The number of Chinese migrants traveling to Kyrgyzstan, mainly to Bishkek, the capital city, has been increasing over the past decade. China is one of the major exporters of goods to Kyrgyzstan, ranging from mass consumer products and home electronics to luxury commodities. In recent... MORE

Since early 2008 eight Kyrgyz citizens have been brutally killed in Moscow and St. Petersburg by members of local skinhead movements. All of the victims were male labor migrants from rural Kyrgyzstan who had come to Russia to find work. Besides the murders, over 30... MORE

The Kyrgyz Interior Ministry intends to ban public prayers at the central square in Bishkek during Islamic holidays. The ministry’s main rationale for its decision is that because Kyrgyzstan is a secular state, religion should be everyone’s private business as opposed to state-sanctioned public events.... MORE

Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev recently announced his intention to privatize the last remaining state enterprises, including major hydropower facilities, Kyrgyzgaz, and Kyrgyz Telecom. All of these enterprises serve nation-wide needs and contain considerable economic potential. However, given that Bakiyev’s new government is comprised mainly of... MORE

Kyrgyz leaders intend to reform the country’s police force, by decentralizing its organizational structure. Such reforms, if properly implemented, could create a useful additional network for gathering information designed to aid the authorities in combating terrorism. The announcement from Bishkek comes at a time when... MORE

The relentless race to develop Central Asia’s energy reserves has now reached mountainous Kyrgyzstan. But as in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan, it seems that Russia has largely beat out its foreign competition, concentrating on natural gas while allowing Western companies to scramble for the country’s... MORE

Kyrgyzstan’s new government has already descended into dirty intrigues (see EDM, January 11). The ruling regime under President Kurmanbek Bakiyev is now reportedly using the Interior Ministry to ensure quiet compliance of all public figures. The pro-regime bloc Ak Zhol’s majority in the parliament, and... MORE

The new Kyrgyz government, formed following the December 16, 2007, parliamentary elections, is comprised mostly of old faces who survived the numerous reshuffling efforts of former president Askar Akayev, the change of presidents in March 2005, and the recent parliamentary elections. President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has... MORE

On Sunday, December 16, Kyrgyzstan held snap parliamentary elections, following the constitutional referendum of October 21. Twelve political parties competed for 90 seats, to be distributed on the basis of proportional representation. As expected, President Kurmanbek Bakiyev’s Ak Zhol political party won the elections with... MORE

Two major Kyrgyz opposition parties – Ata Meken and the Social-Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan (SDPK) – have been experiencing extreme pressure from the government ahead of parliamentary elections on December 16. After SDPK member Edil Baisalov’s published a sample ballot on his personal blog on... MORE