DOCSLIB.ORG

MONITORING of ADMINISTRATIVE RESOURCE ABUSES DURING PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS in the KYRGYZ REPUBLIC February-March 2005”

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
MONITORING of ADMINISTRATIVE RESOURCE ABUSES DURING PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS in the KYRGYZ REPUBLIC February-March 2005” “Transparency International - Kyrgyzstan” “Transparency International – Kyrgyzstan” PROJECT “MONITORING OF ADMINISTRATIVE RESOURCE ABUSES DURING PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IN THE KYRGYZ REPUBLIC February-March 2005” 2005 2 “Transparency International - Kyrgyzstan” CONTENTS CONTENTS 3 CHAPTER 1. METHODOLOGICAL FUNDAMENTALS OF THE MONITORING PROJECT 7 PROJECT DESCRIPTION AND METHODS 7 A) Introduction 7 B) Project Goals and Targets 7 C) Project General Characteristic 7 D) Methods of Project Implementation 8 E) Results 9 1.2. ABUSE OF ADMINISTRATIVE RESOURCE. ADMINISTRATIVE RESOURCE TYPOLOGY. 9 A) Role and Significance of Administrative Resource Abuses 9 B) Institutional resource 9 C) Media resource 9 D) Budget resource 10 E) “Coercive” Resource 10 CHAPTER 2. LEGAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT 11 2.1 Elections of Deputies to the Kyrgyz Republic Parliament 11 a) Elections dates 12 b) Election Commissions 12 c) Preparation and conduction of elections of deputies to the Kyrgyz Republic Parliament 16 2.2 Organization, Procedure of Voting and Definition of its Results 16 a) Premises for voting 16 b) Certificate of striking off the list for voting at elections 16 c) Voting paper 17 d) Voting procedure 17 e) Procedure of prescheduled voting and voting outside voting premises 18 f) Definition of voting results 18 2.3 Agitation at Elections 18 a) Agitation period 19 b) Agitation by television, radio, through printing mass media, agitation by means of mass events, dissemination of agitation materials 19 c) Inadmissibility of abuses of the right for agitation 20 2.4 Financing of Elections 21 a) Financial support of elections preparation and conduction 21 b) Election funds 21 c) Control of spending funds allocated for conduction of elections 22 2.5 Responsibility for Violation of Suffrages 22 CHAPTER 3. PRE-ELECTION SITUATION IN KYRGYZSTAN. PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS OF 2005 25 3.1 Political Situation in Kyrgyzstan 25 3.2 Manifestation of Tribalism, Clannishness and Regionalism, their Impact in Kyrgyzstan 27 3 “Transparency International - Kyrgyzstan” 3.3 Administrative Resource at Parliamentary Elections of 2005 30 3.4 Peculiarities of Conduction of Parliamentary Elections of 2005 33 Refusal to register ex-Ambassadors 34 Withdrawal from registration of candidates 35 3.5 Opposition consolidation. 38 3.6 General conclusions. 43 CHAPTER 4. ALTERNATIVE INVESTIGATIONS OF THE ELECTIONS 44 OSCE 44 Coalition “ Pro democracy and civil society” 45 Internews in Kyrgyzstan 46 ENEMO ( European network of Election Monitoring Organizations) 48 CHARTER 5. MONITORING RESULTS AND THEIR ANALYSIS. EXPERT INTERVIEWS. 50 5.1 MONITORING MASS MEDIA 50 Abusing the media administrative resource 50 Television 50 Press 57 5.2 EXPERT’S INTERVIEW 67 The sources of financing the elections funds. 67 The Expending of the Election Money. 68 The structure of the expenditures for holding the election campaign 68 The abuses of the administrative resources in favor of separate parties 68 The significance of the last changes in the Code on Elections, the drawbacks of the acting legislation on elections. 69 The most successful strategies of the deputy candidates. 69 5.3 ANALYSIS OF THE SEPARATE TYPICAL CASES 69 The abuses of the media resource at the Republic level 72 The abuse of the institutional resource 75 The Abuse of the budget resource 77 CHAPTER 6. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 86 RECOMMENDATIONS: 87 General recommendations 87 Budgetary resource 88 Institutional resource 89 Media resource 90 4 “Transparency International - Kyrgyzstan” Preface This research project was dedicated to monitoring of abuses of the State resources and state sector (“administrative resource”) in the course of election campaign on parliamentary elections of the Kyrgyz Republic on February 27, 2005. Our investigation was carried out during the period which is not simple for Kyrgyzstan, when revolutionary events took place in the country, one of the reasons of which was connected with the use of the administrative resource by power authorities in electoral processes. The application of the administrative resource was stipulated by peculiarities of the democratic processes development on the post-Soviet space. It is just the use of administrative resource that violates a basic democratic principle – a principle of separation of power. It occurs because executive bodies control a process of elections to representative bodies, and as such, they receive in future an influence on representative (legislative) structures in the process of taking decisions. A solution of this problem is a priority one as it has an impact on other violations in election processes: electors’ suffrages and the right of