Good to see another opinon piece from Baktygul and Sasha’s first contribution, a thought-provoking look at the financial obstacles entrepreneurs face if they try and do business honestly.
Things here in Bishkek have been pretty quiet on the surface - and a little slippery underfoot after the capital enjoyed/suffered first snowfall last Wednesday - but events have been continuing on the political level with discussions on constitutional reform being a main theme, as well as the 2006 budget. Then at the end of last week a new scandal broke surrounding the independent TV and radio company Pyramid, when an apparently hostile - and potentially illegal - take over was attempted. The details are inevitably a little murky, but general consensus is that if this sort of wheeler-dealer shadowy take-over is permitted (explicitly or implicitly) the main victim will be freedom of speech in the republic. All very reminiscent of the way the media was controlled under Akaev… Anyhow, more details below, along with other stories from the last couple of weeks and a couple of links.
First up, a while back I mentioned a report by IWPR via Development Gateway on the position of lesbian/bisexual/queer women in Kyrgyzstan and promised to post a link when I found it - and here it is, finally: more details about Labrys and their journal (issue 2), can be found on Be Out!, the website of the Dutch-Kyrgyz Initiative on Support of LGBT Emancipation Movement in Kyrgyzstan. Mainly in Russian, but the journal has a helpful summary page in English.
On the news front, mainly shorts:
Roza Otunbaeva’s bid to become a deputy ended, unfortunately, in defeat, with the favourite, Janysh Kudaibergenov, taking almost 53% of the votes. Meanwhile in the southern Asky district, ex-General Prosecutor Azimbek Beknazarov was elected with a little uner 60% of the vote.
The subject of international friends and enemies has recently been widely reported in the media following a poll by Kyrgyzstan’s Eurasian Studies Institute. The results make for interesting reading:
According to the poll, for 84% Kyrgyz citizens, the word “friend” is associated with Russia, 38% -Kazakhstan, 9% — Uzbekistan, 5% — US. With the word “enemy” 23% associate China, 21% — US, 11% — Afghanistan.
There were some regional differences noted as well, not least that attitudes towards the US are distinctly less positive in the south of the republic, with 25% of respondents associating the word “enemy” with the USA. Angus Reid also takes a look at the results in terms of foreign influences on Kyrgyzstan.
The attempted seizure of the TV and radio station was reported on by ITAR-TASS and RIA Novosti and Gazeta.kg has photos from December 9 when the conflict started. Gazeta.kg also reports on the press conference held by Invest Media on December 12, during which they asserted that neither Maksim Bakiev nor Aidar Akaev had any connection with them, and www.pr.kg covers the protest by Pyramid employees outside the Zhogorku Kenesh yesterday. Yesterday President Bakiev put the matter in the hands of the First Deputy Prime Minister, A. Madumarov, and he met with staff from Pyramid today, reports www.pr.kg.
In light of the events at Pyramid, AlertNet’s report that journalists consider the pace of media liberalisation too slow won’t come as much of a surprise, especially if earlier problems with KOORT are considered. The piece includes comments by Bermet Bukasheva, editor of the newpaper “Litsa” as well as adviser to the parliamentary speaker, that are in stark contrast to the opinion of many journalists (or at least, the opinions they voice publically):
“It’s hard to talk about freedom of speech. The transition period from one regime to another has not finished yet. I do not see any radical difference between Akayev and the new leadership. Press freedom has not increased,” Bukasheva remarked pessimistically.
This is particularly salient at the moment as Bakiev has just announced plans to privatise some print media.
World Aids Day on December 1 was marked by a concert in Bishkek, reports IRIN, noting that even though official figures for HIV/AIDS in the republic remain low (unofficial estimates are ten times higher), far more information is required to prevent the rapid spread of the illness through the population.
AlertNet takes another look at the question of gender inequality in the republic, finding that traditional roles and stereotypes continue to prevail in society, creating a glass ceiling for even the most determined women.
The final report into the murder of deputy and businessman Bayaman Erkinbaev caused a minor sensation - not due to the conclusion that Erkinbaev’s death may have been linked to narcodealings, but because of the admission that Erkinbaev had visited Bermet Akaeva earlier on the day of his death, and that they alledgedly had a close relationship. This version was rapidly rejected by the Akaevs’ lawyer, Maksim Maksimovich, who said he didn’t know where such information had come from and it was in any case inaccurate: “All the meetings between B. Akaeva and B. Erkinbaev were held in her office. No secret meetings were held”, stated Maksimovich.
