Thursday, February 16, 2012

Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyz Opposition Bloc Rejects Coalition Government Proposal

President Bakiev's (right) and Prime Minister Atambaev's proposals didn't sway For Reform (Courtesy Photo)

April 2, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- One of Kyrgyzstan's two biggest opposition blocs today rejected proposals to join a coalition government.

TEXT SIZE - +

April 02, 2007

The proposals were made by President Kurmanbek Bakiev and the new Prime Minister Almaz Atambaev.

In a meeting today, the For Reform movement said it wants constitutional reforms first, giving some presidential powers to the Kyrgyz parliament.

Omurbek Abdyrakmanov, a member of the bloc, told RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service that the movement is still open to negotiations with the president on political reforms.

Another opposition bloc, the United Front for the Worthy Future of Kyrgyzstan, is preparing several protest actions to force the government to organize early presidential elections and constitutional reforms.

More than 80 members and supporters of the United Front said they will launch a hunger strike on April 5 and mass rallies on April 11.

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