From: Justin Burke (JBurke@sorosny.org)
Date: Thu May 23 2002 - 10:03:23 EDT
RFE/RL KYRGYZ NEWS
22 MAY 2002, WEDNESDAY
_______________________________________
A Daily Review of News from Kyrgyzstan
1. Kyrgyz government resigns.
2. Prime minister about his resignation.
3. Deputies of parliament on government resignation.
4. Vice prime minister runs the government.
5. Protest pickets in southern regions continue.
6. Former prosecutor of Jalal-Abad is barred from profession.
7. National TV Corporation must be reformed.
8. The Constitutional Court rejects an appeal on agreements with China.
9. 'Moya Stolitsa-Novosti' daily is printed again.
10. New round of the Kyrgyz-Uzbek border delimitation negotiations.
1. KYRGYZ GOVERNMENT RESIGNS. The whole Kyrgyz cabinet resigned
on 22 May after resignation of Prime Minister Kurmanbek Bakiev
at the meeting of the Security Council. Akayev held the meeting,
which considered the report by the state commission on the
causes of the bloodshed happened in the southern Aksy district
last March and left six demonstrators dead. Chairman of the
commission Tanaev reported to the meeting.
Akayev announced after the meeting that the four high officials
asked for resignations, namely head of the presidential
administration Amanbek Karypkulov, Prime Minister Kurmanbek
Bakiev, Minister of Internal Affairs Temirbek Akmataliev and
Prosecutor General Chubak Abyshkaev. According to Akayev, he
accepted resignations of the three first ones and said that
Abyshkaev must complete investigation of the Aksy tragedy.
2. PRIME MINISTER ABOUT HIS RESIGNATION. Prime Minister
Kurmanbek Bakiev gave an interview to RFE/RL correspondent after
his resignation and said he resigned to prompt resignation of
the officials, who were responsible for the Aksy bloodshed.
According to him, nobody wanted to take responsibility for it at
the meeting first and only after his resignation, they applied
their letters of resignations too.
According to Bakiev, he had little power to influence the
situation, because the both National Security Service and the
Prosecutor General office are out of the government structure.
The Interior Ministry is a part of the government but reports to
the president directly. However, Bakiev said he bears
responsibility for the tragedy in any case.
Bakiev also said head of the presidential administration Amanbek
Karypkulov gave orders to local authorities during the crisis in
the southern region and is directly responsible for the
bloodshed. However, according to Bakiev, Karypkulov and State
Secretary Osmonakun Ibraimov, who is responsible for ideological
matters in the country, do not feel themselves guilty.
President Askar Akayev defended Minister of Internal Affairs
Temirbek Akmataliev and Director of the National Security
Service Kalyk Imankulov saying they were appointed just early in
2002 and could not bear full responsibility for the tragedy.
Bakiev opposed it and resigned. According to the constitution,
the whole government must resign after the resignation of the
prime minister.
3. DEPUTIES OF PARLIAMENT ON GOVERNMENT RESIGNATION. Deputy of
Parliament Bektur Asanov told RFE/RL correspondent on 22 May
that resignation of the government and decisions on dismissing
the head of presidential administration and other officials came
too late. In addition to it, the country leadership did not meet
all the demands of the protesters and relatives of the killed
people. According to Asanov, President Askar Akayev must ask
pardon of the Aksy residents for the tragedy and all those
responsible for the bloodshed must be tried and punished.
Other Deputy Adaham Madumarov said "If the president believes he
can put the situation in order [by the government resignation],
he is wrong. The matter in hand is not about the government but
about the president himself. It is fair that [presidential
administration head Amanbek] Karypkulov has resigned. But he
should have been sacked before; he has been in charge of all the
bad things the president wanted him to do."
4. VICE PRIME MINISTER RUNS THE GOVERNMENT. President Askar
Akayev appointed on 22 May First Vice Prime Minister Nikolai
Tanaev acting prime minister until a new cabinet is formed.
Secretary of the Security Council Misir Ashyrkulov was appointed
acting head of the presidential administration and Keneshbek
Duishebaev as acting minister of internal affairs. He was deputy
minister before.
The board of the Interior Ministry dismissed First Deputy
Interior Minister Sadyrbek Dubanaev and several other high
ranked officials of 21 May for shortcomings in work and in
connection with the Aksy events.