Foreign cooperation continues, with Germany providing 6.3 million Euros to improve the quality of emergency medical care (3.3 million Euro as a grant, and the remaining amount as a tax credit), reports Development Gateway, and France stating its intention to expand military cooperation with the republic (DG).
RFE/RL reports on the dismissal of the Osh oblast governor, Anvar Artykov, noting that his replacement as acting governor is Adam Zakirov, vice rector of the Academy of Management.
IWPR has an article on the position of disabled workers in Kyrgyzstan, who suffer from discrimination as employers ignore legislation designed to protect disabled workers. The problem is additionally compounded by the fact that many people are not aware that any legislation exists to protect them, noted one lawyer.
IWPR also reports on proposals to abolish the Constitutional Court and the possible consequences of such a move:
One gets the impression that the president wants to return to a monopoly judicial system, creating a single, self-monitoring and self-appointing court,” said member of parliament Melis Eshimkanov. “This is not right. We must find a mechanism where all branches of power are independent.”
Burul Makenbaeva, an activist in the non-government sector who took part in the Constitutional Conference as well as attending the meeting with CoE experts, is worried that removing a unique institution of state will reduce the curbs on the president’s powers, render the courts more vulnerable to political manipulation, and thereby make an already fragile state even more shaky.
“The court is the only institution able to pass judgement on whether the actions of the president are constitutional. I therefore believe that abolishing it is an attempt to weaken judicial checks on the president’s actions,” she said. “The judicial system needs to be removed from the influence of two other branches of power – parliament and president.”
If that does not happen, Makenbaeva warns that the consequences could be “destructive”.
Looks like efforts to economise are getting serious, with Interfax reporting that deputies have been ordered to use economy class flights in an attempt to rationalise expenditure of the parliamentary budget. Quite a come-down (excuse the slight tone of exasperated sarcasm), but at least they still have the opportunity to travel, which is more than can be said for many…
Interfax also reports on the Prosecutor General’s comments on the dangers of religious extremism for Kyrgyzstan:
“Organized transnational criminal groups account for a large share of international crime. Terrorist organizations are merging with such criminal associations,” the prosecutor general said.
“Religious extremism is a serious threat to the country’s security,” Kongantiyev said. “Whereas in the late 1990s extremist organizations were active only in southern Kyrgyzstan and were comprised mainly of ethnic Uzbeks, religious extremism since 2000 has been becoming evermore prevalent in the north,” he said.
Statements like this always leave me wondering who the comments are directed at - the local population or the international community. Certainly, they seem to be taken more seriously (rightly or wrongly) by the international community… mention the word “terrorism” these days and it seems like you’ve suddenly got a carte blanche to trample on civil rights and take downright draconian measures without fear of condemnation for human rights abuses (even worked in Andijan to some exent - pax Shirin Akiner and the the CIS governments). I feel a cynical attack of realist politics coming on - is the government looking to defend the people, or just itself?!
On a potentially more positive note, the New York Times has a piece entitled “Political Activism Begins to Take Hold in Kyrgyzstan”, arguing that recent protests by residents of Tamga and Barskoon over the failure of the Kumtor Gold Mining Company to pay compensation for accidentally spilling almost 2 tons of cyanide into the Barskoon river are a continuation of the trend for political activism in the face of disappointment with the new government. I’m not entirely convinced that we’re about to see a rapid increase in “political activism” - unless you mean single issue protests and pickets by particular groups - but one can hope.
Finally, UPI reports on the conclusions of a UN report on the economic status of the 5 Central Asian republics that notes that Kyrgyzstan (among others) needs more openess in terms of economic liberalisation and inter-regional cooperation to make real economic progress. However, there are concerns over whether such potential can be realised:
The report predicts as a result of the recent unrest in Kyrgyzstan, the government will focus on the short-term goal of “maintaining national political stability and cohesion, rather than on more intensive cooperation with each other.”
Over and out from Bishkek for the time being.
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on December 13th, 2005 at 12:39 pm
From the blogosphere, Democracy Rising has a post on the Pyramid affair (http://democracy-rising.blogspot.com/2005/12/strange-and-worrying-events-in.html) that is worth a look. Not convinced about the idea of media “Putinisation” just yet though - wait and see…
on December 14th, 2005 at 12:23 pm
That was an amazing roundup, thank you!