Kyrgyzstan’s Uzbeks Sitting Out Parliamentary Campaign

A uniformed guard maintains security at Sept. 16 rally in Osh for the Ata-Jurt (Fatherland) party, which is led by former officials in Kurmanbek Bakiyev's administration. The party has a significant following among ethnic Kyrgyz in southern regions that are considered strongholds of support for the former president. (Photo: David Trilling)

Kyrgyzstan’s upcoming parliamentary vote on October 10 is creating a quandary for the Central Asian nation’s Uzbek minority. Some Uzbek politicians see the elections as an opportunity to try to enhance minority rights. But the majority of Uzbeks, mindful of the harm that their community suffered during the June violence in southern Kyrgyzstan, appears hesitant to get involved in the political process.

The experience of the past four months has left many Uzbeks profoundly skeptical about their ability to produce change via the ballot box, Uzbek community observers say. "After the violent events, Uzbeks are afraid to come out to the streets,” said an Osh-based human rights activist who spoke on condition of anonymity. “Many Uzbeks were jailed, others are continuously harassed. How can they vote under such circumstances?"

The activist added that harassment by Kyrgyz security services and fears of persecution prompted an estimated 30,000 Uzbeks to flee the country in recent months.

Some Uzbeks believe participation in politics stands a better chance of aggravating what they say is the existing atmosphere of discrimination, rather than easing it. "We should leave politics to the Kyrgyz; it's their business. This will be a safe choice for us," said Husanbay, an Osh carpenter who asked his last name not be printed.

Overall, 29 political parties are vying for the 120 parliamentary seats. Given the provisional leadership’s intention to re-fashion Kyrgyzstan as a parliamentary republic, the composition of the new legislature could have a profound impact on the country’s democratization process.

Not all Uzbeks are staying away from politics. Two prominent Uzbek political leaders -- Anvar Artykov and Murat Juraev, representing the Ar-Namys and Ak-Shumkar parties, respectively – hope to gain seats in parliament. Meanwhile, other Uzbek public figures have campaigned with Kyrgyz politicians during appearances in Uzbek neighborhoods.

A few Uzbeks also say there are practical benefits to joining political parties. For example, an instructor at an Osh university who recently joined the Ata-Meken Party, contended that party membership can offer protection from police harassment. The police are almost uniformly ethnic Kyrgyz.

Prior to May 14, Uzbeks traditionally shied away from aligning with Kyrgyz political factions in promoting their long-standing demands, including the designation of Uzbek as an official language and greater political representation. When supporters of ousted president Kurmanbek Bakiyev briefly seized government offices on May 13-14 in the southern cities of Batken, Osh and Jalal-Abad, ethnic Uzbeks from Jalal-Abad led by Kadyrjan Batyrov, a local Uzbek community leader and prominent entrepreneur, helped the provisional government reestablish its authority. Many Kyrgyz subsequently blamed Batyrov for involvement in an arson attack on Bakiyev’s family compound in the nearby village of Teyit on May 14. Many Uzbeks believe that episode was a contributing factor to the outbreak of the June violence.
Apart from fear, many Uzbeks doubt that the election outcome can advance their causes. Many are chagrined to see that many political parties are ignoring issues that Uzbeks care most about, including the deployment of an OSCE-led mission to advise police in Osh, and an end to the widely documented harassment and discrimination that has followed the June violence.

Following the June unrest, most political parties appear to be tailoring their messages to appeal to rising nationalist sentiments among Kyrgyz, observers add. Even parties linked to the provisional government are not distributing material in any language but Kyrgyz at rallies in Osh. Fliers are not even printed in Russian, which is one of Kyrgyzstan’s “official” languages.

Kyrgyzstan’s electoral code requires political parties to have at least 15 percent of its membership come from ethnic minority groups. Koreans and Russians can help fill that quota. But Kyrgyz political parties have also been trying to reach out to Uzbeks, the single largest minority group in the country. "Representatives of various political parties are going from door to door in [Uzbek] neighborhoods, cajoling Uzbeks to join their parties," one Osh resident said.

Campaign activists, meanwhile, are openly frustrated with Uzbeks’ lack of interest in the electoral process. A representative of Butun Kyrgyzstan (“United Kyrgyzstan”), a southern-based party, said he was fed up trying to seek Uzbek votes. "We are going around Uzbek neighborhoods trying to find people who can join our party. But Uzbeks are not eager to join. It sometimes feels like it is a waste of time,” he told EurasiaNet.org.

An Osh representative of another party, Zamandash (“Contemporary”), complained to EurasiaNet.org that "Uzbeks have become apolitical.”

Many Uzbeks are aware that their reluctance to participate in politics could have long-term consequences. Lacking representation, for example, could put Uzbeks at risk of losing cultural rights, such as access Uzbek-language education, one Uzbek journalist told EurasiaNet.org. But most seem to believe that non-participation is currently their best available option. "Uzbeks lost the war; the Kyrgyz won. It was an unfair war. But we must accept what we have," said Ibragim, an Osh entrepreneur who witnessed atrocities in June.