observers, participation of mass media and political parties. An advantage of this investigation is a comprehensive analysis of the administrative resource in its basic forms and development of practical recommendations targeted at the reduction of the administrative resource influence on electoral process. A value of this investigation is as follows: firstly, it gives not only a “snap” of the situation existing directly during the elections period, but also gives a retrospective analysis of the situation existed before the elections, and secondly, it represents an integral system consisting of the complex political, legal, sociological and historical analysis of the situation in the country. One of important results of this investigation is a successful approbation of the methods developed by “Transparency International” under conditions of the Kyrgyz Republic. A development of a set of recommendations of general and legislative nature became an important result of this investigation. As we hope, these recommendations will be used for restriction of a scope of administrative resource abuses at subsequent elections. The Final Report contains the information on conducted investigation and its detailed methodology. Findings and recommendations of this investigation will be useful not only for representatives of state structures, but also for mass media staff, representatives of the civil society, students of higher educational institutions and for all persons interested in conduction of open and transparent parliamentary elections without the use of administrative resource. In our opinion, this investigation represents a scientific and practical interest for sociologists, political scientists and lawyers because of its methodological approach, of its typology of the administrative resource and a juridical analysis of case-studies. 5 “Transparency International - Kyrgyzstan” A composite author expresses its hope that all materials contained in our Report will be in demand among a broad circle of persons, interested in electoral processes and use of administrative resource. 6 “Transparency International - Kyrgyzstan” CHAPTER 1. METHODOLOGICAL FUNDAMENTALS OF THE MONITORING PROJECT PROJECT DESCRIPTION AND METHODS A) Introduction This Project was dedicated to monitoring of abuses of the State and state sector resources (“Administrative resource”) in the course of campaign on election of deputies to the Kyrgyz Republic Parliament on February 27, 2005. Abuses of administrative resource are more often acknowledged as a key category of the political corruption in the course of election campaigns, especially in the former Soviet Union countries. Such abuses undermine the attempts to regulate funds allocated for conduction of election campaigns, as well as basic democratic principles. Abuses of administrative resource for electoral purposes on the part of political forces in power represent a serious threat for democracy. Depending on the type and way of administrative resource abuse, such abuses have a negative impact on civil freedoms and personal immunity, quality of democracy, fulfillment of state functions and distribution of resources. In the course of the project a special attention was paid to consequences of administrative resource abuses for the quality of democracy. In the course of this Project implementation revolutionary events took place on March 24, 2005, which played a certain role in its fulfillment, as there were revealed and promulgated documents testifying to an extensive usage of the administrative resource at Parliamentary elections in the Kyrgyz Republic. B) Project Goals and Targets The goals of this Project are as follows: - Study of abuses of administrative resource during the elections of deputies to the Kyrgyz Republic Parliament. - Reveal and building of a picture of administrative resource abuses during the election campaign - To trace and analyze separate types and forms of abuses, monitoring of television, printing mass media - Development of recommendations of a legislative or any other nature for restriction of scope of the administrative resource abuse. C) Project General Characteristic This investigation was carried out in 2005 and gave a basis for development of the administrative resource typology as a basis of the current monitoring. The investigation included a study of media, analytical and expert materials, connected with conduction of election campaigns, as well as interviews with politicians, lawyers, journalists, representatives of different branches of power and civil society. In the course of this Project implementation there were revealed cases of the administrative resource usage and there were developed recommendations on their reduction. 7 “Transparency International - Kyrgyzstan” D) Methods of Project Implementation The proposed methods can be used for monitoring of the
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Rising Sinophobia in Kyrgyzstan: the Role of Political Corruption
