KYRGYZSTAN: Ethnic minorities say they face an uncertain future

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

BISHKEK, 5 May 2005 (IRIN) - Ethnic minority groups in Kyrgyzstan are becoming increasingly concerned over July's presidential polls in the former Soviet republic, saying the election could become a major source of friction between north and south and between the Kyrgyz majority and other minority groups.

“I am very anxious about the upcoming presidential elections," Nodira, a 42-year-old ethnic Uzbek woman from the northern Kyrgyz town of Tokmok, told IRIN in the capital, Bishkek, on Monday. She cited concerns over possible violence towards ethnic groups.

“If there is a conflict [between southern and northern regions] there will be a danger that Kyrgyz from the provinces come here and attack us to take over our homes and land. Such things happened in the early 1990s between Uzbeks and Kyrgyz,” Abdurashid, a former police officer told IRIN in Novopokrovka village just outside the capital.

Clashes between Kyrgyz and Uzbeks in the southern cities of Osh and Uzgen on the eve of the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, claimed more than 300 lives.

“Of course, we fear for the future of our children," Tamara Fedorovna, a middle-aged ethnic Russian ice-cream seller on a street in Bishkek, told IRIN. "Some of my friends are afraid that they will be kept down, that the Russian language will lose its status.” Russian remains the second official language in the country, after Kyrgyz.

There are currently more than 80 ethnic groups in Kyrgyzstan, which has a total population of about 5 million. This includes substantial minorities of ethnic Uzbeks and Russians, along with Uighurs, Dungans (ethnic Chinese Muslims) and Tatars. Between 1991 and 2002, more than 600,000 people emigrated from Kyrgyzstan and the ethnic minority population declined from 47 to 33 percent.

Following the recent collapse of deposed president Askar Akayev’s regime and subsequent looting in the capital, fear spread amongst many ethnic groups that they would not be protected under the new dispensation. The number of Russians eager to leave the country has already increased, with hundreds lining up every day outside their embassy in the capital, eager to obtain exit papers.

Although nine candidates have announced they will run for the country’s top job in two months time, most observers believe there will be only two real contenders: prime minister, acting president and leader of the National Movement of Kyrgyzstan (NMK), Kurmanbek Bakiev and the head of the Ar-Namys political party, Felix Kulov. Bakiev is from the south while his opponent draws much of his support from the wealthier north.

“There is always a risk for various conflicts to emerge," Emil Juraev, a professor of international relations at the Bishkek-based American University in Central Asia (AUCA), told IRIN. "Now people are paying careful attention to the presidential polls. It is possible that some will try to manipulate the mood of people between the regions to achieve some goals."

Illegal land seizures near the capital that began after the fall of the old regime, are also fuelling ethnic tension, observers say. Most of those annexing land are poor ethnic Uzbeks from the south who came to unseat Akayev and stayed to grab something for their trouble. The move has led to growing anti-Uzbek feeling in the north.

After the land-grabs, local ethnic Turks in Novopavlovka village, found leaflets on their doors, warning: “Down with Turks, go away from our land. We will burn you if you hesitate.”

Novopokrovka residents told IRIN that they were surprised by the leaflets because they had always been at peace with local Kyrgyz neighbours and together even protected their land against occupiers before that.

“We are not afraid of the coming elections. Concerning the events in the Novopavlovka village, I think that was done by somebody who wanted to stir conflict between Kyrgyz and Turks,” Gulkiz Gasanova, head of the Turkish National Centre in Bishkek, a local NGO representing the Turkish minority, told IRIN.

“On a daily basis, there is some Kyrgyz nationalism but I dot believe it is significant. Some people or groups want to cause mayhem to get [political] power,” Umar Uysupov, a Turkish elder in the South Ala-Archa village close to the capital observed.

Other minority members seem less concerned about the forthcoming elections.

“I think the presidential poll will be held without problems. The Kyrgyz have always been tolerant of ethnic minorities,” Ludmila Alekseevna, a 59-year-old ethnic Korean woman living in Bishkek, told IRIN.

“Based on the current situation I do not think that there will be a conflict, if so what can I do? Go back to China?” Mahmud, 23, an ethnic Dungan, asked IRIN. Thousands of Dungans were forced to flee northwestern China following revolts and a subsequent clampdown by Beijing in the second half of the 19th century. Many found refuge in Kyrgyzstan, then part of the Russian empire.

“We are not afraid, I hope that everything will be fine and we will have a better life,” Nadezhda Ivanovna, a 45-year-old ethnic Ukrainian woman, who has lived in Kyrgyzstan since childhood, told IRIN.

The interim government is making efforts to calm concerns about the poll among minority groups. On 26 April, the interim president Bakiev met with leaders of the Dungan community, pledging that ethnic minorities would be properly represented in the new government. That is assuming he would elected president.

Analysts are clear that it is incumbent on the country’s new leaders not to exploit ethnic differences for political gain.

“Ethnic issues were always sensitive in Kyrgyzstan. Many things will depend on political leaders and the elite, therefore they have to be careful what they say and do in coming weeks,” said Juraev from the AUCA.

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