Kyrgyzstan: Mobs Roam Bishkek, Gunfire Continues

Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has declared a state of emergency in Kyrgyzstan following an April 7 clash between police and protesters outside the government headquarters in Bishkek that left four dead. Mobs are roaming the city, with no clear leader representing the demonstrators since the earlier arrest of key opposition leaders.

Gunfire and shouting could be heard in the early evening of April 7 within range of the Kyrgyz parliament, further down the street from the government headquarters, known as the White House. Large plumes of black smoke could be seen above the National Security Service building, where opposition detainees are reportedly being held.

An official curfew has been declared for 10pm until 6am, but little clear sign exists that the order will be observed. Shots were still being heard at 5:45 pm outside the White House and in the central Ala-Too Square. Aside from gunfire, teargas and concussion grenades were used sporadically throughout the afternoon.

In a declaration reported by Russian-language news agencies, members of parliament called on residents of Kyrgyzstan to "not permit illegal actions emabling a further negative development of events . . . there is not and can be no alternative to peace and accord."

Earlier in the afternoon, demonstrators drove two trucks into the White House gates. They caught fire as Ministry of Interior forces stationed within the compound shot at the vehicles with what appeared to be live ammunition, a EurasiaNet.org correspondent witnessed.

The bodies of four protestors were brought to the National Craniological Hospital in central Bishkek, said a witness. ÒThere are trails of blood everywhere between the White House and the hospital,Ó he said. AKIpress is reporting six dead and 93 injured in Bishkek.

Ferghana.ru estimated the number of protesters at 10,000 in the late afternoon, though they appear scattered throughout the capital. Shops within range of the White House appeared to be doing a brisk business selling food on the afternoon of April 7; other preparations for future tumult were also witnessed Ð license plates on two government cars were spotted being changed on a street in downtown Bishkek by one EurasiaNet.org correspondent.

Hundreds of opposition protesters in Bishkek earlier on April 7 took over two police armored vehicles with assorted weapons after the arrest of additional opposition demonstrators.

Special forces members, some taking up refuge in a nearby building, others badly beaten, lost control over the demonstrators, who seized weapons from fleeing police, including a bazooka and AK-47 rifles.

The clash started after police began arresting a peaceful group of protesters outside the opposition Social Democratic Party headquarters on the morning of April 7, the EurasiaNet.org correspondent reported.

The arrests started after the departure of German Ambassador Holger Green and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe mission head Ambassador Andrew Tesoriere from the scene. A representative of the US embassy also left immediately before riot police began arresting demonstrators.

The violence follows opposition protesters' April 6 takeover of a government building in the provincial town Talas [For details, see the Eurasia Insight archive]; police were reported to have taken control of the building, but eyewitness reports from the scene on Twitter later stated that protesters had regained control of the building. The report could not be verified.

Early on the afternoon of April 7, Min Kial Radio in Bishkek reported that the Interior Minister Moldomusa Kongantiev was beaten in Talas. The report could not be independently verified and the station went off the air shortly after.

Protestors in the regional town of Naryn in south-central Kyrgyzstan took the provincial administration building and were celebrating with music in the main square, said a witness. Resistance there, the source said, was slight.

The southern capital, Osh, is quiet, though stores are closing, a EurasiaNet.org correspondent there reported.

Arrests of opposition members continue apace. Social-Democratic Party head Almazbek Atambayev, a former prime minister, was arrested late on April 6. Opposition leader Tekebar Sariyev was detained after flying into Bishkek from Moscow on April 7, Russian news sites reported.

Meanwhile, Kyrgyzstan appears to have fallen under a near information blackout; Internet access is intermittent and some phone lines jammed. No Kyrgyz television stations are broadcasting.

Eyewitnesses say demonstrators had taken control of the state television and radio broadcaster, KTR.