    RISING SINOPHOBIA IN KYRGYZSTAN: THE ROLE OF POLITICAL CORRUPTION A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY DOĞUKAN BAŞ IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF EURASIAN STUDIES SEPTEMBER 2020 Approval of the thesis: RISING SINOPHOBIA IN KYRGYZSTAN: THE ROLE OF POLITICAL CORRUPTION submitted by DOĞUKAN BAŞ in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Eurasian Studies, the Graduate School of Social Sciences of Middle East Technical University by, Prof. Dr. Yaşar KONDAKÇI Dean Graduate School of Social Sciences Assoc. Prof. Dr. Işık KUŞÇU BONNENFANT Head of Department Eurasian Studies Prof. Dr. Pınar KÖKSAL Supervisor Political Science and Public Administration Examining Committee Members: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Işık KUŞÇU BONNENFANT (Head of the Examining Committee) Middle East Technical University International Relations Prof. Dr. Pınar KÖKSAL (Supervisor) Middle East Technical University Political Science and Public Administration Assist. Prof. Dr. Yuliya BILETSKA Karabük University International Relations I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all material and results that are not original to this work. Name, Last name : Doğukan Baş Signature : iii ABSTRACT RISING SINOPHOBIA IN KYRGYZSTAN: THE ROLE OF POLITICAL CORRUPTION BAŞ, Doğukan M.Sc., Eurasian Studies Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Pınar KÖKSAL September 2020, 131 pages In recent years, one of the major problems that Kyrgyzstan witnesses is rising Sinophobia among the local people due to problems related with increasing Chinese economic presence in the country.
    [Show full text]
  • Kyrgyz Youth in Human Rights Education
    Kyrgyz Youth in Human Rights Education YOUTH HUMAN RIGHTS GROUP he Youth Human Rights Group (YHRG) was established in 1995 with a mission to protect and promote human rights in general and child rights in Tparticular in the Kyrgyz Republic and Central Asia. As a non-profit, non- governmental organization (NGO), YHRG undertakes human rights education and awareness-raising activities, monitoring of the���������������������������������������� ������������������������������������human rights/child rights situation, legal counseling, and lobbying for legislations affecting the youth. Education program three seven-day seminars for young activists from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, The educational activities of YHRG include followed by a ten-day training holding classes on human rights and child rights • Human rights education training for second- in primary and secondary schools, publishing ary school teachers textbooks, making video materials, holding • Development and publication of educational training seminars for teachers, representatives printed and video materials of NGOs, students and volunteers. The aware- • Education on human rights and public inter- ness-raising activities include the publication of est practice for young activists the bulletin on the rights of the child entitled • Internships in YHRG for young activists Chaika, radio programs on human rights, vari- from different regions ������������������(Osh, Djalal-Abad, ous informational leaflets and other materials. Batken, Issyk-Kul, Talas, Naryn, Chui)��� of The
    [Show full text]
  • The Kyrgyz Revolution: Civil Society Only Works When It Is Real
    THE KYRGYZ REVOLUTION: CIVIL SOCIETY ONLY WORKS WHEN IT IS REAL AUTHOR1: DAVID MIKOSZ IFES Kyrgyzstan DATE: May 2005 1. Introduction The events of March 24, 2005, pushed Kyrgyzstan onto the world stage for a few brief days. Comparisons with the recent “civic revolutions” in former Soviet Republics like Ukraine and Georgia were inevitable but facile. Like all real political change, the Kyrgyz revolution was very much rooted in the details of Kyrgyz political life in the period since independence. The Kyrgyz Republic, or as it is sometimes known, Kyrgyzstan, is located at the outskirts of what was the Soviet Union – it borders China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Compared to its neighbors Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the country is relatively poor in hydrocarbon resources but does have fairly substantial gold reserves. Similar to its other neighbor Tajikistan, the country also boasts of substantial hydroelectric generating potential and is the source of vital rivers that water most of the population of Central Asia in the volatile Ferghana Valley. The country has been governed since independence by Askar Akayev, a former physicist. In the early 1990s, the country was labeled the “island of democracy” and was widely seen as the Central Asian country most open to democratic values. However, most observers have also noted a backsliding since the mid-1990s, so that by the Parliamentary elections of February 2005, the Kyrgyz republic was only democratic when compared to its immediate neighbors. Nevertheless, a loud civil society and struggling, though generally free, press also continued to exist. The Parliamentary elections at the end of February 2005 were going to mark a new chapter in the country – President Akayev had forced through a referendum in 2003 which profoundly altered the constitution by creating a unicameral legislature and greatly increasing Presidential powers.
