Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, all fifteen republics came up against the problem of adopting their own national legislation. For some this was a complicated process, albeit a rapid one, meanwhile some others are even now reaping the fruits of ill-thought legislative policies, or, as they might otherwise be known, plagiarism. I have absolutely no right to condemn our legislators, but nevertheless it should be pointed out that the state of our legislation is extremely unstable. It seem to me that this is a very common problem, and one that it is not possible to fully explore within a few pages. There is a colossal number of factors that have influenced the law in some way, and which continue to do so. The difficult economic and political situation, corruption and the loss of moral values have all led to so-called “passive law”, or, in other words, law that people simply ignore. The remainder of this article will consider the actual sources of the problems and then analyse the consequences.

Being a very young country and wishing to make a rapid start on the “democratic” path of development, Kyrgyzstan simply copied its legislation from the neighbouring countries and, with a light heart, then proceeded with its development without bothering to look at the huge flaws in its legislation, including those in the Basic Law. From the very beginning, this, as well as attempts to consolidate power, was the reason for the frequent changes to the Constitution. It is fatal for a country, and for its citizens, if significant flaws exist in its legislation. Take, for example, the issue of language, which is of particular pertinence currently. After independence was gained, the national self-awareness of certain representatives of the titular nationality began to develop radically. Many were in favour of getting rid of Russian, which led to it becoming a “pregnant” question in society. The Constitution established the official status of Kyrgyz [as the state language – translator], but said nothing about Russian language, leading to a huge wave of emigration. It was during this period that Kyrgyzstan lost outstanding scholars, workers, and leading members of the intelligentsia. People of various nationalities left. In my option, this was a flaw in our Constitution, which was only altered in the middle of the 1990s.

Plagiarism has to be undertaken intelligently. Today, we can examine the “Legislation on the activities of realtors” (ZORD) as a case in point. This is a relatively new form of business, and ZORD was taken from Russian legislation. However, in Russia this business is more developed, and thus certain articles of the legislation are not suitable for Kyrgyzstan. This situation very often confuses not only lawyers and judges, but normal citizens as well. Our legislators have not yet shown any great desire to re-examine ZORD and introduce any necessary amendments, even though it may have a very detrimental effect on the outcome of events. Thus we sometimes end up with a legislative situation in which one law contradicts another, or one may even come across something utterly unknown in local practice, but which is entirely characteristic of one of our neighbouring countries.

We could talk for an extremely long time about Kyrgyz legislation. Indeed, it sometimes even happens that one hears certain uneducated wonders claim that we don’t need any legislation whatsoever, since everything can be decided by that unique form of legislation otherwise known as “local Kyrgyz traditions”. Unfortunately, it has become very popular to talk of tribalism, corruption or local criminal elements. It is precisely this new type of legislation that, on a gigantic scale, is taking shape in our country. Sometimes I’m just left pondering the question of who exactly the judges are… Even so, sometimes things are all done in accordance with the law and our legitimate legislation, in some places people do assist the law.

The legislation of the Kyrgyz Republic today does not differ strongly from that of ten year’s ago. It might be more developed, and represent the interests of those in power, but the fact is that our legislation still requires much work to be done on it. We must work with determination for a long time, re-examining every point and the possibility of conflicting articles. The law is the fundamental category that forms a base. The only problem is that our base is not very stable. One could talk endlessly, but action is more important than words. In the end, if the desire is there then there will be justice, but in order to get there one has to pass through all the circles of hell. Meanwhile at the present time, we should found a commission made up of professionals in one or another legislative branches, listen to their comments and make appropriate amendments. The law should be accurate, concise and rightful. Today our legislation works, but no to the level that one would wish for.

Kyrgyzstan is a country of wonders. What wonders can’t one see here?! Even now I cannot understand why tourism remains at such a low level of development. Here, tourists could see and learn about things that could never been seen anywhere else. Think about it, America!!! Over there everything goes according to plan, here everything is more spontaneous, on the wing, ad hoc. Which is more interesting, you must agree…

I’d like to conclude this essay on a more serious and positive note. Kyrgyzstan is still like a child. This child is already sixteen years old. By this age children are almost completely developed, and many know what they want and what they like. Indeed, it is time for our “little one” to choose a profession. Enough of playing the fool. It’s time to treat things more seriously and begin anew on a new page. I am sure that with a new generation of professionals we will, in the end, find the Kyrgyz dream that I dream about. It might not be tomorrow, or even the day after tomorrow. It remains for me to gain more knowledge and experience so that I will not turn out to be a useless citizen in the establishment of a Kyrgyz state founded on law.