Thursday, February 16, 2012

Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyz President Appoints Acting Prosecutor-General

Former Prosecutor-General Kambaraly Kongantiev was dismissed March 19 (file photo) (RFE/RL)

March 20, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiev has appointed Elmurza Satybaldiev acting prosecutor-general, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reported.

TEXT SIZE - +

March 20, 2007

Satybaldiev previously held the post of deputy chairman of the State Committee on National Security.

A spokesman for the Prosecutor-General's Office, Toktogul Kakchekeev, told RFE/RL today that staff members praised former Prosecutor-General Kambaraly Kongantiev for his work.

"[Kyrgyz presidential administration officials] introduced the new head to [the Prosecutor-General's Office] staff," Kakchekeev said. "[Staff members] gave their good wishes and blessing to former [Prosecutor-General Kambaraly Kongantiev], saying that they had worked well with him and they wished him all the best in the future."

Kongantiev was dismissed from his post on March 19.

Kyrgyz opposition and human rights activists have been calling for his dismissal. The calls came in connection with the deportation of Uzbek refugees last year and poor performance in corruption cases, involving family members of former President Askar Akaev and for the investigation of the 2002 Aksy tragedy in which security forces killed six protesters.

Meanwhile, Osmonali Guronov has been appointed first deputy interior minister. He occupied the post of Security Council Secretary until his dismissal last week.

(with material from AKIpress)

RFE/RL Central Asia Report

SUBSCRIBE For regular news and analysis on all five Central Asian countries by e-mail, subscribe to "RFE/RL Central Asia Report."

Attack Of The Cloned Websites...This Time In Uzbekistan

A website has been set up to mirror the site of RFE/RL's Uzbek Service, in what could be a phishing scheme to harvest user information. More

A vendor in the central Bosnian town of Zenica sells heart-shaped cushions with proclamations of love for 1 euro each.

Love It (Or Hate It), It's Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day, the Western holiday celebrating love, has become a global phenomenon over the past two decades. The fall of communism and the emergence of the Internet have helped February 14 become something of an unofficial international day of romance. However, not all the passions the holiday stirs are related to love. While some countries have openly embraced the holiday, others are attempting to ban it or replace it with local customs. More

Production and distribution of rap music is not officially banned, but it

Yo! Turkmen Rappers Flip The Script On Repression

For a growing number of Turkmen youth, rap music has become a way to express their daily struggles and inspire political change in one of the world's most oppressive countries. More