 Elnura Osmonalieva writes about a historic and unbelievable day in Bishkek. Her vivid and lively account of what has happened in Kyrgyzstan on March 24th is supplemented by her extensive and exclusive photo-documentary.
By Elnura Osmonalieva
Originally published by Thinking-East
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Date published: 25/03/05
Section: Themes / Central Asia
2,018 words
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At 10:00 a.m. on 24th March 2005, opposition forces gathered about
10,000 people to protest the falsified parliamentary election results
and demand the resignation of President Askar Akaev in front of
Nazaraliev's Medical Clinic in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Most of them
arrived from the southern parts of the country the night before,
driving for more than 12 hours to get to the capital. They came from
Jalalabad, Osh, Batken, and some from Talas (in the north). Boys as
young as nine and ten years old came along to "ouster Akaev," said Azim
of Batken, one of the many young protestors. The crowd cheered and
chanted "Akaev out, Akaev out" as a number of leading oppositionists
addressed them from the roof of the clinic, calling for continued
demonstrations until President Akaev steps down. A word came around
11:15 a.m. that the government had sent a battalion of special forces
to restrain protestors. The decision to block the roads leading
to the clinic followed, and demonstrators first responded by situating
themselves on Chui Avenue and Fuchick St. Plans soon changed,
however, and leaders of the protest ordered everybody to march in the
direction of the main city square, Ala-Too, instead.
Thousands of protesters moved in the direction of the square,
marching peacefully and calling upon onlookers who stood amazed on the
streets or those who peered out their windows to join them. Some
joined; some waved and cheered, but most stayed out of it. The
demonstrators looked impressive as they walked, smiling, cheering,
confident, carrying tulips and pink and yellow arm and headbands. Their
banners read: "Get Akaev's regime out!" and "Doctor, we are with you,"
showing their support of Professor Nazaraliev, who is famous for his
unique drug rehabilitation technique as well as his harsh and
bold criticism of President Akaev. The main leaders of the Kyrgyz
People's Unity front, Kurmanbek Bakiev, Roza Otunbaeva, and Ishengul
Boljurova lead the march, walking hand in hand, without the slightest
idea that in a few hours they would be celebrating victory.
 As they passed the White House (House of
Government, where the President, and, until February 2005, the Central
Election Committee (!) resided), they saw hundreds of special force
fighters in their proper gear cordoning off the building. The
demonstrators passed by the main square, which was adjacent to the
White House. When they reached the square, they gathered in front of
the Erkindik (Freedom) Statue that stands in front of the History
Museum and opposition leaders began their address. They emphasized that
this was to be a peaceful protest, aimed at getting the government to
finally start negotiations. Crowds cheered and could sense this was not
just another demonstration; something big was going to happen.
Soon, on the side of the square that is closest to the White House,
fights broke out between the protestors and other men, identified as
members from the pro-government Alga party and "sportsmen and criminals
hired by the Akaev regime". Protestors believed the men wore dark blue
armbands and white caps, "so the police and special forces could
identify them and not attack." The men threw sticks and stones at
protestors and carried wooden shields for their own protection. Some
protesters, who were expecting a military attack rather than an assault
by civilians, began to run eastwards for refuge. However, others
shouted, "Don't run or they will get us out of the square," and the
protestors turned back, encircling some of the attackers. A few were
beaten up by the protesters and, when questioned, confessed they were
each paid 500 soms to participate in the attack.
 The angry protesters started tearing tiles up from
the square and breaking them into smaller pieces for their own
protection and to use as weapons of attack. Some had been injured, and
banners were ripped to make bandages. When asked if this attack
influenced their resolution, protesters said, "No." One protestor said:
"We thought we'd be killed when they got here, this is nothing. We came
with our people's blessing, having promised that we will either die or
return with victory. We will stand till the end. They can shoot us, we
are not afraid." The crowd grew larger as a few more thousand
protesters arrived on the scene. They had come from a rally in
Ahunbaeva-Almaatinskaya, where they were protesting under the
leadership of Almazbek Atambaev, President Akaev's opponent at the 2005
election and a prominent opposition figure. They were met with cheers
and applause.
