Democracy News
United Opposition Movement Forms in Kyrgyzstan; Tupil Revolution Leader Criticized
March 17, 2010
By: Randi Zung | Printer Friendly
On March 17, protestors gathered in Kyrgyzstan’s capital city of Bishkek to air grievances against President Kurmanbek Bakiyev's government. The rally, being called Eldik Kurultai (translation: People’s Congress) occurred outside of the headquarters of the Social Democratic party. Omurbek Tekebayev, leader of the Ata-Meken party, commented that the opposition would take action on its own if the government continued to ignore protestor demands, the Associated Press reported. In addition to the rally in Bishkek, it was also reported that other rallies took place in regions throughout the country.
Tekebaev, a former speaker of parliament, said that the country’s legislative body was also becoming increasingly dissatisfied with President Bakiyev's policies, and called for the administration to be ousted. Tursunbek Akunov, a Kyrgyz government official stated: “Discontent among the people is very high and the government's actions have led to this situation.”
Opposition parties, which have previously struggled to make gains, adopted a resolution to form a united coalition against the ruling party. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported that the resolution also included seven demands on the government: “to release all political prisoners; to stop ongoing constitutional reforms they say would boost the president's political powers; to remove President Kurmanbek Bakiev's son Maksim from his post -- as head of the state agency on development, investment, and innovation -- and abolish the agency; to restore rebroadcasts of RFE/RL's Kyrgyz-language programs by local affiliates and strengthen freedom of speech; to lower energy tariffs; to renationalize stakes in Kyrgyz Telecom and several other companies, which the opposition says were privatized under dubious circumstances; and to remove Bakiev's relatives from government posts.” Rosa Otunbayeva of the Social Democratic faction was named the leader of the new opposition coalition.
According to an article by Reuters, the opposition coalition has given Bakiyev's administration until March 24 to meet all seven demands. No official statement has been made by the government, but Prime Minister Daniyar Usenov said that the opposition was free to continue to assemble for peaceful protests. On March 24, Bakiyev is scheduled to meet with high ranking political officials in order to discuss policies and plans for the current year. March 24 also coincides with the anniversary of the 2005 Tulip Revolution that allowed for Bakiyev to come to power.
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