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BRUSSELS — The top EU envoy for Central Asia has warned that recent instability in the south of Kyrgyzstan could spill over into other countries along the Ferghana Valley.

Pierre Morel, the EU special representative for the region, also said the EU wants the referendum on Kyrgyzstan’s new constitution to go ahead as planned on June 27.

Morel made his comments before the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee in Brussels today.

The hour-long question-and-answer session was the first public appearance of the veteran EU envoy after a fact-finding visit to Kyrgyzstan last week.

His audience consisted of a dozen or so scattered EU deputies struggling to use up their allotted speaking time.
Morel — who said he had left a meeting of EU ambassadors busy «mobilizing resources» for Kyrgyzstan — sought to impress on his listeners the gravity of the situation.

The situation is “difficult, very difficult, because apart from the future of the country, it puts into question the security and stability of the entire Central Asian region,» Morel said.

Regional stability is an important EU policy objective, given Central Asia’s significant energy resources and proximity to Afghanistan.

Morel said there has been too little EU engagement with Kyrgyzstan in the past, despite the country’s attempts to break with authoritarianism. Only France and Germany have embassies in Bishkek, and an EU delegation was established only in February.

Blame Placed On Bakiev

The EU envoy blamed the «clan» of ex-President Kurmanbek Bakiev, ousted in April after a popular revolt, for fomenting the unrest in Kyrgyzstan’s south earlier this month which saw scores of people killed in clashes between ethnic Uzbeks and Kyrgyz.

Morel said Bakiev’s loyalists, led by his brother, made a «concerted effort» to provoke the clashes in a bid to regain power. Bakiev, who is now in Belarus, has denied any connection to the violence.

Morel said that during his trip he spoke to civil society activists who had been on the ground in Osh during the turmoil.

He also noted the presence of drug gangs and Islamic extremists in the southern cities of Osh and Jalal-Abad.

Another factor, Morel said, was the «lack of attention and effort» from Bishkek, and the inadequacies of the local law enforcement forces, which were overrun, with many police killed.

The EU diplomat said the bloc is now looking for a «role» in the country alongside the United Nations and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), without «duplicating» the work of either.

Morel said the EU’s focus is on fostering democracy in Kyrgyzstan. «The message of the European Union is very clear. We call for a road map for a return to democracy. First, public order; second, the rule of law: and, third, a return to a genuinely democratic constitution,» he said.

Morel said the EU wants the June 27 referendum on a new constitution to go ahead.

He noted the constitution — with elections to follow in October — will not usher in a fully parliamentary system, but a «mixed» one where a popularly elected president still has wide powers.

But, Morel said, the elements of parliamentarianism in the new constitution should «balance» the president’s role and break what he called the «Kyrgyz cycle» of street protests against autocratic rulers being usurped by clan leaders acting in their own narrow self-interest.

The EU has released 5 million euros ($6.14 million) in humanitarian aid, and another 6 million is in the pipeline for electoral support and civil society initiatives.

Ahto Lobjakas, REE/RL

Источник: http://www.rferl.org/content/EU_Envoy_Warns_Of_Regional_Risk_From_Kyrgyz_Instability/2080537.html

Kazakh police have detained journalist Yekaterina Belyaeva for holding an unsanctioned protest, RFE/RL’s Kazakh Service reports.

Belyaeva, who works for the Almaty-based newspaper «Vzglyad» (Look), came to the city’s Independence Square on June 21 and unfolded a sign saying: «President, Give Us Back Our Constitution!»

She told journalists who came to the square that she was protesting the constitutional law on the «Leader of the Nation» that was adopted last week.

The new law bestowed on President Nursultan Nazarbaev the title Leader of the Nation and gave him immunity from prosecution. In addition, his property and that of members of his family cannot be confiscated.

Several police officers took the sign from Belyaeva by force and told her that she did not have permission to stage a protest. Belyaeva answered that she has permission in accordance with Kazakhstan’s Constitution, which guarantees freedom of assembly.

Rights activist Ghalym Ageleuov tried to intervene and help Belyaeva, but he was forced by a policeman to the edge of the square. Belyaeva was pushed into a police car and driven away.

Prominent journalist Sergei Duvanov and rights activist Andrei Sviridov were fined for a similar protest action last week.

Kazakhstan currently holds the chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, whose mandate includes such issues as human rights and freedom of the press.

http://www.rferl.org/content/Kazakh_Journalist_Detained_For_Staging_Protest/2078620.html

Iceland’s parliament, the Alpinghi, has unanimously approved a resolution known as the Icelandic Modern Media Initiative (IMMI) that calls on the government to draft legislation in line with its recommendations for the protection of media, journalists and bloggers.

Reporters Without Borders hails this ambitious and positive initiative, adopted on 15 June, and calls on the government to do its utmost to respect the parliament’s will when it drafts the law.

“This proposal is on the right track,” Reporters Without Borders said. “It regards freedom of expression as a fundamental right and would create optimal conditions for investigative journalism. Even if the precise impact of this proposed law remains to be seen, especially as regard journalists’ legal protection, Iceland has established itself as a pioneer.”

The press freedom organisation added: “We hope this will serve as an example to other governments. It is certainly a promising departure from the general tendency, especially in democratic countries, for press freedom to be eroded and for harassment of journalists and their sources to increase.”

Assembling elements from the best legislation in the world, Iceland wants to become a global safe haven for journalists and new media that are being threatened or harassed and want to take advantage of the best protection available anywhere.