The pro-government men re-attacked, but, this time, were met with
strong resistance. The men were quickly forced back and the protestors
moved forward towards the White House. This action was not supported by
protest leaders. Rather, they ordered "Don't hit anybody, don't hit
anybody."
At first, special forces around the White House gate had to shield
themselves from the stones that protestors threw at them. But, they
soon moved on the crowd, driving everybody back to the square. Again,
the protesters stopped running and threw more stones at the military.
They were able to push them back to the gate. After more fighting, the
special forces retreated to the back of the White House and military
men on horseback came out unexpectedly, sending protesters into a
panic. Some ran over a hundred meters before leaders were able to order
them to rally back and stand against the horsemen. One protester got
hold of a horse and rode it before the cheering crowd - a very symbolic
ride for the Kyrgyz, who are traditionally a nomadic people. The
soldier whose horse had been stolen was protected from angry protesters
by a representative from the Campaign of Peaceful Resistance, KelKel,
who led him aside.
 With the outside area of the gate left unguarded,
protesters gathered round the gate and tried persuading the inside
soldiers to switch sides and not hit against their own people. The
negotiations continued while some protesters managed to break open the
locks on the gates. White House staff were out on the side porch
watching in their suits, hands in trousers, calm and confident. Those
who peered through windows looked more excited and entertained than
scared.
Soon, the bravest protesters came inside the gate and approached the
soldiers with their arms raised, though it did not look like the
soldiers were armed. General Chotbaev, who was responsible for guarding
off the White House, said that he did not want there to be any
bloodshed and asked the protesters who got inside the gate to leave. He
said it "was his job" and "there was nothing he could do." The
protesters asked the general to order his soldiers to leave the grounds
or join the protest. He refused and left, saying there could be no
further discussion about that.
A few stones came flying on the soldiers even while protesters cried
not to hit the soldiers. Some angry youth threw one and nearly struck
comrades of the protest, who were trying to talk the soldiers into a
peaceful resolution.
As protesters saw that the soldiers looked calm and not extremely
hostile, more and more crossed the gate and entered. The soldiers
retreated slowly. Very soon there was a large crowd on the steps of the
White House cheering and celebrating victory. Stones came breaking
windows and people were pounding on the front doors that were locked
from the inside. Soon the doors opened and the cheering crowd ran into
the building. Inside, they broke windows, chandeliers and ripped down
curtains. Some stood on the staircase in the entrance hall, cheering,
hugging one another, and taking pictures. There was a large water pipe
lying on the floor and some water - it appeared like the military
planned to use water hose against the protesters.
As people went round the building, the soldiers and General Chotbaev
left, taking their injured, arms and boxes with them. General Chotbaev
said: "I decided to vacate the building for the sake of security of
both sides".
 There were several hundred people
walking around the building, some stealing what they wanted, despite
other protesters' attempts to stop them from looting. Soon, security
units were established on each floor and at every exit to prevent
people from stealing.
Excited journalists looked for the President's office. When they found
it, there was human rights activist, Tursunbek Akun, in the President's
chair. He declared he was the first one to enter the room and was there
to protect it. Kurmanbek Bakiev arrived at the President's office in an
hour and appealed to all to retain order. He congratulated people with
their victory and said "This is people's property and nobody has the
right to take anything. Please have patience, retain order. We must
save the White House and this room for our future leadership."
Later, Bakiev appeared before the cheering crowds in front of the White
House, but could not speak to them for lack of a microphone. He told a
smaller group of supporters as he left the White House that Felix
Kulov, a political prisoner jailed on allegations of misuse of power
while serving as Minister of Interior, was released and would arrive
soon. Then he quickly left for the National Security Service (former
KGB), where he had a meeting behind closed doors. A voice behind the
doors ordered somebody to convene a meeting of all members of the
Supreme Court. Following that, he had a meeting will all staff
remaining in the building where he introduced himself as Chairman of
the Coordinating Council of the Kyrgyz People's Unity Front who was
given the responsibility to take care of things now. He said that he
"did not plan to come to power this way", and that he was "a man of
peace and law", but since it happened, the main task was to retain
order. He appealed to officers with requests to help re-establish order
and prevent people from tearing buildings down. "Nobody is fired and
all of you keep your posts until decided by the Coordinating Council
otherwise."
