Introduction to local politics

That is to say: "Why I had to spend a Friday buried into my flat".


On Friday, 27th of March 2009 opposition called supporters to organize rallies all around Kyrgyzstan to ask for President Bakiev to resign.

Bakiev was elected President of the Kyrgyz Republic after Nationwide demonstrations in the spring of 2005 resulted in the bloodless Tulip Revolution and the ouster of President Askar Akayev, who had run the country since 1990.

Unfortunately, Bakiev failed to live up to his election promises to reform the country's constitution and transfer many of his presidential powers to parliament.

The political opposition organized demonstrations in Bishkek in April, May, and November 2006 resulting in the adoption of a new constitution that transferred some of the president's powers to parliament and the government.

In December 2006, the Kyrgyzstani parliament voted to adopt new amendments, restoring some of the presidential powers lost in the November 2006 constitutional change. By late-September 2007, both previous versions of the constitution were declared illegal, and the country reverted to the Akaev-era 2003 constitution, which was subsequently modified in a flawed referendum initiated by the President himself.

Bakiev then dissolved parliament, called for early elections, and gained control of the new parliament through his newly-created political party, Ak Jol, in December 2007 elections.

To be honest, there's is a lot to argue for.

Corruption is sky high (Kyrgyz Republic is apparently the 4th most corrupt State in the world), lawlessness is increasing day by day, judiciary is obeying to the government more than to the law, inflation is devastating spending power of the majority of citizens, while lack of adequate welfare is striking most vulnerable population. Finally, since 9/11 all Central Asian states readily adhered to the worldwide trend aimed to sacrifice Human Rights for State Security's sake; this obviously implied a relevant increase in abuses from law enforcement agencies and a general strengthening of their impunity.

This is the context that made opposition decide that time has come for the President to resign and call for new free presidential elections.

In UN this appointment raised immediately some concern. Officials present during 2006 rallies still remember when rumors wanting Bakiev to have had safe heaven in our offices brought part of the dissidents in front of the UN House asking for the President to come out and face their rage.

Of course the rumors were false, but the stones and bricks that crashed their windows were scarely real.

I spent the two days before D-day in Dostuk Hotel for the Regional Training on Adequate Housing and Forced Eviction, so I was not real-time updated about the frantic meetings and brainstorming that brought to the final decision about our presence in office on Friday, 27 of March.

To be honest, I was not especially worried about the situation. All kyrgyz friends and contacts of us seemed totally skeptical about some major disorder to happen, and the overall feeling that we perceived walking around could not have been more quiet.

At the opposite, the idea of receiving the order not to exit my flat and to stay totally alone, without Internet connection or TV for the whole day was much more annoying than the idea of a far possibility of being besieged for a while into the UN House.

The final decision from the Head of Agencies Meeting cought me when I went back to the office after the end of the last training day.

Due to major security concerns, all our Office but the Head of Agency and the National Program Officer was "invited not to come to the office the day after, and to strictly follow guidelines and directives from DSS".

Shit.

In the end, my day as 21st century hermit man passed by slowly and smoothly. That is to say that I had a quiet, boring day.

I infringed DSS rules only for a quick walk to the local market to buy some fresh vegetables and noodles. You can order me to stay 24 hours without internet and my whole life without Tv, but you cannot force me to stay one day at home alone without cooking. No way.




PS: FYI, nothing special happened on the 27th. Just 1000 people attended the rallies in Bishkek, and they never really moved from the area the were assigned to. In the rest of the country no more than 5-700 people organized rallies in different cities without any major problem occurring. Apparently, Bakiev decision to fix in a rush the date for next early Presidential elections, the uncomfortable location assigned for the gathering and the unpleasant weather contributed to deflate the tensions and to demotivate many. Now, everything is postponed to next July when Presidential election will take place.