    [Show full text]
  • BA Country Report of Kyrgyzstan Part 1 Macro Level
    Informal Governance and Corruption – Transcending the Principal Agent and Collective Action Paradigms Kyrgyzstan Country Report Part 1 Macro Level Aksana Ismailbekova | July 2018 Basel Institute on Governance Steinenring 60 | 4051 Basel, Switzerland | +41 61 205 55 11 [email protected] | www.baselgovernance.org BASEL INSTITUTE ON GOVERNANCE This research has been funded by the UK government's Department for International Development (DFID) and the British Academy through the British Academy/DFID Anti-Corruption Evidence Programme. However, the views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the British Academy or DFID. Dr Aksana Ismailbekova, Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology, Advokatenweg 36 06114 Halle (Saale), Germany, [email protected] 1 BASEL INSTITUTE ON GOVERNANCE Table of contents Abstract 3 1 Introduction 4 1.1 Informal Governance and Corruption: Rationale and project background 4 1.2 Informal governance in Kyrgyzstan 4 1.3 Conceptual approach 6 1.4 Research design and methods 6 2 Informal governance and the lineage associations: 1991–2005 7 2.1 Askar Akaev and the transition to Post-Soviet governance regime 7 2.2 Co-optation: Political family networks 8 2.3 Control: social sanctions, demonstrative punishment and selective law enforcement 11 2.4 Camouflage: the illusion of inclusive democracy and charitable contributions 13 2.5 The Tulip Revolution and the collapse of the Akaev networks 13 3 Epoch of Bakiev from 2005–2010 14 3.1 Network re-accommodation in the aftermath of the Tulip Revolution
    [Show full text]
  • Breaking Free from Older Veterans of the Arab Political Opposition, They
    UNCLASSIFIED U.S. Department of State Case No. F-2014-20439 Doc No. C05779102 Date: 09/30/2015 RELEASE IN PART B6 From: sbwhoeop Sent: Monday, February 14, 2011 9:26 AM To: Subject: H: idea on US mentor to Egyptian revolutionaries. Sid Attachments: hrc memo US mentor to Egypt 021411.docx; hrc memo US mentor to Egypt 021411.docx CONFIDENTIAL February 14, 2011 For: Hillary From: Sid Re: US mentor to Egyptian revolutionaries The New York Times today discloses that youthful non-violent Egyptian revolutionaries have been inspired by the work of an American political thinker on non-violent resistance, Gene Sharp, who spent decades at Harvard. (See NYT article and bio of Sharp below.) You might consider inviting him to see you and then sending him on a State Department USIS tour. NYT: Breaking free from older veterans of the Arab political opposition, they relied on tactics of nonviolent resistance channeled from an American scholar through a Serbian youth brigade — but also on marketing tactics borrowed from Silicon Valley. For their part, Mr. Maher and his colleagues began reading about nonviolent struggles. They were especially drawn to a Serbian youth movement called Otpor, which had helped topple the dictator Slobodan Milosevic by drawing on the ideas of an American political thinker, Gene Sharp. The hallmark of Mr. Sharp's work is well- tailored to Mr. Mubark's Egypt: He argues that nonviolence is a singularly effective way to undermine police states that might cite violent resistance to justi.b; repression in the name of stability. The New York Times February 13, 2011 UNCLASSIFIED U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • FAO Media Tour to the Southern Regions of Kyrgyzstan
    FAO media tour to the southern regions of Kyrgyzstan "We are so happy that UN agencies came into our village,'' were saying farmers in Osh and Jalal- Abad provinces to journalists arrived from Bishkek and Osh city, to see the impact of the joint UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and UN Women projects in the south of the country."Your assistance is exactly what we need right now, because our land cannot wait, and we need to feed our families every day, "- they said. During the joint press tour held on November 9 and 10, 2012 to the South of the country, journalists representing major National as well as international media could see the results of the two FAO/UN Women projects. One of them, implemented in partnership with WFP, was aimed