Political Upheaval as Kyrgyzstan Opposition Seizes Power
- 14 years ago
Opposition supporters in the Central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan have taken over the government and dissolved parliament. That’s what opposition leader Roza Otunbayeva announced on Thursday after taking control of state-run television.
Protesters in the capital—Bishkek—took control of the government after violent protests on Wednesday. As many as 100 people were killed and at least 500 have been injured in the violence.
The president, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, has fled to another part of the country.
[Roza Otunbayeva, Interim Government Leader]: (Female, English)
"… His business is finished in Kyrgyzstan and so all those people who have been killed and who got wounds, they are victims of this regime."
The new interim government is demanding the president’s formal resignation.
[Roza Otunbayeva, Interim Government Leader]: (Female, English)
"I think we will see how the dynamics of these events will go. If he [President Bakiyev] will continue to do such destructive actions, then we will react."
The uprising was fueled by widespread anger over corruption, nepotism and rising prices. A third of the nation’s 5 million people live below the poverty line.
Wednesday’s protests were apparently sparked by a recent 200 percent hike in heating fuel and electricity prices.
[Kyrgyzstan Citizen in Bishkek]: (Russian male, single line title bar graphic)
"…This criminal government robbed their own people. That is why the people themselves started this protest. No one told them to do so. They did it themselves. They took power without help of the opposition."
Political unrest has gripped Kyrgyzstan since early March. Analysts say the unrest will cause uncertainty for foreign investors in the country’s mining sector.
The effect on the U.S.-run military base there—used in the war in Afghanistan—is unknown.
Protesters in the capital—Bishkek—took control of the government after violent protests on Wednesday. As many as 100 people were killed and at least 500 have been injured in the violence.
The president, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, has fled to another part of the country.
[Roza Otunbayeva, Interim Government Leader]: (Female, English)
"… His business is finished in Kyrgyzstan and so all those people who have been killed and who got wounds, they are victims of this regime."
The new interim government is demanding the president’s formal resignation.
[Roza Otunbayeva, Interim Government Leader]: (Female, English)
"I think we will see how the dynamics of these events will go. If he [President Bakiyev] will continue to do such destructive actions, then we will react."
The uprising was fueled by widespread anger over corruption, nepotism and rising prices. A third of the nation’s 5 million people live below the poverty line.
Wednesday’s protests were apparently sparked by a recent 200 percent hike in heating fuel and electricity prices.
[Kyrgyzstan Citizen in Bishkek]: (Russian male, single line title bar graphic)
"…This criminal government robbed their own people. That is why the people themselves started this protest. No one told them to do so. They did it themselves. They took power without help of the opposition."
Political unrest has gripped Kyrgyzstan since early March. Analysts say the unrest will cause uncertainty for foreign investors in the country’s mining sector.
The effect on the U.S.-run military base there—used in the war in Afghanistan—is unknown.