Pro-Bakiev Party to Gather During Opposition Rally

The pro-presidential party Jany Mezgil (New Times) is planning to hold a party congress in Bishkek on April 11, the same day that the opposition is launching demonstrations to call for early presidential elections. Jany Mezgil, whose supporters have been holding marches and other actions in support of “peace and harmony” since last week, says it has around 43,000 members. On April 5, a group of female party members held a demonstration in Bishkek in an attempt to persuade opposition supporters to end a hunger strike they had started that morning.