at the most vulnerable rural families headed by women. The project helped women to come FAO/UN Women beneficiaries are happy harvesting 2012 yield together and work together to of cucumbers. improve the financial situation of Photo: Sergey Kozmin, FAO, August 2012 their families. Women were enriched with the new knowledge and skills in agriculture of vegetables. Beneficiaries also got seeds, fertilizers and necessary materials to improve soil and get crops of vegetables enough to sell at the market, consumption by their families and store for winter’s time. The amazing impact of the project in a relatively short period of time is that the UN calls "behavior change”. Beneficiaries repeatedly stressed in their interviews to journalists, as well as in talking with UN agencies staff chaired by the FAO Representative in Kyrgyzstan Dorjee Kinlay and UN Women Representative Sabine Machl, that farmers within one year refused to sow cotton and tobacco and have switched to growing a variety of vegetables.
    [Show full text]
  • Role of ICT in Revolutionary Movements of the Former Soviet Union, and Why There Are No Roses, Oranges, Or Tulips, in Russia Andrei Skurtu Washington University in St
    Washington University in St. Louis Washington University Open Scholarship All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) January 2009 Role Of ICT In Revolutionary Movements Of The Former Soviet Union, And Why There Are No Roses, Oranges, Or Tulips, In Russia Andrei Skurtu Washington University in St. Louis Follow this and additional works at: https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/etd Recommended Citation Skurtu, Andrei, "Role Of ICT In Revolutionary Movements Of The orF mer Soviet Union, And Why There Are No Roses, Oranges, Or Tulips, In Russia" (2009). All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs). 443. https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/etd/443 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Washington University Open Scholarship. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) by an authorized administrator of Washington University Open Scholarship. For more information, please contact [email protected]. WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY University College International Affairs ROLE OF ICT IN REVOLUTIONARY MOVEMENTS OF THE FORMER SOVIET UNION, AND WHY THERE ARE NO ROSES, ORANGES, OR TULIPS, IN RUSSIA by Andrei Ilich Skurtu A thesis presented to the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of Washington University in partial fulfillments for the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts August 2009 Saint Louis, Missouri copyright by Andrei Ilich Skurtu 2009 CONTENTS Chapter 1: ICT, Democracy, and Geopolitics—U.S. Approach to Foreign Policy…...….3 Chapter 2: History and Political Use of ICT…………………………………………….12 Chapter 3: Georgia’s
    [Show full text]
  • Central Asia-Caucasus
    Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst BI-WEEKLY BRIEFING VOL. 6 NO. 6 23 MARCH 2005 Searchable Archives with over 1,000 articles at http://www.cacianalyst.org ANALYTICAL ARTICLES: KYRGYZ GOVERNMENT’S CONTROL SLIPS, FIELD REPORTS: CREATING DANGERS AND OPPORTUNITIES Aya Telekova A ‘TULIP’ REVOLUTION DEVELOPS IN KYR- GYZSTAN? DID RUSSIA ESCALATE TENSION IN CHECH- Maral Madi NYA BY ASSASSINATING MASKHADOV? Murad Batal Al-Shishani NO PROGRESS IN NURISTAN Daan van der Schriek GEORGIA’S DIPLOMATIC OFFENSIVE PROBES MOSCOW’S REAL INTENTIONS ON SMUGGLING AND CORRUPTION CON- BASES TINUE TO PLAGUE GEORGIA Jaba Devdariani Kakha Jibladze ARMENIA’S FOREIGN POLICY: TOWARDS CENTRAL ASIAN EFFORTS TO COMBAT REAL COMPLEMENTARITY HIV/AIDS Tevan Poghosyan Nazgul Baktybekova NEWS DIGEST Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst BI-WEEKLY BRIEFING VOL. 6 NO. 6 23 MARCH 2005 Contents Analytical Articles KYRGYZ GOVERNMENT’S CONTROL SLIPS, CREATING DANGERS AND OPPORTUNITIES 3 Aya Telekova DID RUSSIA ESCALATE TENSION IN CHECHNYA BY ASSASSINATING MASKHADOV? 5 Murad Batal Al-Shishani GEORGIA’S DIPLOMATIC OFFENSIVE PROBES MOSCOW’S REAL INTENTIONS ON BASES 8 Jaba Devdariani ARMENIA’S FOREIGN POLICY: TOWARDS REAL COMPLEMENTARITY 10 Tevan Poghosyan Field Reports A ‘TULIP’ REVOLUTION DEVELOPS IN KYRGYZSTAN? 