Page 17 - bneNewspaper_130417

Eurasia
April 13, 2017 www.intellinews.com I Page 17
President’s moves seen risking third Kyrgyz revolution
bne IntelliNews
Kyrgyzstan’s political system – long hailed as an island of democracy in the region – is under threat as the Central Asian nations finds itself besieged by protests, rising tensions and crackdowns ahead of November’s crucial presidential election.
If Kyrgyz citizens did not take the arrest of opposi- tion leader Omurbek Tekebayev a month ago as a harbinger of trouble, they cannot have missed the import of the many disturbing events that have followed. Over the span of just a month, Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev has managed to backtrack from promises to leave politics for good at the end of his term in office, to vowing not only to continue working with his Social Democratic Party (SDPK) but also to dismiss the parliament before his departure from office.
Among other warning signs that Kyrgyzstan’s democratic development is imperilled, the Kyrgyz authorities went ahead and arrested another op- position leader Almambet Shykmamatov, a mem- ber of Tekebayev’s Ata-Meken party. And when self-exiled former politician Sadyr Zhaparov – who in 2013 was charged with taking a govern- ment official hostage – returned to the country, supposedly in order to participate in the election, the Kyrgyz security services nabbed him too. Po- lice with stun grenades dispersed resulting pro- tests mounted by his supporters.
Allegations of corruption have been directed against at least six high-profile figures over the past two months, the latest being pro-government lawyer Muzaffar Isakov. No stranger to plac-
ing bans on the media, President Atambayev has
also announced his preparedness to pursue al- legations of slander against Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty’s Kyrgyz Service all the way to the “international courts”.
These developments, coupled with Atambayev’s earlier constitutional manoeuvres in December, have lent weight to the theory that even if the president does leave office, he still hopes to main- tain unofficial control over the country from the shadows by installing a puppet as prime minister. But having influence over a prime minister might not be enough, according to Kyrgyz experts.
Kyrgyz independent political analyst Edil Baisalov does not even exclude the possibility that Atam- bayev wants to provoke some sort of massive riots, which would allow him a chance to extend his term. “None of the other political forces are interested in spreading unconstitutional activi- ties,” Baisalov tells bne IntelliNews. “The main source of destabilisation [in the country] right now is Almazbek Atambayev.”
“Atambayev is leaving the presidency; he is run- ning out of time; he does not have a successor and even if he would declare one tomorrow or within the next months, this candidate would simply have no chance of becoming president as a result of free and fair elections,” Baisalov adds.
If Baisalov is correct, Atambayev, a participant
of both Kyrgyz revolutions – which respectively toppled Askar Akayev’s regime in 2005 and Kur- manbek Bakiyev’s regime in 2010 – is well aware of the cracking of thin ice under his feet. Russian