Tag Archives: society

Riot police clash with protesters in Kyrgyz capital

BISHKEK, MARCH 25 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Roughly 500 people protested outside the security services in Bishkek against the arrest of a former MP, the latest and most violent in a series of demonstrations that have punctured the relative peace of the Kyrgyz capital this year.

Sadyr Japarov, a former MP, was arrested at a border checkpoint when he tried to return to Kyrgyzstan after fleeing the country in 2013.

Protesters scrapped and fought with police, in what has been described as the most violent anti- government clashes this year, after the deadline for Mr Japarov’s release from questioning by the security serv- ices came and went without him emerging. Bishkek is increasingly tense with presidential elections scheduled for November expected to be a tightly fought affair.

Police armed with riot gear had to move in to break up the demonstrations. Police said that they detained 68 people.

There have been several protests already this year in Kyrgyzstan focused on allegations made against the main opposition party Ata Meken, but opinion among experts and locals about this unexpected protest were divided. Some said the arrest, the protest, and quickly-ar- ranged press conference given by the ministry of interior looked suspicious.

“The brave arrival of Sadyr Japarov with the simultaneous organisation of an assertive protest, which would certainly fail, is somewhat strange,” wrote Nurbek Toktakunov, a well- known civil activist and human rights advocate in Bishkek, on Facebook.

A Bishkek lawyer said that the organisational skills shown by the ministry of interior in staging a press conference immediately after the protest were unprecedented.

“The ministry of interior rarely gives press conferences about demonstrations. This is surprising,” he said, asking to remain anonymous.

Other analysts said that the protest may have been organised by the security services to discredit the opposition. Mr Japarov’s return was unexpected as it is unclear what he was returning for, although some said he wanted to drum up support for standing in the presidential election. He had been an MP with the now marginalised Ata Zhurt party, and had largely been forgotten during his self-imposed exile.

The state authorities had accused him in 2012 of trying to overthrow the government. He denied the charges and fled the country.

Some locals praised the police action, though.

“Unregistered protests lead to anarchy. They began to throw stones, plastic bottles and broke through the cordon,” said Daniyar, 27, a resident of Bishkek. “It was a good job our policemen took preventive measures, otherwise it would be chaos.”

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 322, published on March 27 2017)

EIU ranks Kazakh city as the cheapest

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MARCH 21 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) ranked Almaty, Kazakhstan’s financial centre, as the cheapest major city in the world to work in as an expat in its annual cost of living survey. It said that although inflation was rising, prices hadn’t yet caught up with a 50% devaluation in the tenge in 2015. The EIU said that a packet of 20 cigarettes cost $1.02 and a loaf of bread cost 90 cents. In Singapore, which the EIU said was the most expensive major city in the world, a packet of cigarettes costs $9.63 and a loaf of bread costs $3.55.

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(News report from Issue No. 322, published on March 27 2017)

Small fire damages Tajik parliament

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MARCH 18 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — A small fire damaged the Tajik parliament building, media reported quoting interior ministry officials. They said that a computer overheating was to blame for the fire a parliamentary reception area. Photos from parliament showed two windows with black scorch marks. Nobody was injured in the fire.

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(News report from Issue No. 322, published on March 27 2017)

Georgian capital forces street vendors to move into regulated markets

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TBILISI, MARCH 19 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Officials from the mayor’s office ejected street vendors from outside Tbilisi’s Marjanishvili Metro Station in a move designed to smarten up the centre of the city, reflecting its new emphasis on becoming a favourite for foreign tourists.

According to Georgian law, street trading is forbidden, although vendors – often poor old women or young girls wearing ragged clothes – sell everything from books to meat to flowers on pavements across the capital.

A lack of cleanliness and congested pavements forced the city government to act, Irakli Lekvinadze, the deputy major of Tbilisi, told media. He said he wanted the street vendors to move into the city’s markets.

“We are actively negotiating with representatives of the Association of Markets, which unites 17 markets in various districts of Tbilisi. Most of them expressed their readiness to accept street vendors and give them a preferential, six month period when they can work for free,” he was reported by media as saying.

Georgia signed an Association Agreement with the EU last year and has been working on improving the hygiene of its food products. Earlier this week the National Food Agency called on people not to buy food from unregulated trading places.

Evicted vendors, though, called the move unjust. One of them said that they will simply lose their meager livelihoods. “There are too many sellers in the entire country to regulate, there is not enough space in the bazaar for all of us,” she said.

It is not the first time that Georgian authorities have tried to regulate street vendors. There was a clamp- down on street trading in 2006. However, after protests, street vendors returned. Another clampdown also failed in 2010.

And some are sceptical that this ban will work.

“I have seen this before, street vendors always come back and find a way to sell their products,” said Teona, a 25 years-old Tbilisi resident, said.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 322, published on March 27 2017)

Record number of Iranians flock to Georgia and Armenia for Nowruz

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TBILISI/YEREVAN, MARCH 20 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Iranians have been piling into Georgia and Armenia to celebrate Nowruz, one of the biggest Muslim holidays of the year.

Visitor data for both Armenia and Georgia will be released later this year but evidence shows that the holiday, the biggest annual get-away for Iranians, is likely to have triggered a record number of tourists from Iran.

Media in Iran said that airlines were going to run 22 flights a week over the Nowruz period from Iran to Armenia to cope with the demand.

Both Georgia and Armenia scrapped visas for Iranians last year, triggering a boom in tourist numbers and also in business links. Iran has become an important revenue generators for Georgia and Armenia, especially during the economic downturn that has hit the region.

According to statistics held by Georgia’s National Tourism Administration, nearly 150,000 Iranians travelled to Georgia in 2016, a 6-fold increase from 2015.

