Center for Eastern Studies
The Kyrgyz parliament has adopted a package of constitutional amendments proposed by President Kurmanbek Bakiyev at first reading on 12 February. The amendments sanction the legal reform that has been underway in Kyrgyzstan since October 2009, aimed at vesting full power in the president. Key state institutions, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the National Security Service and the newly established Central Agency for Development, Investment and Innovation (CARII), which has taken over most of the government's economic prerogatives, are now directly subordinated to the president. In accordance with the legislative procedure, the new text of the constitution will be finally endorsed at second reading in three months, however, this will be a mere formality as the parliament is nearly monopolised by the presidential party. Five years after the Tulip revolution, Kyrgyzstan is less democratic and more repressive than it was under president Akayev, who was overthrown in the aftermath of protests against the blatantly rigged parliamentary election amidst accusations of authoritarianism, nepotism and corruption.
The constitutional amendments formally complete the process whereby Kurmanbek Bakiyev has been building up his dominance on the Kyrgyz political scene. The president has managed to disintegrate and marginalise the opposition, as a result of which he has no political rivals today. One should not expect the strengthening of presidential powers to entail attempts at reform of the state. The process has been aimed primarily at ensuring security for the narrow ruling elite and enabling it to pursue its private economic interests. This objective appears to have been achieved.
Bakiyev builds up political position
Kurmanbek Bakiyev came to power as one of the leaders of the Tulip Revolution in March 2005. The political change took place in an atmosphere of high hopes for democratisation and reforms. However, the 'Tulip' political camp quickly disintegrated and the newly elected president Bakiyev took energetic measures to establish a monopoly on power. Bakiyev managed to remove from power his main political opponents (including former prime minister Felix Kulov), and suppress the role of the parliament, which had been a stronghold of the opposition under president Akayev. As a result of the present changes, the government has been reduced to a purely administrative role. The most important institutions, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the security service, the finance police and the newly created CARII (in charge of formulating the economic policy and controlling the major state-owned assets), have found themselves under the exclusive supervision of the head of state. The development of an authoritarian system of government has been accompanied by tougher internal policy and a progressing brutalisation of political life (political and business assassinations). Several dozen acts of violence against opposition members, journalists and NGO staff members have occurred over the last 2-3 years. In December 2009, a well-known Kyrgyz journalist Gennady Pavluk was assassinated.
The president's son controls the economy
The appointment of Maxim Bakiyev as the head of the Central Agency for Development, Investment and Innovation has formalised the key role of the president’s son in the political life of Kyrgyzstan. Maxim Bakiyev is thought to control all financial flows in the country. It is commonly believed that the CARII will enable him to control the economy of Kyrgyzstan legally. The agency is in charge of managing foreign loan funds (e.g. the Russian loan of US$300 million) and the key state-owned assets. Its activities, including the management of the funds entrusted to it, are subject to no external supervision. According to the opposition, the agency is in fact an alternative budget totally controlled by Kurmanbek Bakiyev. Furthermore, by managing stakes in the largest state-owned enterprises the president's circle is able to fully control the privatisations of the most lucrative assets. Maxim Bakiyev is commonly regarded as the second most important person in Kyrgyzstan after the president, and as his father's successor. This view has been corroborated by the fact that he was the head of the high-ranking government delegation which visited China in early January to discuss the terms of the two states' economic co-operation. In order to ensure a smooth hand-over of power, an amendment has been made to the constitution, which provides that should the president become unable to fulfil his duties, a 'temporary' president will be elected by the State Council, a body comprising President Bakiyev's closest aides including Maxim Bakiyev.
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