From: Justin Burke (JBurke@sorosny.org)
Date: Wed Oct 16 2002 - 11:40:26 EDT
RFE/RL KYRGYZ NEWS
15 OCTOBER 2002, TUESDAY
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A Daily Review of News from Kyrgyzstan
1. Trial on Aksy tragedy postponed again.
2. Parties and ordinary people demand to release Feliks Kulov.
3. French troops in Kyrgyzstan help the Kyrgyz Defense Ministry.
4. US embassy gives Kyrgyzstan cars.
5. Government official: pension rate would not be raised.
6. Kyrgyz government officials in Germany.
7. Trial against chief of the security service is postponed.
8. Danger of typhoid epidemic in the south.
9. Changes in the regional Muslim leadership.
10. Prime minister appoints local officials.
1. TRIAL ON AKSY TRAGEDY POSTPONED AGAIN. Prosecutor General Chubak
Abyshkaev announced at a parliamentary session in Bishkek on 15
October that additional investigation must be done connected with
the Aksy killings. According to him, some accused local officials
gave recently new evidences on who ordered opening fire at a protest
demonstration in Aksy last March. The trial against six local
officials was scheduled for 30 September but was postponed till 15
October. Judge Bakyt Arabaev announced in Kerben, center of Aksy, on
15 October that the trial could be postponed again because only one
out of six defendants appeared in the court. However, they are
accused of power abuse only.
Meanwhile, supporters of the accused officials held protest pickets
demanding to bring to justice high officials in the government and
the presidential administration too, because the local officials
implemented only the orders from Bishkek. Dozens of supporters of
the defendants go from the countryside to Bishkek to organized
protest pickets there. Protest meetings were already held both in
Bishkek and regions last week. Police opened fire at a protest
demonstration in the Aksy district of the southern Jalal-Abad
Province on 17 and 18 March and killed five demonstrators.
2. PARTIES AND ORDINARY PEOPLE DEMAND TO RELEASE FELIKS KULOV.
Thirty-two people continued holding protest hunger strikes in
Kyrgyzstan on 15 October demanding to release former vice president
of the country Feliks Kulov. According to chairman of the Human
Rights Movement of Kyrgyzstan Tursunbek Akunov, eight of them keep
hunger strikes in capital Bishkek, ten in the Alamedin district of
the neighboring Chui Province, five in the Bazar-Korgon village of
the southern Jalal-Abad Province, five in Jalal-Abad town, and four
people in Osh City, center of the southern Osh Province. Hunger
strikes began in Bishkek on 8 October.
The three political parties and the Institute for Human Rights and
Civil Liberties made a joint statement in Bishkek on 15 October
condemning a court ruling against Kulov, taken on 11 October.
According to them, it was evidence that the President Askar Akayev's
regime becomes more repressive and demanded Akayev to resign.
Leaders of the Asaba (Banner), Erkindik (Liberty) and Republican
parties signed the statement.
The Bishkek City Court upheld on 11 October a ruling taken by a
district court of the city on 8 May, which sentenced Kulov to 10
years of imprisonment convicting him of embezzlement in 1993-1997,
when he was governor of the Chui Province. Kulov was serving already
another term when was sentenced again, the Bishkek City military
court sentenced him on 22 January 2001 to seven years of
imprisonment, convicting him of power abuse when he was the minister
of national security in 1997-1998. Opposition believes the both
trials were politically motivated to take Kulov away from the
political scene.
3. FRENCH TROOPS IN KYRGYZSTAN HELP THE KYRGYZ DEFENSE MINISTRY.
Leadership of the French troops deployed at the Manas airport near
Bishkek, handed on 15 October humanitarian aids worth $200,000 to
the Kyrgyz Defense Ministry. The aids include 13 cars and some other
equipment. About 2,000 troops of the Western coalition against
international terrorism are deployed at Manas since last December.
About 400 of them are French citizens and they take part in military
operations in Afghanistan.