13 Maral Madi NO PROGRESS IN NURISTAN 15 Daan van der Schriek SMUGGLING AND CORRUPTION CONTINUE TO PLAGUE GEORGIA 16 Kakha Jibladze CENTRAL ASIAN EFFORTS TO COMBAT HIV/AIDS 17 Nazgul Baktybekova News Digest 19 EDITORIAL PRINCIPLES The Analyst is an English language global Web journal devoted to analysis of the current issues facing the Central Asia-Caucasus region. It serves to link the business, governmental, journalistic and scholarly communities and is the global voice of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute, The Johns Hopkins University-The Nitze School of Advanced International Studies.
    [Show full text]
  • Cooperative Agreement No. 119-A-00-00-00039-00
    FY 2005 QUARTERLY REPORT (4TH QUARTER) Cooperative Agreement No. 119-A-00-00-00039-00 KYRGYZSTAN Civic Education On-Site Technical Assistance Submitted to the U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT By IFES July 1 – September 30, 2005 1 I. PROGRAMMATIC ACTIVITIES General Secondary Civic Education Textbook Project in Kyrgyzstan Civic Education Textbook Project The Academy of Education finished reviewing almost all of the chapters by the end of August. IFES changed the texts, taking into consideration the recommendations provided by the Academy. The two remaining chapters were on Global Challenges and Elections. IFES updated the chapters by adding country specific information. The Russian version of the text was translated into English for final review and back-translation. The content of the Teacher Guide Part II is in the process of revision. The new section on Bloom’s taxonomy in learning styles will be added. IFES continued to gather other materials for Part II of the textbook. It was agreed with a group of authors of the course on Ethic Values that IFES would conduct research on the content and methodology of similar courses in other countries. IFES staff and the OSCE education specialist conducted a workshop for this group. They introduced participants to various perspectives in this field, while underlining the civic education component. The participants requested a detailed content analysis of the course on Ethic Values, which has been proposed in Kyrgyzstan. It is expected that the Ministry of Education will soon provide a letter of support for the new edition of the civic education textbook. During the fourth quarter, IFES commenced developing Part II of the Teacher’s Guide and Part II of the textbook.
    [Show full text]
  • Central Asia' S1)Tev()Iutj
    --,- Central Asia' s1)tev()Iutj By Daan van der Schriek nessed the revolutionary events in Osh as say- the parliament. This set a bad precedent. In sub~~ ing: "I had an impression that the opposition sequent years, Akayev gave himself more and The Kyrgyz revolution differs dramatically members threw stones at each other." more powers, not to push through reforms, but I from thoseplayed out in Georgia and the This is an important difference from events in to silence criticism. Yet, in the short term, Ukraine. Its lack of leadership hasgiven Georgia and Ukraine: The Kyrgyz revolution reforms didn't bring prosperity. This created dis- way to a moreviolent character lacks leadership and, as a consequence, is more sent, and Akayev became unpopular. violent. Hopefully, however, the opposition will Then, during the. 2000 presidential cam- ETTER not be too softon your opposi- soon agree on a policy and keep its supporters in paign, a credible challenger appeared - Felix tion. This is what the leaders must check. They are th~ authorities now, after state Kulov, a former vice president who had fallen B think whose countries border buildings were stormed and Akayev fled on Kyrgyzstan, which is'in the grips of revolution Thursday. What did Kyrgyzstan, an "island of or, depending on your view, of thugs. Some democracy" in a sea of Central Asian dictatorship, How did this 'island of democra have called the protests sparked by disputed as it was called in the early 19908,do to deserve elections the "Tulip Revolution", after this? Being more liberal than its neighbours is, of Central Asian dictatorships Georgia's Rose Revolution and Ukraine's paradoxically, part of the answer.
