2024 RT Amination Banner.gif

China Daily

Asia Pacific> Asia News> Content
Tuesday, October 06, 2020, 22:36
Kyrgyzstan annuls parliamentary election results amid protests
By Xinhua & agencies
Tuesday, October 06, 2020, 22:36 By Xinhua & agencies

People protest during a rally against the results of a parliamentary vote in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Oct 5, 2020. (VLADIMIR VORONIN / AP)

ALMATY/BISHKEK - Kyrgyzstan's election commission on Tuesday annulled the results of parliamentary elections following nationwide protests.

The Central Election Commission said it would set a date for a new round of voting within two weeks.

"Using the election results as a pretext, they (protesters) violated public order," Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov said, stressing that calm and stability were more valuable than any deputy mandate

The elections were held on Sunday with the participation of 16 political parties. According to preliminary results of the elections, four parties -- Birimdik, Mekenim Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan Party, Butun Kyrgyzstan -- crossed the 7 percent threshold to enter the parliament.

Some parties which failed to meet the voting threshold organized protests on Monday demanding the election's annulment, claiming gross violations.

Protesters seized several strategic assets in Bishkek, the country's capital, including the parliament and government buildings.

Clashes between police and protesters resulted in one death and 590 injuries, according to the Health Ministry.

The Bishkek mayor and three governors out of seven oblasts of the country tendered their resignations. The Bishkek mayor's office and Naryn Oblast's government office have been occupied by protesters.

There are reports of looting and vandalism by protesters in many parts of the country.

ALSO READ: Party splits casts shadow over Kyrgyzstan's election

Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov made an address to the nation on Tuesday, saying the country was facing an attempted coup d'etat. He ordered security forces not to open fire on protesters, however.

"Using the election results as a pretext, they violated public order," he said, stressing that calm and stability were more valuable than any deputy mandate.

"I urge the leaders of political parties to calm their supporters and move them away from their places of concentration. I call on all my compatriots to maintain peace and not give in to the calls of the provocative forces," Jeenbekov said.

Kyrgyzstan borders China and is a close ally of Russia. It has a history of political volatility -- two of its presidents have been toppled by revolts in the past 15 years.

The Russian embassy to Kyrgyzstan said in a statement it supported resolving the matter through legal means while ensuring people’s safety and domestic stability.

Burnt out cars littered Bishkek, the capital, on Tuesday morning after protesters took control of the main government building, known as the White House, which briefly caught fire before emergency services put out the blaze.

Riot police move to disperse protesters during a rally against the results of a parliamentary vote in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Oct 5, 2020. (AZAMAT IMANALIYEV /AP)

Debris from inside, including government papers and office furniture, was strewn outside after protesters ransacked parts of it.

Interior Minister Kashkar Junushaliyev did not show up for work on Tuesday, a ministry spokesman said, saying that Kursan Asanov, an opposition politician and a former senior security official, had taken over as acting interior minister.

Police had been ordered to ensure citizens’ safety and prevent clashes and looting, the same spokesman said. Meanwhile, the second-largest gold deposit in Kyrgyzstan, Jeruy, was shut down by unidentified people on Tuesday, its Russian-owned operator said.

People try to storm the gate into the government headquarters during a rally against the results of a parliamentary vote in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Oct 5, 2020. (VLADIMIR VORONIN /AP)

Several provincial governors have resigned, according to local media reports which also reported public rallies had begun on Tuesday in several provincial centres, most of them anti-government.

Jeenbekov’s supporters were gathering in the southern city of Osh, according to the same reports, where his brother Asylbek Jeenbekov called for unity and order.

READ MORE: Pacts, statement shore up Sino-Kyrgyz ties

Share this story

CHINA DAILY
HONG KONG NEWS
OPEN
Please click in the upper right corner to open it in your browser !