Tag Archives: protest

President flees from Georgian breakaway region

JUNE 1 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Alexander Ankvab, de facto president of Abkhazia, one of Georgia’s two breakaway regions, resigned days after protesters stormed his residence and forced him to flee.

The protesters had been complaining of rampant corruption and a struggling economy. Mr Ankvab, elected in 2011 on a five year term, had initially been defiant after he fled demonstrators on May 27 but, apparently, after a meeting with his Russian sponsors he quit. There is little doubt where real power over Abkhazia lies.

Abkhazia has now set a presidential election for Aug. 24 meaning three months of uncertainty.

Although Akhazia’s independence is recognised by only a few countries, mainly driven by Russian pressure, Georgia is a bystander in Abkhazian politics.

Georgia’s impotency was summed up by its minister for reconciliation, Paata Zakareishvili. In an interview with Georgian media he pointed out that Russia had sent Vladislav Surkov, a senior aide to President Vladimir Putin, to mediate.

“Moscow rules there on the ground,” he said. “They are communicating with each other through Russia.”

As with any power change in Georgia’s two breakaway regions, South Ossetia is the other rebel province, this period of flux is a potentially dangerous one for Georgia as it can trigger instability.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 187, published on JUNE 4 2014)

South Kyrgyzstani protest for ex-PM

JUNE 3 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) -An estimated 300 people in Osh, south Kyrgyzstan, blocked a main road to protest the arrest of former parliamentarian Ahmatbek Keldibekov. The authorities have accused Mr Keldibekov of abuse of office. Any sign of unrest in south Kyrgyzstan is a potential problem.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 187, published on JUNE 4 2014)

Tension drops in east Tajikistan

MAY 28 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) -Tension has eased in south-east Tajikistan after officials agreed to launch an investigation into the causes of violence that killed several people a week earlier, media reported. The government’s authority is limited in the region of Gorno-Badakhshan. In 2012, security forces fought pitch battles to control the area after they tried to arrest a local warlord.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 187, published on JUNE 4 2014)

Armenia to raise electricity prices

JUNE 2 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia’s government is considering increasing electricity prices for the second year running.

Ara Simonyan, deputy minister for energy, made the omission after questions from parliamentarians who were trying to find out whether rumours of a price increase had any substance.

“The electricity tariffs are not frozen in Armenia and shall be reviewed from time to time. There is no certain decision at the moment,” he said.

Last year the state’s body for regulating electricity prices raised the cost of a kilowatt hour to 38 drams from 30 drams. Now, media has reported, the government is considering putting up prices by another 20% to around 45 drams.

This is important because rising utility prices stirs anger.

Armenians have already vented their frustration this year against proposed changes to the pension system, triggering the downfall of one government. The new government has said that it will look again at the proposed changes which would have meant that people have to put 5% of their income towards their state pension.

Mr Simonyan said hydroelectric stations were unusually dry last year meaning that less electricity was generated and that this meant prices had to rise.

Regardless, if the government does take the decision to increase electricity prices, it could generate public resentment.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 187, published on JUNE 4 2014)

Abkhaz protesters storm presidential administration in Georgia

MAY 27 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) -Protesters stormed the presidential administration in the Georgian rebel region of Abkhazia, forcing Aleksandr Ankvab, its leader, to flee. Protesters said they were frustrated with corruption. Mr Ankvab later denounced their action as a coup attempt. Russia has supported Abkhazian independence from Georgia since a 2008 war.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 186, published on May 28 2014)

Tajik military strikes cause protests

MAY 21 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Tajikistan’s restive southeast is threatening to boil over again after a special forces operation near Khorog, capital of Gorno-Badakhshan region, led to four deaths and a week of protests.

The deaths and the subsequent protests underline the difficulty that Tajik president Emomali Rakhmon has in imposing central government will on this restive part of the country.

The target of the operation was given as drug traffickers. That, though, may have been a euphemism for a local anti-government warlord.

The special forces operation killed two people in broad daylight and injured several others, angering locals who then protested and tried to storm the security forces headquarters. Reports said that two protesters were killed and more injured when security forces fired on the crowd.

The whole operation is reminiscent of a security operation in the same area two years ago. Back then, the army had to virtually close off the area and engage in street to street fighting with rebels. Dushanbe may have committed another blunder in a part of the country where its authority has been limited ever since a civil war in the 1990s.

Gorno-Badakhshan, whose population backed the ill-fated United Tajik Opposition in that conflict, is a hub of anti-government resentment.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 186, published on May 28 2014)

Ex-Kyrgyz President begged for help

MAY 22 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – In an interview with Russian TV, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko described how former Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev phoned him from a forest in southern Kyrgyzstan in 2010 after fleeing protesters and begged him for help. Mr Lukashenko gave Mr Bakiyev residence in Belarus.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 186, published on May 28 2014)

Kazakhstanis protest against Eurasian Union

MAY 27 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Police in Astana detained 20 people demonstrating against the proposed Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), two days before Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan planned to sign it into existence. The EEU is designed to replace the Customs Union. Some analysts have said that it will morph from an economic club into a political group.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 186, published on May 28 2014)

Kazakhstan unveils pension plan

May 19 2014 (The Conway Bulletin)- In 2020, Kazakhstan will probably introduce a new pension scheme that will deduct 5% of an employee’s wages and automatically place it in a government plan, the labour ministry told the Tengrinews website.

Employers will match this employee contribution.

It appears that these planned reforms haven’t been announced more widely and loudly because of a very real fear of upsetting people.

The risk for Kazakhstan is fairly obvious. In Armenia a similar plan triggered widespread demonstrations. The problem is that Kazakhstan and other former Soviet States need to reform and update their pension schemes.

Last year, the Kazakh labour sacked its ministers because of backlash over trying to make women retire at the same age as men.

Persuading Kazakhs to accept the latest plan is also likely to be a serious challenge for the Kazakh government.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 185, published on May 21 2014)

Anti gay protesters march in Georgia

May 17 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Georgian Orthodox groups rallied in Tbilisi against a new law designed to protect same-sex relationships. Media estimated that there were several hundred people at the rally, underlining the conservative nature of Georgian society. The Georgian Orthodox Church retains a lot of power in Georgia.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 185, published on May 21 2014)