Protesters seize government offices amid minimal resistance

Election protesters stormed or set fire to government buildings in two southern Kyrgyz cities on Monday, but met little resisitance from security forces, as demonstrators continued to call for the end of president Askar Akayev in what some observers are calling the genesis of a velvet revolution in authoritarian Central Asia. Thousands of protesters took over two more government offices in Osh, the country's second largest city. "We have been here for almost 10 days. Our demands are ignored and disrespected,” Erkin, a protestor who arrived in Osh from the town of Uzgen, some 60 km from Osh, told IRIN. “[President Askar] Akaev did not provide fair elections, he brought into the parliament his son and daughter and many people loyal to him. He has been the president for 15 years. We have had enough of him. He has to step down," he said. Tolekan Ismailova, head of the Civil Society Against Corruption (CSAC), a local rights NGO, told IRIN from Osh that provincial administration and city police offices had also been peacefully occupied, with little resistance from the authorities. "From early morning leaders from the government and opposition sides called policemen not to shoot people. When they started moving toward buildings, they [policemen and soldiers] just ran away," she said. Emboldened by the lack of resistance to the occupations, the demonstrators were on the move late Monday. "Now people plan to take control of the provincial TV station, airport and local administrations. Presently, [opposition] members of the previous parliament call upon people to take them over peacefully," Ismailova added. Local residents in Osh, which were going to celebrate the Muslim Nooruz holiday, paniced when crowds of protesters rampaged through the city, throwing, stones, rocks and petrol bombs at symbols of authority. "Public transport stopped functioning by 1.00 p.m. It is difficult to estimate the number of protestors. The city is paralysed," one resident told IRIN. The protests, which were initially peaceful, turned violent after special police forces stormed governor's offices both in Jalal-Abad and Osh on Sunday to clear them of demonstrators. "There were victims, mostly people who were in the building of Osh province administration when it was attacked. After the building was stormed, all of them were taken to the detention centre and some were sent to hospitals," Ismailova said, adding that doctors refused to provide any information on the number of casualties or wounded. Local residents said they had seen dozens of people, mainly young men, with serious head wounds sustained when the building was stormed. In the southern city of Jalalabad, over 10,000 people gathered in the city centre on Sunday after special police forces stormed the state province administration building, which had been occupied by protesters, since the early morning. The protesters took over the governor's office and hundreds of them attacked the city police department. The police fired in the air but left the scene after protesters set their building on fire. The protesters reportedly seized Jalalabad airport and dumped rocks on the runway to prevent planes from landing. According to some protestors, additional police and security forces were due to be airlifted in from Bishkek. Initially, media reports suggested that almost 10 people died, including protesters and police officers, but the reports were not confirmed. Kurmanbek Bakiev, one of the opposition leaders, reportedly said that there were no casualties in Jalal-Abad. The protests remain sporadic but numerous in other parts of Kyrgyzstan. Protestors also seized state administration buildings in the northern city of Talas and in the southern Uzgen, Kochkor and Bazar-Korgon districts. They blocked the Bishkek-Osh highway, the only road connecting the northern and southern parts of the country, which is divided by high mountains. The opposition accuses the authorities of mass violations in the elections. Protests were triggered by widespread use of administrative power, vote buying and pressure from the authorities to prevent opposition candidates from entering the parliament poll, oppostion parties and their supporters said. The run-off polls held on 13 March led to the election of strong majority in parliament for pro-government candidates, incensing protesters still further, who have called for new elections and the resignation of the government. On 19 March, Kyrgyz opposition groups had a meeting in Osh where approximately 4,000 demonstrators elected Anvar Artykov, who stood for parliament but defeated due to fraud, he claimed, “People's Chairperson of Osh Province Parliament". On 15 March, the protestors held a similar meeting in Jalal-Abad and named heads of alternative executive bodies. The opposition leaders plan to elect alternative executive bodies all over the country, including the capital, Bishkek. They intend to call early presidential elections within three months, which are scheduled for October 2005. Meanwhile, the United Nations in Kyrgyzstan, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the US Embassy in Bishkek called upon both government and oppostion groups to resolve the growing dispute by dialogue. By late Monday, the Kyrgyz Akipress.org news agency reported that protesters had taken over the airport in Osh, but were not yet in control of local state television building. Demonstrators surrounding the building have warned that they would take "necessary measures" if objective coverage of the situation was not forthcoming. Akayev ordered a review of election results in some districts, BBC reported.