Calls for Second Revolution in Kyrgyzstan

Tough talk from the new revolutionaries, but can they deliver?

By Cholpon Orozobekova in Bishkek (RCA No. 429, 09-Jan-06)

A group of politicians involved in the “tulip revolution” of March 2005 which brought the current government to power is pressing for fundamental reforms to the system, saying nothing has really happened since the change of regime.

While the message is clear – the revolution is not over – it is less apparent what the new opposition can do to further its demands.

A national “kurultai”, or assembly, the latest in a series of such opposition forums in recent years, convened in the capital Bishkek on December 24.

The prime movers behind the event were Azimbek Beknazarov and Roza Otunbaeva, who were closely involved both in the protests that led to the revolution and in the administration subsequently set up to replace ex-president Askar Akaev’s government.

Beknazarov was made Kyrgyzstan’s chief prosecutor and proceeded to take action against Akaev-era officials suspected of corruption, but was sacked in September. Otunbaeva, a former ambassador, served as interim foreign minister but was one of six ministerial designates whose nominations were turned down by parliament at the end of September.

The two lead a political movement called simply “Kyrgyzstan”, embracing a number of parties. Representatives of these parties were among the 300 political and civil-society activists, including serving members of parliament, who took part in the kurultai.

Participants in the assembly voiced dissatisfaction with what they see as the lack of fundamental change since the revolution. For many, the March coup was just the first phase in a continuing revolution, rather than a one-off fait accompli.

Addressing the crowd, Beknazarov said, “We made mistakes, and the revolution is not over. The main mistake was that we went the legal way instead of creating a revolutionary committee and temporary government.”

At the end of the meeting, participants passed resolutions calling for a referendum to be held in February on the structure of state governance; for the government to account for its progress to date; for officials who worked for former president Akaev to be sacked; and for a freeze on the re-sale of assets belonging to Akaev family members.

Nazarbek Nyshanov, who heads a body calling itself the Revolutionary Committee for National Control, insisted, “The Akaev system remains just as it was. The problems which existed during Askar Akaev’s time remain the same. Even the constitution passed under Akaev remains unchanged.”

After his formal election in July, President Bakiev set up a “constitutional conference” to draft substantial amendments to the current document. But after the body produced a final draft in November, continuing disagreement over fundamental issues such as the structure of the governing institutions meant that instead of ordering it into law, Bakiev ordered a referendum to be held on the constitution towards the end of 2006.

The failure to change the constitution swiftly enough angered many kurultai participants. “For 15 years, Akaev made his own constitution, and now the new regime wants to rule according to his constitution,” Alymbek Akunov, a delegate from the Naryn region, told IWPR. “If there’s no new constitution and no economic progress, how can one talk about a revolution? Maybe Bishkek residents have seen progress, I don’t know; but in the regions life is getting not better but worse day by day.”

Officials were dismissive of the assembly, saying it carried no real force. “What will happen if every kurultai takes decisions of various kinds?” said the head of the Supreme Court, Kurmanbek Osmonov. “It does not the legal or moral right to take such decisions.”

Tursunbek Akun, the chairman of the presidential committee for human rights, said it was unfair to attack the authorities’ record at such an early stage. “So far the government has just been fire-fighting. It hasn’t yet had a chance to work normally,” he said. “Now, thank God, the problems are starting to be solved. I don’t agree with people who say there haven’t been any changes.”

One of the strongest criticisms the kurultai made of the Bakiev administration was that it has chosen to employ so many Akaev-era figures. Participants compiled a list of 43 officials from the old regime whom they believe should be dismissed.

“The same old Akaev officials are still in power, and criminal cases have even been opened against [some of] them,” said Beknazarov, adding that Presidential Bakiev is ignoring the allies who forged the March revolution that brought him to power.

“It’s good that this list has been announced,” said Bolot Baikojoev, the co-chairman of the National Movement of Kyrgyzstan. “People who broke the law during Akaev’s rule should be held to account. Investigations should be conducted into illegal actions by people named on the list.”

This argument was rejected by Education Minister Dosbol Nur Uulu, who attended the kurultai. “If we start persecuting Akaev’s allies, it could smack of the [Stalinist] repressions of 1937,” he said. “If we start weeding out the Akaev people, then we may only have two or three people left in government.”

Bolot Januzakov, a close ally of Akaev who served as deputy chief of his presidential office, said, “Who didn’t work during Akaev’s rule? Bakiev, [Prime Minister Felix] Kulov, [presidential administration chief Usen] Sydykov and [State Secretary Dastan] Sarygulov all did. But we weren’t working for Akaev, we were working for the people.”

This kurultai was only the latest in a series of such assemblies held to channel opposition with the authorities in recent years. The last one was held just before the March revolution, and three earlier ones were also staged by opponents of the Akaev government.

The question is now what the neo-revolutionaries can do to force change in Kyrgyzstan. Anara Ismailova, a kurultai delegate from the southern Jalalabad region, spoke for many when she said, “Akaev’s head has gone, but the body, arms and legs remain in power. Unless they go, we will carry out a second revolution.”

On December 27, Nyshanov’s Revolutionary Committee held a demonstration outside the main government building in Bishkek, whose storming on March 24 was the key event in ousting Akaev.

Gulbara Sulaimanova, a Bishkek resident who took part in the demonstration, complained, “There have been no radical steps since the revolution. All they do is distribute seats and property. The government doesn’t have a single anti-crisis programme. They probably don’t even have a single idea about how to make people’s lives better.”

Cholpon Orozobekova is a correspondent for Radio Azattyk, the Kyrgyz service of RFE/RL.