BISHKEK • Opposition groups in Kyrgyzstan yesterday said they had seized power in the strategically important Central Asian country after taking control of government buildings in the capital amid protests over a parliamentary election.
President Sooronbai Jeenbekov said the country, which hosts a Russian air base and a Canadian-controlled gold mine, was facing an attempted coup. But he ordered security forces not to shoot protesters.
One person was killed and 590 wounded in unrest overnight, the government said.
The opposition said it had freed former president Almazbek Atambayev, who had been jailed on corruption charges, and was already discussing the line-up of a provisional government. It was unclear what role, if any, Mr Atambayev would get.
Mr Jeenbekov showed no immediate signs of relinquishing power, although the central election commission was reported to have annulled the results of Sunday's election.
Local news website 24.kg said the commission took the decision at a meeting held after the storming of the government headquarters.
Several opposition politicians urged the outgoing Parliament to install a provisional Cabinet in order to legitimise a transfer of power.
Kyrgyzstan borders China and is a close ally of Russia.
It has long been a platform for geopolitical competition between Moscow, Washington and Beijing. It also has a history of political volatility - two of its presidents have been toppled by revolts in the past 15 years.
The Russian embassy in Kyrgyzstan said in a statement it supported resolving the matter through legal means while ensuring the people's safety and domestic stability.
Burnt cars littered Bishkek, the capital, yesterday morning after protesters took control of the main government building, known as the White House, which briefly caught fire before emergency services put out the blaze.
Debris from inside, including government papers, and office furniture were strewn outside after protesters ransacked parts of it.
Interior Minister Kashkar Junushaliyev did not show up for work yesterday, a ministry spokesman said, adding that Mr Kursan Asanov, an opposition politician and a former senior security official, had taken over as acting interior minister.
Police had been ordered to ensure citizens' safety and prevent clashes and looting.
The country's second-largest gold deposit, Jeruy, was shut down by unidentified people yesterday.
Trouble erupted on Monday after police used teargas and water cannon to disperse thousands of people demonstrating against the results of Sunday's election, which they demanded be annulled.
Western observers said the election, which appeared to have handed most seats to two establishment parties supporting closer links between the former Soviet republic and Russia, had been marred by vote buying. One of the parties was close to Mr Jeenbekov.
Police had broken up one protest late on Monday, but protesters later returned to Bishkek's central square and broke into the White House, home to both the president and Parliament, news websites Akipress and 24.kg reported.
Protesters then broke into the headquarters of the State Committee for National Security and freed Mr Atambayev, who was sentenced to a lengthy prison term this year on corruption charges after falling out with Mr Jeenbekov. Opposition groups took over several more buildings, including the mayor's office.
Several provincial governors have resigned, according to media reports which said rallies had begun yesterday in several provincial centres, most of them anti-government.
REUTERS
