Opposition 'People's Assembly' Opens In Kyrgyzstan
November 18, 2008
BISHKEK (RFE/RL) -- Some 500 opposition activists are meeting in the northern Kyrgyz town of Talas on November 18 to discuss the possibility of impeaching President Kurmanbek Bakiev.
RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports that the People's Assembly -- led by former parliamentarian and ex-Prosecutor-General Azimbek Beknazarov -- is discussing political, economic, and social developments since the March 2005 Tulip Revolution that brought Bakiev to power.
Beknazarov told RFE/RL that the assembly will discuss issues of trust in the government and the possible impeachment of Bakiev.
The gathering at a Talas stadium was allowed by local officials, but opposition leaders complain that authorities are creating obstacles for participants to reach Talas from other parts of the country. Kyrgyz authorities deny the charges.