    [Show full text]
  • Central Asia
    U.S. ONLINE TRAINING FOR OSCE, INCLUDING REACT Module 6. Central Asia This module introduces you to central Asia and the OSCE’s work in: • Kazakhstan • Turkmenistan • Uzbekistan • Kyrgyzstan • Tajikistan 1 Table of Contents Overview. 3 Central Asia. 4 States before the Soviet period. 7 International organizations. 9 Caspian Oil. 10 Getting the oil out. 12 Over-fishing and pollution. 14 Water. 15 Kazakhstan. 18 Geography. 19 People. 20 Government. 21 Before Russian rule. 22 Under Russian and Soviet rule. 23 From Perestroika to independence. 25 Domestic politics. 26 Ethnic relations. 31 Internal security. 32 Foreign relations. 33 Kazakhstan culture. 40 Turkmenistan. 42 Geography. 43 People. 44 Government. 45 Basic geography. 46 Historical background. 47 Domestic politics. 48 Ethnic relations. 53 Foreign relations. 54 Turkmenistan culture. 58 Uzbekistan. 63 Geography. 64 People. 65 Government. 66 Basic geography. 67 Historical background. 68 The Muslim civilization of Bukhara and Samarkand. 69 The Turko-Persian civilization. 70 Under Russian and Soviet rule. 71 Perestroika and independence. 72 Domestic politics. 73 Economics and politics. 77 Islam and politics. 78 MODULE 6. Central Asia 2 Ethnic relations. 80 Foreign relations. 81 Uzbekistan culture. 85 Kyrgyzstan. 89 Geography. 90 People. 91 Government. 92 Basic geography. 93 Historical background. 94 The Osh conflict and the ‘Silk Revolution’. 95 Ethnic relations. 96 Domestic politics. 97 Foreign relations. 106 Culture. 111 Tajikistan. 116 Geography. 117 People. 118 Government. 119 Four regions of Tajikistan. 120 Historical background. 121 The civil war. 122 Nature of the war. 124 Negotiations and the peace process. 125 Politics, economics and foreign affairs. 130 Domestic politics.
    [Show full text]
  • Why Parties of Power? Elite Strategies and Institutional Choice in Post-Soviet Eurasia by Eli Adam Feiman a Dissertation Submit
    Why Parties of Power? Elite Strategies and Institutional Choice in Post-Soviet Eurasia by Eli Adam Feiman A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Political Science) in the University of Michigan 2015 Doctoral Committee: Professor Pauline Jones-Luong, Chair Professor Anna M. Grzymała-Busse Associate Professor Allen D. Hicken Professor Ronald G. Suny To my family ii Acknowledgements My first thanks go to the faculty at Brown University and the University of Michigan for their mentorship. I am grateful to Melani Cammett for early assistance with research design and to the late Alan Zuckerman for conversations that broadened my understanding of political parties. I thank Allen Hicken and Anna Grzymala-Busse for incisive comments at all stages of this project. I very much appreciated Ronald Suny’s regional expertise and his historical perspective. I offer Pauline Jones-Luong my heartfelt thanks for taking me on as her student and for being an unflinching source of support, encouragement, and inspiration for the past ten years. This project would not have been possible without generous financial support from the International Research and Exchange Board (IREX), the American Research Institute of the South Caucasus (ARISC), the Dolores Zohrab Liebmann Fund, as well as Brown University and the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. This project has benefitted from feedback provided at the Davis Center Postcommunist Politics and Economics Workshop, the 2009 Institute for Qualitative and Multi-Method Research, the Caucasus Resource Research Center/American Councils Works in Progress lecture series, the Comparative Politics Workshop at the University of Michigan, and the Eurasia Collective Rackham Interdisciplinary Workshop.
    [Show full text]