Paris, November 15, 2002
On 14 November, 1000 people from Aksy, Suzak, Uzgen, and Kara-Kuldja districts of the South of Kyrgyzstan started a march from Belovodsk, Chui province, towards Bishkek. Most of the demonstrators asked for the sanctioning of the persons responsible for the killings committed on 17 March 2002, when 6 people were killed and 40 seriously injured in the village of Aksy during a peaceful demonstration. Others protested against the eviction of the political opponent Usen Sydykov from the Parliamentary elections, last October after his victory at the first electoral round in Kara-Kuldza district.
Many units of the Police blocked the demonstrator’s way to Bishkek on 14 November with the instauration of nine posts of control on the main roads connecting the South to the North of the country. In front of the deployment of the Police, all demonstrators joined to fight against the violations of the right for assembly.
On 15 November, 31 demonstrators were arrested and lead to an unknown place, while the city of Bishkek was being surrounded by police forces to prevent demonstrators to gather in the centre of the town.
The FIDH is also concerned by recent declarations of the Ministry of the Interior on 13 November announcing that the Kyrgyz authorities, with the help of the Russian authorities, plan to install additional police posts on the road between Osh (South of the country) and Bishkek on the pretext of fighting against drug trafficking. There are many reasons to think that these measures would have for first effect to violate freedom of expression and movement in the country.
The FIDH calls the Kyrgyz government to :
- immediately release the 31 persons arbitrarily detained and to guarantee their physical integrity ; to identify,
- sue and sanction all those responsible for the Aksy killings, as soon as possible;
- conform with the provisions of international human rights instruments ratified by Kyrgyzstan, in particular the International Covenant on Civil and political Rights, which guarantees freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.