argued<\/a><\/strong> that it is necessary for one person to hold all of the main powers.<\/p>\nA new constitution was drafted that immediately sparked resistance from several quarters in Kyrgyzstan.<\/p>\n
The draft would make the president the head of state and head of government while including an official role for a kuriltai, or council, that would be a consultative body able to recommend, among other things, the dismissal of officials.<\/p>\n
It was dubbed the “khanstitution” by opponents who said it would legitimize authoritarian rule.<\/p>\n
On November 22, the first of a series of peaceful marches against the constitution started in Bishkek. They have continued every Sunday since then.<\/p>\n
Acting President Talant Mamytov signed a decree on November 20 to establish a constitutional chamber of 89 members to redraft the “khanstitution” and the group quickly fell into disagreement over many points, for example whether the word “secular” should be stricken from the constitution or the name of parliament, Jogorku Kenesh, should be changed.<\/p>\n
In the end, the motion for a referendum on a constitution was adopted by parliament on December 10 — one month before the referendum would be held — after quickly approving it on the second and third readings.<\/p>\n
What voters in Kyrgyzstan are being asked to approve on January 10 is simply whether they want a parliamentary of presidential form of government.<\/p>\n
A second referendum will need to be conducted, tentatively in March, to vote on a new draft constitution.<\/p>\n
Questions Of Legitimacy<\/strong><\/big><\/p>\nFrom just after the October parliamentary elections until January there have been a multitude of questions and problems about the decision-making processes of Kyrgyz officials.<\/p>\n
First off, the parliamentary mandates for the deputies expired on October 28, and though deputies voted to extend them until new parliamentary elections are held, they legally should have not been allowed to vote on any matters involving a major policy change, such as the holding of a referendum to change the constitution.<\/p>\n
Therefore every decision parliament approved after October 28 is considered by some legal experts in Kyrgyzstan and many others to have no validity.<\/p>\n
Also, Japarov was named acting president on October 16 and officially took up the duties of that office on October 21, but as former parliament speaker Isaev noted, it is banned by the constitution for an acting president to run for president.<\/p>\n
On October 26, Japarov announced he would step down as prime minister and acting president so he could run for president.<\/p>\n
But two days later, Japarov and other government members took their oaths of office.<\/p>\n
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Kyrgyz acting President Talant Mamytov (file photo)<\/span><\/div>\nOn November 14, Japarov finally left his state posts and Talant Mamytov, the parliament speaker since November 4, was named acting president.<\/p>\n
Japarov has also said several times that he would not appoint his friends to government positions, but Mamytov and the current head of the UKMK, Kamchybek Tashiev, were co-defendants with Japarov when they were on trial in 2013 for trying to overthrow the government.<\/p>\n
They were convicted in March 2013 and sentenced to 18 months in prison.<\/p>\n
One of the judges that eventually acquitted the three in an appeals court in June 2013 was Kurmankul Zulushev, who was appointed prosecutor-general on October 21, just days after Japarov became acting president.<\/p>\n
Zulushev was dismissed for the decision to acquit the three deputies and two months later the Supreme Court overturned those acquittals but ruled the three did not have to return to prison.<\/p>\n
There are also questions about the Supreme Court’s abrupt decision to acquit Japarov of the hostage-taking charges and to overturn the guilty verdict against Japarov, Mamytov, and Tashiev for trying to overthrow the government.<\/p>\n
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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
And it is still not clear when there will be new parliamentary elections, even though the annulled October 4 elections led to so much that has happened since then and despite the fact that preparations to hold them began in late October.<\/p>\n
Japarov has variously cited “spring” or “before the end of the first half of 2021” as the time when they would be held.<\/p>\n
In the end, the populist Japarov is the big favorite to win the presidential election and the proposal for a presidential form of government also seems likely to be approved by voters, largely because of Japarov’s support and promotion of it.<\/p>\n
But there are so many aspects of Japarov’s rise to power, and the changes he has been making since then, which are open to legal challenges, leaves many thinking that once his momentum slows and his popularity dissipates — as seems almost certain to happen given the economic and other crises Kyrgyzstan faces — the country is likely to fall back into a political crisis of some kind.<\/p>\n
Gulaiym Ashakeeva of RFE\/RL’s Kyrgyz Service, known locally as Azattyk, contributed to this report.<\/h6>\n\n
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