| Submit your comments on this article |
| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| Ousted Kyrgyz president flees to Kazakhstan |
| 2010-04-16 |
| [Al Arabiya Latest] Kyrgyzstan will demand that its ousted president Kurmanbek Bakiyev faces trial either at home or abroad, the head of the interim government said after Bakiyev fled to neighboring Kazakhstan earlier on Thursday. Roza Otunbayeva, a former foreign minister and one time ally of Bakiyev, and other members of the interim government have accused Bakiyev of widespread corruption and nepotism. "The interim government ... intends to carry out an objective investigation of crimes of which the former president is guilty, and present a demand for him to be tried in Kyrgyz or international courts," she said in a statement published by the official Kabar news agency. Bayikev's sudden departure ended days of turmoil in the mountainous Central Asian republic, where the United States rents an air base that provides a crucial staging post for troops and supplies going to Afghanistan. Otunbayeva said her administration held no direct negotiations with Bakiyev, who had been holed up in his home village since the April 7 uprising. She said foreign powers had helped to persuade Bakiyev to leave. Russia's President Vladimir Putin was the first world leader to recognize the authority of the interim government. Without naming the mediators, Otunbayeva said they had urged Bakiyev to "cede his presidential ambitions for the sake of the Kyrgyz people ... and prevent a civil war that he was ready to unleash in order to defend himself and his relatives." Human rights groups have backed Otunbayeva's allegations, accusing Bakiyev of silencing dissent and awarding lucrative contracts to friends and family. A source in the interim government said Bakiyev had left Kyrgyzstan with his wife and children, but the fate of his other relatives, including his powerful brother Zhanysh, was unclear. "None of the relatives or allies of Bakiyev that were with him until the end have been allowed out of the country, and those who committed crimes will be detained and put on trial," Otunbayeva said in the statement. The interim government says all of the 84 people who were killed in Bishkek during the April 7 uprising were shot by Bakiyev's troops and snipers. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 "Sentence first, verdict afterwards!" cried the Queen ... |
| Posted by: lotp 2010-04-16 20:43 |