The transparency and independence of news and information are the initiative’s keywords. The declared aims are “to strengthen freedom of expression around world and in Iceland, as well as providing strong protections for sources and whistleblowers” (see the IMMI website). It also aims to secure communications and protect journalists and bloggers from unwarranted defamation suits both in Iceland and abroad.

Iceland wants to be seen as the ideal place for online media and data storage banks to locate their servers in order to shield themselves from the threats of censorship, filtering and closure, and to provide the best protection for the personal data of their users.

The initiative came about partly in response to a press issue that had a lot of impact in Iceland. In August 2009, the RUV television station was prevented at the last moment from broadcasting a story about Kaupthing Bank, which was immersed in a financial crisis.

The story was based on information from Wikileaks, which specialises in getting confidential information from whistleblowers in return for guarantees of anonymity, and which had already published extracts from the bank’s accounts. An injunction obtained by Kaupthing Bank prevented RUV from broadcasting the item, but the station told its viewers what had happened.

Read the article: http://en.rsf.org/islande-nouvel-article-18-06-2010,37771.html

Lucie Morillon
Reporters Without Borders
Head of the New Media Desk
internet@rsf.org
Skype : rsfnet
Twitter: luciemorillon and RSF_RWB
T : +33 1 44 83 84 71

http://en.rsf.org/islande-nouvel-article-18-06-2010,37771.html

Brussels/New York, 17 June 2010:

To: Security Council Ambassadors

Your Excellency,

We urge the United Nations Security Council to take immediate steps to address the ongoing crisis in Kyrgyzstan. With a death toll likely to reach far higher than the official count of 200 and an estimated 400,000 displaced in Kyrgyzstan and across the border in Uzbekistan, the situation poses a significant threat to international peace and security. The Kyrgyz authorities have primary responsibility for halting the violence and resolving this crisis, but reports from the ground provide ample evidence that the government is unable to protect those in need, and Kyrgyz authorities have already acknowledged that they need substantial assistance.

In the past week, violence along ethnic lines has engulfed Osh and Jalal-Abad, resulting in killings, rapes, beatings, and widespread burning and looting of homes and other properties. There are a growing number of reports that Kyrgyz military and other security personnel not only failed to stop the violence, but in some cases may have been active participants.

In the last two days there have been fewer reports of violent attacks but some continue. Claims that the situation is stable are belied by the extremely tense standoff that remains. Ethnic Uzbeks who remain in Osh are in some cases trapped in isolated neighborhoods, living in fear behind barricades. The government itself recognizes that new violence could flare at any moment.

The humanitarian situation is grave and increasingly urgent because Kyrgyz forces cannot be relied upon to provide the secure environment needed for humanitarian assistance to reach the population. Humanitarian organizations are having great difficulty accessing those needing assistance, and report incidents of theft and looting of aid.

Some 100,000 ethnic Uzbeks have sought refuge in Uzbekistan; the border is now closed. As many as 40,000 who fled the violence are without shelter, and given the destruction of hundreds of houses, many of the displaced have no homes to return to even should they feel safe to do so. Repatriation of the displaced will require much greater security and confidence within the displaced community.

International security assistance is urgently needed. An international stabilization mission of limited size could make a significant difference by securing the area for humanitarian relief, providing security for some of the displaced to return home, and creating space for reconciliation, confidence-building, and mediation programs to succeed. This mission would have a policing mandate and could be bolstered by military forces, particularly constabulary forces or gendarmes, if necessary.

Security Council Members should work without delay with regional organizations to ensure that such a mission is fielded as quickly as possible, with the endorsement of the Security Council and with specific terms of reference, clear rules of engagement, and a limited duration. Countries with capacity to engage quickly, in particular Russia, should be encouraged to contribute to the rapid deployment of such a mission.

A short-term security presence is crucial to establishing the humanitarian corridor requested by the United Nations and should lead the way for multilateral efforts to create a secure political environment for the eventual, but delayed, holding of a constitutional referendum and elections, and a longer-term effort to strengthen the rule of law and the protection of minorities, as well as to assist the government in security-sector reform.

Accountability for the recent violence, including on the part of state authorities, will be essential to securing long-term stability and reconciliation. The government should be encouraged to investigate crimes, ensure the protection of witnesses, and hold accountable those responsible for the violence. Given the extent and character of the violence, however, government efforts toward accountability should have an international component to be credible and effective. As an immediate step, the government should cooperate with OHCHR to begin investigations.

The instability in southern Kyrgyzstan cannot be wished away, and without a decisive international response there is considerable risk that widespread violence will reignite. It is possible that ethnic Kyrgyz and Uzbeks may seek violent revenge for the past week of mayhem. Prolonged insecurity could provide an opening, for example, for political opponents who may seek to further weaken or overthrow the provisional government through violence against its perceived supporters. In the absence of an international mission to restore law and order, further such violence is likely to continue and could spill over to neighboring countries. Should conditions persist, widespread violence could cause a complete collapse of the state, with the attendant hum an rights, political, and security consequences for the region, including the risk of unilateral intervention by outside actors.

The threat to regional peace and security posed by the crisis in Kyrgyzstan is real and, despite the reduction in daily violence, still growing. The Security Council has an obligation to respond to these risks and should act immediately to work with the government, regional organizations and others to prevent further escalation of violence, including by authorizing international law enforcement and security assistance.

Best regards,

Louise Arbour, President and CEO, International Crisis Group

Kenneth Roth, Executive Director, Human Rights Watch

INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP