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Ex-Kyrgyz president leaves Kazakhstan; situation in Bishkek tense

20 April 2010 02:25 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. Ousted Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has left Kazakhstan, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said on Monday, without revealing his destination, APA reports quoting â€œRIA Novostiâ€.
"According to my information, Bakiyev has left Kazakhstan. I do not know anything about his current whereabouts," Askar Abdrakhmanov, a ministry spokesman, said.
Bakiyev fled Bishkek on April 7 amid violent protests in the Kyrgyz capital that killed more than 80 people and saw the opposition take power. He flew to Kazakhstan on last Thursday and reportedly resigned on Friday.
Abdrakhmanov said that "perhaps" Bakiyev left Kazakhstan with his family, but did not disclose the time of his departure.
Meanwhile, Bakiyev’s yonger brother Kanybek, said Kurmanbek is unlikely to return to Kyrgyzstan in the next couple of days.
"Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev will not arrive in the country neither today, nor tomorrow. I cannot comment on when it will happen," Kanybek Bakiyev said.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Sunday his country was ready to provide refuge to Bakiyev and his family and provide whatever help they need.
The interim government in Kyrgyzstan says it wants to set up an international investigation into alleged crimes committed by Bakiyev. Charges have already been filed against some of his relatives.
Although Bakiyev fled Bishkek two weeks ago, a wave of new violence engulfed the suburbs of the country’s capital again on Monday, when some 2,000 people armed with sticks, stones and torches set several cars on fire and threw rocks at houses in nearby villages.
They tried to seize some 700 hectares of land outside Bishkek, saying it was their land for construction of their houses, but the landowners drove them out of the area. The rioters then moved toward the capital, but were stopped by police. After negotiations with the head of the municipal administration they decided not to enter the city.
In other developments, an informal "people’s" militia has called on its members to unite and protect residents of the capital, warning that fresh violence could break out as night falls.
"According to our information, a considerable number of people have gathered outside the city, mainly squatters arriving to the capital from remote regions. This is fraught with unpredictable consequences," Daniyar Terbishaliyev, the head of the Patriot militia, said.
The Patriot militia currently numbers 800 people.