The same night, the former Parliament convened with some members of the
new Parliament with demands to nullify the results of the February 2005
Parliamentary Elections, which were recognized as undemocratic by
numerous election monitoring organizations. In the meantime crowds that
many local people recognized as residents of Bishkek were looting malls
and smaller shops, stealing everything from yogurt to furniture.
Most protesters came from the rural areas, where it's known to have
harsh discipline. Therefore, it is unlikely that many of them
participated in the looting. After the White House seizure, hundreds of
young Bishkek residents came to the square and it is likely that they
took advantage of the situation and robbed the shops.
Kyrgyz State Television appealed to everybody through the night to
prevent looting and keep order; some opposition figures appeared
talking about the new future for Kyrgyzstan and the need to elect a
good President. Nurlan Motuev, member of the Coordinating Council, said
that he would ensure the Akaev family got proper punishment for the
stealing.
President Akaev's whereabouts could not be identified with rumours,
saying he was on the Russian military base in town of Kant near
Bishkek, or in Kazakhstan. People were very surprised that the
government gave up so quickly, State Secretary Osmonakun Ibraimov
resigning even before the White House was seized.
The unexpected revolution has created a chaos that hopefully will be
soon resolved. This morning, military and police, now under the
leadership of newly- released Felix Kulov, came out to Bishkek streets
to restore order.
The Constitutional Court recognized the February 2005 Parliamentary
Election results as illegitimate. New elections are expected to be held
soon. Everyone is waiting to see how events will unfold in the future
and what the face of the new Kyrgyz leadership will look like. While
victory may have been fast and easy, the most difficult challenges are
still ahead. People fear disputes may arise among opposition leaders,
since the movement was known for its lack of unity and agreement.
See all pictures related to this article here.
Editing: Chrstine Choi and Andy Young |
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| A conversation...
Written by C Schwartz on 2005-03-29 17:45:08
Quote:
Sorry, but Elnura's article is screwed up! Come on, the government didnt shoot anyone?! And the protesters were so civilized: they just happened to be protesting, and then next thing they know they took over their government? What?! Crazy world we live in now. -BM
Far as we know, this is the most accurate account anyone's written so far. The military and police forces evaporated Thursday, and the official president is still in hiding somewhere. When the protestors broke into his compound, he had already vanished. Really strange. But consider that already in southern Kyrgyzstan there had been several huge protests this past month, many with violence focused against militias and police and government workers. The southern provinces apparently bussed many protesters to Bishkek for the big protest. If you were an official in Bishkek and heard about what these people had done to your buddies, would you stick around?
-CS
| Written by S. Ifflaender on 2005-03-28 23:42:59
Thank you for your great account, the pictures and for making it easier to understand what has happened these days.
There's definitely a lack of detailed inside information from Kyrgyzstan in Europe and therefore I appreciate Elnura's and Thinking-East.Net's work a lot!
| Registan
Written by Ben on 2005-03-25 20:38:35
This article has been cross-posted on Registan.Net. Thanks to Instapundit for the link to us.
Some comments from Registan:
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Comment by uzari
3/25/2005 @ 2:13 pm
Best account I’ve seen of the whole process from the inside. Good work, Elnura, and thanks for sharing your account with the world.
So strange how a poorly organized march ended up toppling the government almost by accident.
---
Comment by Otis Wildflower
3/25/2005 @ 12:23 pm
Great work, definitely keep up the coverage!
BTW, I still find it pretty wild how so many protest signs in so many different countries are written in English to play to the international audience.
---
Comment by D.B. Light
3/25/2005 @ 11:17 am
Great stuff! Keep it up. If it weren’t for the efforts of people like you these amazing stories would go largely unreported in the west.
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