Bishkek, delay in election results as tension mounts
Bishkek (AsiaNews / Agencies) – The protests of parties excluded from the Kyrgyz Parliament, representing approximately 60% of the electorate, are increasing. Yesterday the representatives of various political parties demanded a recount the votes from 138 polling stations in Bishkek and 43 in Naryn. Meanwhile, the official announcement of the results has been postponed, even though the situation is deteriorating.
Representatives of parties excluded from parliament have said there are "discrepancy between list of voters and people taken vote was revealed in some polling stations as well as blank reports, opened safe-packages and mutilated ballots”, requiring rechecking of the votes.
Akylbek Sariev, head of the Central Election Commission (CEC), says that a recount can take place only if specific irregularities are proven and that the complaints of the parties contain several inaccuracies.
The electoral system provides that only parties that win at least 5% of the total votes win seats. 29 parties took part in the October 10 election and 5 reached a quorum, gaining between 8% and 6% of votes.
On 19 October, about 2,500 supporters of the Butun Kyrgyzstan Party, excluded by a few thousand votes with 4.8%, marched in Bishkek accusing the authorities of fraud and threatening a general uprising.
On 20 October, several thousand young people protested in front instead of the Russian embassy in Bishkek, with signs saying "Putin, take you hands off Kyrgyzstan." Many believe that Russia is behind some of the winning parties.
In other parts of the country there were demonstrations in support of the April revolution and opposing the takeover of the Ata-Jurt party, which emerged as a leader in elections and supports former President Kurmanbek Bakyiev deposed in April.
The differences between the five parties listed as winners are also proving engrained. Many see as unlikely the formation of a coalition government and fear the reactions to those will be ruled out.
For this reason, many believe that the interim Prime Minister Roza Otunbayeva should cancel the vote if a coalition government is not formed and set new elections, possibly for February 2011.
The situation is so uncertain that Otunbayeva yesterday called to " give time to the Central Elections Commission of Kyrgyzstan for receiving the final results of the elections, in order to see the true winners ", an invitation that many observers believe an attempt to have more time to mediate the different positions, for fear that the losers will act on their threat of unleashing a new urban war. The prime minister has felt the need to repeat that "the whole world knows that the elections were transparent and honest" and that "the authorities have not used administrative resources" to influence the vote.
The situation is being closely followed by Russia and the United States, which have air bases in the country, as well as from neighbouring China.
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