Masoud Silakhori, economic advisor of the Georgia-Iran Common Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told The Conway Bulletin that Iranian investment in Georgia has grown exponentially since the visa free regime reintroduction.

“Nearly 20,000 Iranian companies have been registered in Georgia in the last year,” he said.

In 2012, when Georgia first relaxed restrictions on Iranians doing business, there was a reported rush of new companies linked to Iran being open — 1,500 in total.

And it’s changing the face of Georgia’s streets too. Now Farsi signs hang above shop windows in Tbilisi, head scarves are an increasingly common sight and the Iranian flag competes for space among other more familiar flags outside businesses.

Geopolitics and the spread of terrorism, is also an issue. Nima Farzaneh, the owner of the Iranian restaurant 1001 Nights told the Bulletin that along with the establishment of visa free regime, the high number of terror attacks in Turkey played a role too.

“For many years Iranians went to Turkey, but since terrorism spread there, our tourists decided to come here. That also helped the increase of Iranian businesses,” he said.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 321, published on March 20 2017)

Berdymuhamedov wants Turkmen horse placed on UNESCO List

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MARCH 11 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Turkmen President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, a man renowned for his vast array of talents including being a champion jockey, ordered his government to try to have the country’s famous Akhal-Teke horse placed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Over the past few years, government’s in the region have been using the UNESCO World Heritage List as a sort of brand identifier to promote

themselves. Azerbaijan has registered itself as the birthplace of polo, Armenia has claimed lavash bread as its creation and Kyrgyzstan has uploaded the epic Manas poem to the list.

The Akhal-Teke horse is the national symbol of Turkmenistan. It is one of the most expensive horses to buy and is famed around the world for its good looks, endurance, intelligence and speed.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 321, published on March 20 2017)

Azerbaijani GP promoter criticises F1

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MARCH 15 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — The promoter of Baku’s Formula One Grand Prix, Arif Rahimov, called criticism of the race by Formula One’s new owners as “ignorant”. The week before Greg Maffefi, CEO of Liberty, Formula One’s owners, said that the Baku GP did nothing to improve and build the health of the brand and the business. Mr Rahimov said: “Mr Maffei has been involved in F1 for less than half a year. We’ve been working on this project for three years now so we have more experience with F1 than them. I think saying something like this is ignorant.” Baku hosts its GP, its second, on June 25.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 321, published on March 20 2017)

Georgia rugby looks for 6 Nations spot

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MARCH 20 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — >> So, what is this story about Georgia being decent at rugby and potentially playing in the Six Nations against England, Ireland, France, Scotland and Wales?

>> Pressure has been building on the Six Nations for some time to introduce a playoff system at the end of each season between the bottom placed team in the tournament and the top placed team in the Rugby Europe Championships, essentially the second tier rugby division. Basically, Italy have been so poor in the last couple of Six Nations, they have lost their last 12 matches, that many people think its now time to give

>> And Georgia is the next best team?

>>Actually, in terms of the World Rankings, Georgia is comfortably above Italy. It is in 12th position, behind Japan but ahead of Tonga. Italy lie in 15th position just above Romania. And it is Georgia, not Italy, that is pulling in the big crowds. Nearly 55,000 people filled Tbilisi’s Dinamo Stadium to watch Georgia beat Russia 28 – 14 in the Rugby Europe Championship on March 12. When Italy played Wales in Rome, 41,000 people watched, with TV shots showing plenty of empty seats.

>> Is Georgia the only option to replace Italy?

>> Actually, Romania, a country with a decent, if patchy, rugby pedigree won the Rugby Europe Championships this year, beating Georgia in Bucharest 8-7. If a playoff system was introduced it would be Romania and not Georgia who would compete in it. But it’s Georgia that has shown the most consistency over the past few years and Georgia who would potentially be the most able to replace Italy.

>> Has Georgia ever beaten a top flight rugby team?

>> No. It has played in every Rugby World Cup since 2003 but has yet to beat a big team. It has pushed some big names hard though. Ireland beat Georgia in 2007 14 – 10 and Scotland scrapped home 15 – 6 in 2011.

>> Where does Georgia get its rugby heritage from?

>> In World Cup terms, Georgia is very much a new boy. Its rugby roots have really been developed since the 1991 break up of the Soviet Union. Rugby was played under the Soviet Union and links with French clubs were developed but it has only been adopted as a national sport since independence.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 321, published on March 20 2017)

Parking ticket sparks riot in Georgian city

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TBILISI, MARCH 11/12 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Police and rioters clashed in Batumi, Georgia’s second city, allegedly after an argument over a parking ticket escalated into violence.

Rioters burned cars and fought police who resorted to firing tear gas into the protesters in what observers have said was the worst violence for years in Georgia. Local media said that 85 people were detained after the violence.

For the ruling Georgian Dream coalition, the violence is a potential problem as it may show that people are become increasingly tired with the status quo and also of deal with an economic downturn that has started to impact living standards. A Georgian observer said that the main riot was the culmination of a build-up of a bad feeling towards a new police chief in Batumi who was trying to impose heavier fines for small misdemeanours such as littering the street.

There had been two days of protests before the riot.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 321, published on March 20 2017)

Azerbaijan finds corpse in Caspian

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MARCH 13 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Another male corpse was found in the Caspian Sea, possibly one of the missing men from an oil platform that collapsed into the Azerbaijani sector of the sea that killed 9 people in December. Bodies of the dead men have been washing up across the Caspian Sea coastline. The year before, at least 30 people had died when a storm caused a fire at a Caspian Sea oil rig.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 321, published on March 20 2017)