is so far missing.
It is certainly unemployment and the poor condition of
the local economy that are at the root of recent social
unrest and a more aggressive opposition. This situation
is certainly due to a need for better governance and
requires the implementation of those decisions that may
not be popular, but are necessary for the country.
The overall situation is sad, because people are
suffering and when they become desperate they resort to
any type of reaction, not always in line with the law.
But the present situation and widespread corruption
distort private business transactions, from bribery to
swindling, from embezzlement to contraband and on to
various criminal activities. It is a circle out of which
Kyrgyzstan should come through reform and the
implementation of best practice policies with the
promotion and support of good governance both in the
public and private sector.
All opinions: 0 | Add comment
Copyright © 1999-2002 The Times of Central Asia
17 – 23 December 2002
23 December 2002
Kyrgyzstan: A Year of Living Dangerously
Opposition protests and human rights under the microscope have
increased pressure on Kyrgyzstan’s government.
OSH, Kyrgyzstan--In Kyrgyzstan, 2002 will be remembered as a year of
clashes between the opposition and the government. Seven deaths were
recorded, and mass protests--including hunger strikes--were held all
over the country.
In the wake of the year of turmoil, the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is calling for transparent
16
negotiations between the two sides and has offered funding for new
programs aimed at improving the situation, including a new
ombudsman’s office.
During a 17 December visit to the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek, acting
OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR)
Director Steven Wagenseil said, "The new ombudsman institution was
established on a sound legal basis and has the potential to play an
important role in protecting the rights and freedoms of all
citizens.”
The ODIHR also gave the new office $60,000 in additional startup
funding.
Opposition Free Kyrgyzstan (EK) party chair and well-known
parliamentarian Tursunbai Bakir Uulu was sworn in as Kyrgyzstan's
first ombudsman on 13 December. Bakir Uulu beat out six other
candidates, including Asel Mambetalieva--who had been nominated by
the president's office--in an election held in the Kyrgyz parliament
last month.
To prevent conflicts of interest, Bakir Uulu stepped down from his
seat in parliament and his role in the EK before being inaugurated.
Bakir Uulu had served as the chair of the Human Rights Committee
under Kyrgyz President Askar Akaev but quit the post in protest at
the lack of progress. The former EK chair had, as a parliamentarian,
introduced the country’s ombudsman law, which was adopted by the
Kyrgyz government on 25 June and signed by the president on 31 July.
The Kyrgyz ombudsman will have three deputies charged with
protecting the rights of children and minorities and dealing with
gender issues.
Bakir Uulu indicated that he wants to open offices in every region
of Kyrgyzstan but said that the 4 million soms (approximately
$85,000) allocated by the government for his budget is inadequate.
PLACING THE BLAME
Despite the creation of the ombudsman’s office and the call by the
ODIHR’s Wagenseil during a meeting with parliamentarians for the
opposition and government to settle their issues by means of
negotiations, heated disagreements between the opposition and the
authorities have continued.
The online edition of Obshestveniy Reiting reported that on 19
December there was another meeting in the south of the country in
honor of the protestors who were killed in the southern Aksy
district in March. The demonstrators again demanded punishment of
those responsible for the fatal shooting of six protestors who had
gathered to petition Bishkek for the release of well-known
opposition leader Azimbek Beknazarov, who had been arrested in
January 2002.
Beknazarov’s supporters, as well as many opposition figures, charged
that his arrest had been politically motivated. The authorities
ultimately released Beknazarov under the pressure of months of mass
protests and hunger strikes.
After the Aksy district incident, district inhabitants demanded that
top national officials be taken to court to determine responsibility
17
for the Aksy tragedy. Among those included on the protestors’ list
were former head of the presidential administration Amanbek
Karypkulov, former Interior Minister Temirbek Akmataliev, and former
Deputy Interior Minister Kalmurat Sadiev. All three continue to
serve in the government in different positions.
Ongoing mass protests turned into a huge march to Bishkek, which
brought the country to the brink of civil war.
In September, following a last-minute stand-down by both the
authorities and the opposition, Beknazarov said, “We were 50 meters
from civil war. That was averted when, on 12 September, the
government and the opposition signed a memorandum in which the
government promised to bring those responsible for the deaths in
Aksy to court by 15 November and the protestors agreed to abandon
their foot march to Bishkek and drop several demands, including
calls for Akaev’s resignation and a revision of the Sino-Kyrgyz
border agreement [which ceded territory to China].”
But by 15 November, none of officials had been brought to trial, and
protestors sought to organize a second march to Bishkek.
At the end of November, more than 1,000 protestors were prevented
from marching into the country’s capital. Demonstrators included
human rights and opposition figures, many of whom have charged that
the current regime is increasingly undemocratic and authoritarian.
Meanwhile, the president’s public relations adviser, Bolot
Djanuzakov, called the demonstrations and opposition demands
“political extremism.” The authorities detained more than 300
people, who were then released and bused back to their home regions
in the south of the country.
In a separate development, the Russian daily Kommersant reported
that 400 residents of two Kyrgyz villages, Myrzake and Kara-Kulja,
have applied to Russian President Vladimir Putin with a request to
admit them into the Russian Federation. The village residents cited
human rights violations. Official Bishkek responded by calling the
villagers’ attempts a “threat to national security,” though the
authorities have taken no measures against them.
DESPERATE CONDITIONS
Kyrgyzstan’s industrial sector development is the lowest among the
countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Akipress
reported, citing RIA Novosti. The majority of the population lives
in poverty, and Kyrgyzstan depends heavily on outside aid.
Kyrgyz Deputy Prime Minister Joomart Otorbaev announced last month
that the U.S. government will award Kyrgyzstan $90 million in aid in
the year 2003. Kyrgyzstan currently hosts a coalition military base
at Bishkek’s Manas airport.
Russia has also kicked in some assistance to the struggling
country--but not without a price. According to Russian Deputy
Finance Minister Sergey Kolotukhin, Moscow will reschedule part of
Kyrgyzstan’s $58 million debt. Kyrgyzstan’s total debt to Russia is
$171 million. Kolotukhin made the announcement on 5 December, only
two days after Russia had put its military aircraft in the Kant
airfield in the north of the country.
18
One university lecturer in southern Kyrgyzstan who wished to remain
anonymous told TOL that Kyrgyzstan is losing its sovereignty in a
dramatic fashion.
“Would Kyrgyzstan allow Americans to have their base in the capital
if [Kyrgyzstan] did not have such a huge debt, exceeding $1.4
trillion dollars, to international financial organizations? How
could Putin so easily install a Russian military base in Kyrgyzstan
without asking?” the lecturer demanded.
The authorities and the opposition, meanwhile, have turned the
country’s dire straits into a blame game. The Kyrgyz president,
while addressing a public meeting in the northern Naryn province,
called the “radical opposition’s irresponsible actions” a threat to
social stability.
The opposition blames Akaev, who has been in power for 11 years, for
the severe economic and social crises in the country.
--by Hamid Toursunof
For more information about Kyrgyzstan, visit the TOL Knowledge Net’s
Kyrgyzstan page at http://kyrgyzstan.tol.cz.
Copyright © 2002Transitions Online. All rights reserved.
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