Kyrgyzstan

[Jedburgh]

ICG, 14 Aug 08: Kyrgyzstan: A Deceptive Calm

.....Anecdotal reports suggest deep popular disillusionment with the Bakiyev administration after the elections. At this point, however, the dissatisfaction is expressed mostly in resigned disgust with the system rather than overt anger or hostility. This could change. Food prices are rising faster than expected, as is inflation, even by the state’s cautious and not always reliable estimate. Few officials or ordinary citizens expect that – barring an unusually mild winter – energy cuts will be limited to unheated homes. A further deterioration in living conditions could spark serious anger among a public already worn down by power cuts, the steady rise of fuel prices and the memory of the previous grim winter, when the country’s fragile power infrastructure was incapable of supplying a basic level of services. If anger turns to violence, it risks being brutal, destructive and xenophobic – and the remnants of the opposition may not be able to channel demonstrations into a more controllable form.....

[jkm_101_fso]

For my own SA...in case I reference this in conversation, is it pronounced:

Key-erg-is-tan?

[Jedburgh]

For my own SA...in case I reference this in conversation, is it pronounced:

Key-erg-is-tan?

Kyrgyzstan: Keer-gih-stan

[SteveO]

they want to be known as Kyrgyz Republic

[kaur]

Interview: Moscow Indicates It Won't Be Ignored in the 'Near Abroad'

http://www.nytimes.com/cfr/world/slo...ewanted=1&_r=1

[Jedburgh]

ICG, 27 Apr 10: Kyrgyzstan: A Hollow Regime Collapses

A swift, violent rebellion swept into the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek in early April 2010, sparked by anger at painful utility price increases and the corruption that was the defining characteristic of President Kurmanbek Bakiyev’s rule. In less than two days the president had fled. Some 85 people were killed and the centre of the capital was looted. The thirteen-member provisional government now faces a daunting series of challenges. Bakiyev leaves behind a bankrupt state hollowed out by corruption and crime. Economic failure and collapsing infrastructure have generated deep public resentment. If the provisional government moves fast to assert its power, the risks of major long-term violence are containable: there are no signs of extensive support for Bakiyev or of a North-South split. The speed with which the Bakiyev administration collapsed is a salutary reminder of the risks of overemphasising Western security concerns in framing policy towards the region.....

[davidbfpo]

Nine years nearly since a post in this thread!

The article is sub-titled:

A series of protests in Kyrgyzstan point to growing public feeling against China, one of the country’s biggest investors.

It ends with this; quite a curious way of handling a protest group on a sensitive subject in a 'stan':

These recent demonstrations in Bishkek have brought quick results. The migration service, police and state security committee have continued to cooperate with Kyrk Choro, taking the responsibility for managing anti-Chinese sentiment in the country.

Link:https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/odr/anti-chinese-mood-growing-kyrgyzstan/?

Link for background:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyrgyzstan