Latest Articles about Kyrgyzstan
CAN NAZARBAYEV HELP KYRGYZSTAN ESCAPE MOSCOW’S PRESSURE?
Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s reluctance to support Russia’s recognition of South Ossetia and Abkhazia’s independence at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Dushanbe last week has clearly damaged the organization’s internal cohesion, revealing cleavages between its strongest members–Russia and China. But Nazarbayev also gave... MORE
KYRGYZ NGOS REJECT GOVERNMENT’S CRITICISM
Following the Tulip Revolution on March 24, 2005, and amid continuous political instability in the country, Kyrgyz political leaders habitually accuse local non-government organizations for their dependence on foreign financing. Some politicians see local civil society groups cooperating with foreign donors as an encroachment on... MORE
CONFLICT IN SOUTH OSSETIA CONFUSES KYRGYZ GOVERNMENT AHEAD OF CIS SUMMIT
Although Kyrgyzstan has yet to declare its official response to the conflict in South Ossetia, Kyrgyz pundits have quickly used the developments in Georgia in their revision of real and imagined implications of the U.S. military base at the Manas Airport. The Kyrgyz government and... MORE
KYRGYZ GOVERNMENT CONFISCATES WEAPONS FROM U.S. CITIZENS, FUELS SCANDAL
On August 4 Kyrgyz police confiscated a weapons cache from U.S. citizens living in a rented house on the outskirts of Bishkek. The U.S. Embassy in Bishkek immediately responded, confirming that the weapons were sanctioned by the Kyrgyz government as part of the anti-terrorism training... MORE
KYRGYZ NGOS REJECT GOVERNMENT’S CRITICISM
Following the Tulip Revolution on March 24, 2005, and amid continuous political instability in the country, Kyrgyz political leaders habitually accuse local non-government organizations for their dependence on foreign financing. Some politicians see local civil society groups cooperating with foreign donors as an encroachment on... MORE
KYRGYZ MINISTER OF JUSTICE CONTINUES PROMOTING LEGALIZATION OF POLYGAMY
Last year prior to the celebration of International Women’s Day on March 8, Kyrgyz Minister of Justice Marat Kaypov proposed to legalize polygamy as a means of fighting poverty and prostitution among women. Although his idea drew public attention, the parliament avoided discussing the minister’s... MORE
RELIGIOUS AUTHORITIES IN KYRGYZSTAN PLAY POLITICS
The question of the spread of Islamic fundamentalism occupies a substantial part of political discourse in Kyrgyzstan. A new bill on “Freedom of religious practices and religious organizations” in particular is being actively discussed within the Kyrgyz government. While Kyrgyzstan’s two mainstream religious organizations, the... MORE
PUBLIC DEBATES ON HYDROPOWER SECTOR MANAGEMENT INTENSIFY IN KYRGYZSTAN
As inflation for food and energy is rising by the month, public debates about the government’s ability to handle the worsening economy are becoming ever more common in Kyrgyzstan. Local civil society groups and journalists voice concerns over the course of privatization of the country’s... MORE
REFLECTIONS ON MANAS
The U.S. Air Force deployment to Manas, which has sparked intermittent controversy in the Kyrgyz Republic, has arguably been misunderstood by policy makers in Bishkek. Colonel Thomas Smith, the commander of the 376th Expeditionary Wing of the U.S. Air Force and the coalition forces at... MORE
KYRGYZ GOVERNMENT, PARLIAMENT REFUSE TO PROLONG CONTRACT WITH CANADIAN GOLD COMPANY
The Kyrgyz government and parliament have been postponing ratification of a contract with the Canadian mining company Cameco Corporation that is due on June 1. Talk has been circulating for the past few years that the Kyrgyz government’s 2003 agreement between Kyrgyz Kumtor Gold Company... MORE