Activists raise concern over police killings

Activists in Kyrgyzstan and abroad have called for an independent inquiry into recent clashes between police and protestors in the southwest province of Jalal-abad. The shootings, which left five dead and scores injured, have been viewed by many as yet another example of deteriorating human rights conditions in the mountainous Central Asian country. "We had hoped that Kyrgyzstan's joining of the coalition force against terrorism and the stationing of foreign troops on Kyrgz soil would actually push the democratisation process in Central Asia," Edil Baissaloff, a leading political grassroots activists in the capital, Bishkek, told IRIN on Friday. "Unfortunately that hasn't been the case. The situation has gone from bad to worst," he maintained. Baissaloff's comments came less than a week after around 2,000 people called for the release of parliamentarian Azimbek Beknazrov, a leading opposition figure, then in custody on charges supporters say were politically motivated. The shootings occurred as protestors were making their way to the village of Keban in southern Aksy district when they were blocked by police. In a statement on Thursday condemning the use of lethal force, international watchdog group, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said although details of the incident remained unclear, consistent reports indicated that police opened fire on the protestors, killing five and injuring at least 18 more. Thirteen of those wounded, including a sixteen-year-old who was shot in the chest, required hospitalisation for bullet wounds. "International law is very clear regarding the use of force during public demonstrations," HRW executive director for Europe and Central Asia, Elisabeth Anderson said. "The deaths of protestors from police gunfire is more than a tragedy, it may be a crime," she added, calling for an independent team to investigate the deaths. But the government is unwilling to accept blame for starting the violence, making the issue a potentially volatile one in this country of 4.5 million. They assert some 47 police officers were injured by stone-throwing protestors, while opposition groups insist riot police initiated the violence. Describing the situation as "tense", Kristian Knust, human dimension officer for the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) told IRIN from Bishkek what happens next will depend on what the government and opposition do. "There is a real polarisation of opinion of what really happened which makes it difficult for the development of a political climate," he said. "We think that some of the opposition and human rights activists are being targeted to take responsibility," he explained. According to a BBC report on Tuesday, Minister of Internal Affairs, Temirbek Akmataliev said: "I think that today with all responsibility we can say that the blame for the blood of the diseased lies on Tursunbek Akunov and his associates." Akunov, head of the Human Rights Movement of Kyrgyzstan, was among those arrested on Sunday and subsequently released. Akunov was an unsuccessful candidate in the Krygyz 2000 presidential elections against current incumbent Askar Akayev. Meanwhile, in an effort to quell further protests that continued last Monday and Tuesday, the government released Beknazarov from police custody, where he claimed officers beat and tortured him. First arrested on 5 January, charges against him have not been dismissed and a new court date has yet to be scheduled. As for the future, Baissaloff warns of possible further violence unless the government takes swift measures against the police. "I can't say the situation is stable, but the government has released the MP which has brought a temporary reprieve," adding: "This is just a pause in the crisis. The government has promised to investigate what happened and the public is awaiting for just that." Once hailed as an island of democracy among its authoritarian Central Asian neighbours following the break-up of the former Soviet Union, the government of Askar Akayev has increasingly been criticised for its oppression of the media and opposition rivals and for flawed elections.