4. US EMBASSY GIVES KYRGYZSTAN CARS. According to the US embassy in
Bishkek, its Customs Service Advisor provided the Customs Inspection
of Kyrgyzstan on 15 October with four Russia-made Niva cars. US
Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan John O'Keefe and director of the inspection
Zamirbek Malabekov met in Bishkek and Malabekov was given the car
keys. According to the embassy, it was done in frame of the U.S.
Government's Export Control & Border Security (EXBS) program and
more equipment and training worth several hundred thousand dollars
would be given Kyrgyzstan in the next two years according to the
EXBS program.
5. GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL: PENSION RATE WOULD NOT BE RAISED. Deputy
Chairman of the Social Fund Orozmat Abdykalykov announced in Bishkek
on 15 October that rate of the pension in Kyrgyzstan would not be
increased in the nearest future due to high rate of unemployment.
According to him, only three working people support now one
pensioner in the country and nine people worked for one pensioner
then years ago. Average pension rate is in the country now 559 soms
per month (about $12) and the minimal subsistence level is three
times higher.
6. KYRGYZ GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS IN GERMANY. According to the
information department of prime minister, a Kyrgyz-German inter-
governmental meeting on drawing investment in Kyrgyzstan is held now
in Germany. Vice Prime Minister Joomart Otorbaev, Minister of
Industry and Foreign Trade Sadirdin Jeenbekov, Kyrgyz Ambassador to
Germany Apas Jumagulov take part in the meeting, which would last
till 19 October. Similar meeting is planned to be held in Prague,
the Czech Republic, on 23 October.
7. TRIAL AGAINST CHIEF OF THE SECURITY SERVICE IS POSTPONED. The
Pervomai district court of Bishkek postponed the trial against
Chairman of the National Security Service Kalyk Imankulov, set for
15 October, till 23 October. Deputy of Parliament Tursunbai Bakir
Uulu sued Imankulov accusing him of libel and, according to him, his
lawyer failed on 4 October to persuade Imankulov asking Bakir Uulu's
pardon.
Imankulov announced early in September that Bakir Uulu might have
relations with the terrorist Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU).
According to Imankulov, his service found some evidences of it
during the investigations against Kyrgyz citizens who took part in
the terrorist actions. Imankulov also said there were phone
conversations with extremists in Afghanistan from the mobile phone
registered for Bakir Uulu. Bakir Uulu held negotiations with IMU on
release of several Kyrgyz and Japanese citizens taken hostage by the
IMU rebels in 1999.
8. DANGER OF TYPHOID EPIDEMIC IN THE SOUTH. According to authorities
of the southern Batken Province, 150 people have been hospitalized
in the province by 15 October with suspicion of typhoid and analyses
of about 80 of them have been confirmed. Most of them are
schoolchildren from Batken, center of the province.
9. CHANGES IN THE REGIONAL MUSLIM LEADERSHIP. Mufti of Kyrgyzstan
Murataly-Ajy Jumanov (head of the Muslim community of the country)
informed RFE/RL correspondent on 15 October that the Kazy of the
northern Issyk-Kul Province is changed. Shakir Mamatov replaced
Abdybakhab Omurzakov and the meeting of Muftiyat, held in Bishkek on
15 October, approved it.
10. PRIME MINISTER APPOINTS LOCAL OFFICIALS. The information
department of prime minister announced in Bishkek on 15 October that
Prime Minister Nikolai Tanaev appointed Roza Abdraimova deputy head
of the Jaiyl district administration and Zarya Sardarbekova deputy
head of the Issyk-Ata district administration. The both districts
belong to the northern Chui Province. Tanaev also appointed Janybai
Jamshitov adviser to the First Vice Prime Minister Kurmanbek
Osmonov.
(Compiled and translated by Naryn Idinov in Prague)
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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, Jarkyn Temirbaeva, and Aidanbek Tashkenbaev from Bishkek,
Kojogeldi Kuluev from Osh, Yrysbai Abdyraimov from Jalal-Abad,
Shaiyrbek Mukaramov from Batken. 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.
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