Demo Ends, Constitutional Reform to Continue
Demo Ends, Constitutional Reform to Continue
More than a week of opposition demonstrations in Kyrgyzstan ended on April 19 when protesters tried to storm the government building and police dispersed the crowd with tear gas.
NBCentralAsia commentators say that the protests were nevertheless successful to the extent that they resulted in progress on constitutional reform. Now the task is for the opposition and the authorities to work to ensure a new constitutional draft is approved.
At an emergency session on April 20, the Kyrgyz parliament passed a resolution calling for an immediate investigation with the aim of identifying and punishing those responsible for the previous day’s disturbances in central Bishkek. The statement also suggested that the two opposition groups behind the rally, the United Front for a Worthy Future for Kyrgyzstan and the Movement for Reforms, should be required to pay for the damage caused.
On April 19, the ninth day of protests, a number of people tried to force their way into the White House, the main government building. Riot police reacted by using tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the crowd.
As a result of the clash, 11 people including five policemen were hospitalised, and over 100 people have been arrested. The prosecutor’s office has opened a criminal case.
Only one opposition leader, Temir Sariev, was on Ala-Too square when the protesters moved against the White House, and he urged both opposition supporters and the security forces to remain calm.
Immediately after the crowds dispersed, police dismantled the opposition’s encampment on the square, consisting of traditional yurts.
On April 20, local news agencies reported that the authorities had seized offices belonging to the United Front, the Ar-Namys and Ata-Meken parties, and opposition newspapers such as Agym.
The Committee for National Security summoned opposition leaders for interrogation.
The government and its opponents accuse each other of instigating the violence, but NBCentralAsia observers say they should move on from the incident, and attend to seeing through the constitutional reform process.
“The demonstration played a positive role,” said Tamerlan Ibraimov, director of the Centre for Political and Legal Studies. “It has contributed to the swift launch of constitutional reform, which will result in a stronger prime minister and a president with less power, and it has also helped the process of transforming the state broadcasting company into a [public service] national broadcaster.”
However, political scientist Marat Kazakbaev points out that these positive changes, in the shape of government concessions, actually took place before the protest began.
“The protest failed because people saw that the authorities were paying heed to the opposition's demands and were making concessions,” he said.
Parliament is now officially in a position to review a new draft of the constitution after swearing in two new Constitutional Court judges – essential for the court to sit in quorum – on April 20. However, it remains unclear whether the document that goes before parliament will be a compromise version collated from two rival drafts currently in circulation, one produced by the United Front and other by a working group led by Prime Minister Almaz Atambaev.
Kazakbaev hopes that a dialogue can be resumed and the opposition’s demands reviewed in light of the concessions the authorities have already made. The opposition “needs to realise that when the authorities make concessions, it is not the right time to be laying down radical demands”, he said.
According to political scientist Emil Juraev, the lessons that should be drawn from the last week are that the authorities must learn to anticipate public discontent before it spills onto the streets, while the opposition must make realistic demands and engage in constructive dialogue rather than radicalism.
“The rally has shown that one must make demands that are within the law and develop a clear strategy on how they can be achieved,” said Juraev.
(News Briefing Central Asia draws comment and analysis from a broad range of political observers across the region.)
NBCentralAsia commentators say that the protests were nevertheless successful to the extent that they resulted in progress on constitutional reform. Now the task is for the opposition and the authorities to work to ensure a new constitutional draft is approved.
At an emergency session on April 20, the Kyrgyz parliament passed a resolution calling for an immediate investigation with the aim of identifying and punishing those responsible for the previous day’s disturbances in central Bishkek. The statement also suggested that the two opposition groups behind the rally, the United Front for a Worthy Future for Kyrgyzstan and the Movement for Reforms, should be required to pay for the damage caused.
On April 19, the ninth day of protests, a number of people tried to force their way into the White House, the main government building. Riot police reacted by using tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the crowd.
As a result of the clash, 11 people including five policemen were hospitalised, and over 100 people have been arrested. The prosecutor’s office has opened a criminal case.
Only one opposition leader, Temir Sariev, was on Ala-Too square when the protesters moved against the White House, and he urged both opposition supporters and the security forces to remain calm.
Immediately after the crowds dispersed, police dismantled the opposition’s encampment on the square, consisting of traditional yurts.
On April 20, local news agencies reported that the authorities had seized offices belonging to the United Front, the Ar-Namys and Ata-Meken parties, and opposition newspapers such as Agym.
The Committee for National Security summoned opposition leaders for interrogation.
The government and its opponents accuse each other of instigating the violence, but NBCentralAsia observers say they should move on from the incident, and attend to seeing through the constitutional reform process.
“The demonstration played a positive role,” said Tamerlan Ibraimov, director of the Centre for Political and Legal Studies. “It has contributed to the swift launch of constitutional reform, which will result in a stronger prime minister and a president with less power, and it has also helped the process of transforming the state broadcasting company into a [public service] national broadcaster.”
However, political scientist Marat Kazakbaev points out that these positive changes, in the shape of government concessions, actually took place before the protest began.
“The protest failed because people saw that the authorities were paying heed to the opposition's demands and were making concessions,” he said.
Parliament is now officially in a position to review a new draft of the constitution after swearing in two new Constitutional Court judges – essential for the court to sit in quorum – on April 20. However, it remains unclear whether the document that goes before parliament will be a compromise version collated from two rival drafts currently in circulation, one produced by the United Front and other by a working group led by Prime Minister Almaz Atambaev.
Kazakbaev hopes that a dialogue can be resumed and the opposition’s demands reviewed in light of the concessions the authorities have already made. The opposition “needs to realise that when the authorities make concessions, it is not the right time to be laying down radical demands”, he said.
According to political scientist Emil Juraev, the lessons that should be drawn from the last week are that the authorities must learn to anticipate public discontent before it spills onto the streets, while the opposition must make realistic demands and engage in constructive dialogue rather than radicalism.
“The rally has shown that one must make demands that are within the law and develop a clear strategy on how they can be achieved,” said Juraev.
(News Briefing Central Asia draws comment and analysis from a broad range of political observers across the region.)