5. PROTEST PICKETS IN SOUTHERN REGIONS CONTINUE. About 2,400
people continue protest picket near the town of Tash-Komur in
the southern Jalal-Abad Province. They blocked the Bishkek-Osh
highway from 13 till 21 May, demanding to punish those
responsible for the Aksy bloodshed, to acquit Deputy Azimbek
Beknazarov and protesting against transferring Kyrgyz
territories to China. They unblocked the road for several days
giving the authorities time to fulfill their demands. Some of
the protesters plan going to Kara-Kul town, where trial against
Beknazarov would be resumed on 24 May.
6. FORMER PROSECUTOR OF JALAL-ABAD IS BARRED FROM PROFESSION.
Board of the Prosecutor General office decided on 21 May to
expel former prosecutor of the southern Jalal-Abad Province
Zootbek Kudaibergenov from the prosecutor service. Deputy
Prosecutor General Kurmantai Abdiev was warned. Kudaibergenov
gave last January a sanction to arrest Deputy Azimbek Beknazarov
and the arrest caused long-lasted public protests leading to
clashes between police and demonstrators and deaths in March.
Board of the National Security Service (NSS) also decided on 21
May to dismiss head of the Talas regional office of NSS
Mambetaliev, who headed NSS branch in Jalal-Abad in January, as
well as first deputy head of the Jalal-Abad office Murataliev
and head of the Aksy district department of NSS Abdrazakov.
7. NATIONAL TV CORPORATION MUST BE REFORMED. The Security
Council decided on 22 May that activity of the National TV and
Radio Corporation (NRTVC) must be reformed seriously. State
commission on the Aksy tragedy wrote in its report, released on
18 May, that the biased reports on the situation in Jalal-Abad
by the corporation were one of the reasons of broad public
protests. The corporation journalists made an interview with
jailed Deputy Azimbek Beknazarov in custody and broadcasts it
several times saying the independent media lied on the issue.
After his release, Beknazarov announced he gave the interview
under force.
8. THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT REJECTS AN APPEAL ON BORDER
AGREEMENTS WITH CHINA. Deputy Azimbek Beknazarov informed RFE/RL
correspondent on 22 May that the Constitutional Court rejected
on 21 May to consider an appeal by the Beknazarov's committee to
find ratification of the agreement on border delimitation
between Kyrgyzstan and China illegal. The court says the
agreement has not yet signed into effect and its legality could
not be considered.
Beknazarov is chairman of the parliamentary committee on
legality and court reforms and his committee appealed to the
Constitutional Court on 13 May. Beknazarov says the
parliamentary chambers violated the laws and regulations when
ratified it on 10 and 17 May. According to the agreement, signed
by President Askar Akayev in August 1999, Kyrgyzstan transfers
about 95,000 hectares to China.
9. 'MOYA STOLITSA-NOVOSTI' DAILY IS PRINTED AGAIN. First edition
of the independent 'Moya Stolitsa-Novosti' daily in the last
four months was printed on 22 May. The state-run Uchkun
publishing house stopped printing the paper on 19 January, the
paper sued Uchkun on 24 January, and the Bishkek City
arbitration court ruled on 29 January that Uchkun must print the
paper until a court decision would be taken. However, the court
cancelled its own decision on 4 February. The paper sued Uchkun
again but had to drop its lawsuit to be printed. However, Uchkun
President Kanybek Imanaliev made a counter-claim in February,
accusing it of insulting him, and a district court sentenced the
paper on 18 April to pay a fine.
10. NEW ROUND OF THE KYRGYZ-UZBEK BORDER DELIMITATION
NEGOTIATIONS. A new round of the inter-governmental negotiations
on delimitation of the Kyrgyz-Uzbek state borders began in
Bishkek on 22 May. Department head in the Kyrgyz government
Salamat Alamanov and director of the cartography and geodesy
service of Uzbekistan Abduvali Abdulazizov head the negotiation
teams. So far, about 450 out of 1,400-kilometer long border have
been delimitated.
(Compiled and translated by Naryn Idinov in Prague)
****************************************************************
**
Copyright (c) 2002. RFE/RL, Inc. All rights reserved.
"RFE/RL Kyrgyz News" is published six days a week and is based
today on reports sent by RFE/RL Kyrgyz Service correspondents
Bubukan Dosalieva, Burulkan Sarygulova, Aziza Turdueva, Jarkyn
Temirbaeva, Kyias Moldokasymov, Aidanbek Tashkenbaev, and
Baktybek Amanbaev from Bishkek, Yrysbai Abdyraimov from Jalal-
Abad. Feedback should be sent to idinovn@rferl.org.
For information on re-use of the "Kyrgyz News," see:
http://www.rferl.org/reprints/content.asp.
|
