The parliamentary elections held in Kyrgyzstan have strengthened the current government's position and confirmed its class character. No alternative to the bourgeois course will be presented within the chamber, which does not mean the absence of deep social contradictions.
Despite all the nuances, most post-Soviet states are moving along the same downward path. The erosion of socialist gains is pushing them ever further down the path of peripheral capitalism, with the inevitable archaization of the political, socioeconomic, and cultural spheres. Elections in these conditions serve as a kind of litmus test. Without changing the course set a third of a century ago, they aptly reflect the essence of the changes taking place.
On the last day of autumn, early elections to the Zhogorku Kenesh (parliament) were held in Kyrgyzstan. The need to transfer power was explained by purely technical reasons—potential problems with the presidential elections scheduled for January 2027. However, as Pravda suggested (see the October 7-8 issue), the self-dissolution of the parliamentary corps had very specific goals. The main one was to obtain a fully controlled chamber, which would acquiesce in approving decisions and not pester the authorities with "inconvenient issues" related, for example, to the energy crisis.
To implement this plan, electoral legislation was reformed. It completely eliminated the party-list voting system that had existed for nearly twenty years, replacing it with multi-member constituencies. The country was divided into thirty constituencies, each electing three deputies. One of these deputies had to be a woman. A financial "filter" was introduced to weed out undesirable figures. The non-refundable election deposit for self-nominated candidates was tripled to 300,000 soms (275,000 rubles), and for parties, it was increased ninefold to 9 million soms (8.2 million rubles).
This, along with several other factors, contributed to the virtual extinction of the party system. Of the 329 political parties registered in the republic, only three (!) applied to participate in the elections. One of them later withdrew its application. Of the remaining parties, only Yntymak (Harmony) enjoys any significant influence, while the second, Legalize, advocates such exotic calls as the legalization of soft drugs.
An analysis conducted by journalists revealed the nature of the self-nominated candidates. For example, in District No. 21 (Bishkek's Leninsky District), ten out of seventeen candidates owned their own businesses, while in neighboring District No. 22 (Bishkek's Oktyabrsky District), fourteen out of eighteen did so. These businesses often involved significant capital, including ownership of construction and pharmaceutical companies, retail chains, and the like. To facilitate these types of entrepreneurs, the maximum electoral fund was doubled to 20 million soms (18 million rubles). Even the president was forced to acknowledge the existence of vote-buying. "The only remaining problem is voter bribery," said President Sadyr Japarov after fulfilling his civic duty. "There are those who sell votes by the entire street or entire family clans. The relevant authorities respond promptly to such actions. We see them and detain them."
According to the head of state, the automated vote counting process eliminated the possibility of fraud. But, unfortunately, it's not just a matter of "mechanical" violations (something international observers often overlook). The newly elected parliament demonstrated who wields influence and power in modern Kyrgyzstan. According to preliminary data, 50 of the 90 deputies are members of the previous convocation, most of whom are also connected to big business and loyal to the leadership. Almost all of the "newcomers" are a match for them.
Moreover, to prevent any "surprises," the authorities tightened the screws shortly before the elections. Politicians and activists associated with former President Almazbek Atambayev were arrested across the country. They were accused of plotting mass unrest. Kamchybek Tashiev, head of the State National Security Committee, also issued a warning to ordinary citizens. "You shouldn't sit and listen to provocateurs online. Each of you has a phone, each of you is a 'cameraman,' a 'journalist.' There are now many who want to take advantage of this opportunity, and there are also provocateurs who want to destroy the state. But we won't allow this; we have the strength, intelligence, and resources," he said on November 27.
Overall, the top leadership has every reason to hope that the new convocation of the Zhogorku Kenesh will be smoother than ever. The emergence of opposition movements within it, at least at this stage, is unlikely. It should be added that the Communist Party did not actually participate in the elections. Its sole representative, Yrys Sabyrbekova, ran as an independent candidate in District No. 17 and garnered 1.6 percent of the vote.
The consolidation of the ruling group's position, however, is not an indicator of the health of the social "organism." Indirect evidence that "all is not well in the State of Denmark" includes both the low turnout—less than 37 percent—and the high level of "against all" voting. Several candidates who entered parliament received fewer votes than this figure. It's a stretch to call the deputies "representatives of the people." For example, in Bishkek, the winning candidates collectively received just over 70,000 votes out of 543,000 registered voters.
Moreover, the elections will be unable to resolve the accumulating difficulties, including rising living costs, energy shortages, poverty, and inequality. The root cause of these problems—the capitalist path of development—was not shaken in any way by the November 30 vote.
rainpizza in geopolitics
A Pravda columnist on the results of the parliamentary elections in Kyrgyzstan, a post-Soviet state
https://kprf.ru/international/capitalist/239503.htmlThe parliamentary elections held in Kyrgyzstan have strengthened the current government's position and confirmed its class character. No alternative to the bourgeois course will be presented within the chamber, which does not mean the absence of deep social contradictions.
Despite all the nuances, most post-Soviet states are moving along the same downward path. The erosion of socialist gains is pushing them ever further down the path of peripheral capitalism, with the inevitable archaization of the political, socioeconomic, and cultural spheres. Elections in these conditions serve as a kind of litmus test. Without changing the course set a third of a century ago, they aptly reflect the essence of the changes taking place.
On the last day of autumn, early elections to the Zhogorku Kenesh (parliament) were held in Kyrgyzstan. The need to transfer power was explained by purely technical reasons—potential problems with the presidential elections scheduled for January 2027. However, as Pravda suggested (see the October 7-8 issue), the self-dissolution of the parliamentary corps had very specific goals. The main one was to obtain a fully controlled chamber, which would acquiesce in approving decisions and not pester the authorities with "inconvenient issues" related, for example, to the energy crisis.
To implement this plan, electoral legislation was reformed. It completely eliminated the party-list voting system that had existed for nearly twenty years, replacing it with multi-member constituencies. The country was divided into thirty constituencies, each electing three deputies. One of these deputies had to be a woman. A financial "filter" was introduced to weed out undesirable figures. The non-refundable election deposit for self-nominated candidates was tripled to 300,000 soms (275,000 rubles), and for parties, it was increased ninefold to 9 million soms (8.2 million rubles).
This, along with several other factors, contributed to the virtual extinction of the party system. Of the 329 political parties registered in the republic, only three (!) applied to participate in the elections. One of them later withdrew its application. Of the remaining parties, only Yntymak (Harmony) enjoys any significant influence, while the second, Legalize, advocates such exotic calls as the legalization of soft drugs.
An analysis conducted by journalists revealed the nature of the self-nominated candidates. For example, in District No. 21 (Bishkek's Leninsky District), ten out of seventeen candidates owned their own businesses, while in neighboring District No. 22 (Bishkek's Oktyabrsky District), fourteen out of eighteen did so. These businesses often involved significant capital, including ownership of construction and pharmaceutical companies, retail chains, and the like. To facilitate these types of entrepreneurs, the maximum electoral fund was doubled to 20 million soms (18 million rubles). Even the president was forced to acknowledge the existence of vote-buying. "The only remaining problem is voter bribery," said President Sadyr Japarov after fulfilling his civic duty. "There are those who sell votes by the entire street or entire family clans. The relevant authorities respond promptly to such actions. We see them and detain them."
According to the head of state, the automated vote counting process eliminated the possibility of fraud. But, unfortunately, it's not just a matter of "mechanical" violations (something international observers often overlook). The newly elected parliament demonstrated who wields influence and power in modern Kyrgyzstan. According to preliminary data, 50 of the 90 deputies are members of the previous convocation, most of whom are also connected to big business and loyal to the leadership. Almost all of the "newcomers" are a match for them.
Moreover, to prevent any "surprises," the authorities tightened the screws shortly before the elections. Politicians and activists associated with former President Almazbek Atambayev were arrested across the country. They were accused of plotting mass unrest. Kamchybek Tashiev, head of the State National Security Committee, also issued a warning to ordinary citizens. "You shouldn't sit and listen to provocateurs online. Each of you has a phone, each of you is a 'cameraman,' a 'journalist.' There are now many who want to take advantage of this opportunity, and there are also provocateurs who want to destroy the state. But we won't allow this; we have the strength, intelligence, and resources," he said on November 27.
Overall, the top leadership has every reason to hope that the new convocation of the Zhogorku Kenesh will be smoother than ever. The emergence of opposition movements within it, at least at this stage, is unlikely. It should be added that the Communist Party did not actually participate in the elections. Its sole representative, Yrys Sabyrbekova, ran as an independent candidate in District No. 17 and garnered 1.6 percent of the vote.
The consolidation of the ruling group's position, however, is not an indicator of the health of the social "organism." Indirect evidence that "all is not well in the State of Denmark" includes both the low turnout—less than 37 percent—and the high level of "against all" voting. Several candidates who entered parliament received fewer votes than this figure. It's a stretch to call the deputies "representatives of the people." For example, in Bishkek, the winning candidates collectively received just over 70,000 votes out of 543,000 registered voters.
Moreover, the elections will be unable to resolve the accumulating difficulties, including rising living costs, energy shortages, poverty, and inequality. The root cause of these problems—the capitalist path of development—was not shaken in any way by the November 30 vote.