Kyrgyzstan's President Says He Is Resigning to Avoid Violence
2020-10-16
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1The president of Kyrgyzstan said Thursday he was resigning following protests over a recent parliamentary election.
2It is the third time in 15 years that a leader of the Central Asian country has been removed by a popular uprising.
3Protesters in the capital, Bishkek, celebrated the decision by President Sooronbai Jeenbekov.
4However, it is not clear if his resignation will stop the unrest that has brought chaos to the country since last week.
5The protestors quickly demanded that the parliament be dismissed and its speaker resign from office.
6One a day earlier, Jeenbekov had refused calls to resign.
7But the protests continued, and even the new prime minister called on him to resign.
8In a statement released by the president's office, Jeenbekov said he feared violence if he stayed in power.
9He noted that protesters were facing off against the police and the military.
10"I don't want to go down in history as a president who shed blood and shot at his own citizens," he said.
11Jeenbekov said the situation in Bishkek "remains tense"and that he did not want to worsen those tensions.
12He urged opposition politicians to get their supporters off the streets and "bring peaceful life back to the people."
13Parliament must officially approve his resignation.
14The speaker of the parliament, Kanat Isayev, told reporters the parliament's members would meet Friday to consider it.
15Krygyzstan is home to 6.5 million people.
16The country was pushed into chaos following parliamentary elections on October 4.
17Election officials claim that pro-government parties won the vote.
18But the opposition said that vote-buying and other problems influenced the results.
19Protesters took to the streets, seizing government buildings and attacking some offices.
20The Central Election Commission cancelled the election results.
21The opposition then announced plans to remove Jeenbekov and form a new government.
22As the protests grew, Jeenbekov announced a state of emergency in Bishkek.
23Government officials deployed troops to the city and ordered a curfew.
24The move eased tensions in the city as citizens stopped fearing the violence and destruction that they had experienced with earlier uprisings.
25Stores and banks reopened.
26To try to stop the protests, Jeenbekov on Wednesday approved the appointment of Sadyr Zhaparov as prime minister.
27The former lawmaker was freed from jail by demonstrators last week.
28Jeenbekov also approved the newly-appointed members of Zhaparov's new Cabinet.
29Zhaparov has repeatedly demanded Jeenbekov's resignation and promised his supporters to push for it.
30The Kyrgyz leader had said he would stay in the job until the political situation had calmed.
31Kyrgyzstan is one of the poorest countries that gained independence from the former Soviet Union.
32It is a member of Russian-controlled economic and security agreements.
33It receives economic support from Russia.
34A Russian government spokesman said Thursday that his country would "pause" its support for Kyrgyzstan because "there is no government as such, as far as we see."
35I'm Susan Shand.
1The president of Kyrgyzstan said Thursday he was resigning following protests over a recent parliamentary election. It is the third time in 15 years that a leader of the Central Asian country has been removed by a popular uprising. 2Protesters in the capital, Bishkek, celebrated the decision by President Sooronbai Jeenbekov. However, it is not clear if his resignation will stop the unrest that has brought chaos to the country since last week. 3The protestors quickly demanded that the parliament be dismissed and its speaker resign from office. 4One a day earlier, Jeenbekov had refused calls to resign. But the protests continued, and even the new prime minister called on him to resign. 5In a statement released by the president's office, Jeenbekov said he feared violence if he stayed in power. He noted that protesters were facing off against the police and the military. 6"I don't want to go down in history as a president who shed blood and shot at his own citizens," he said. 7Jeenbekov said the situation in Bishkek "remains tense"and that he did not want to worsen those tensions. He urged opposition politicians to get their supporters off the streets and "bring peaceful life back to the people." 8Parliament must officially approve his resignation. The speaker of the parliament, Kanat Isayev, told reporters the parliament's members would meet Friday to consider it. 9Krygyzstan is home to 6.5 million people. The country was pushed into chaos following parliamentary elections on October 4. Election officials claim that pro-government parties won the vote. But the opposition said that vote-buying and other problems influenced the results. 10Protesters took to the streets, seizing government buildings and attacking some offices. The Central Election Commission cancelled the election results. The opposition then announced plans to remove Jeenbekov and form a new government. 11As the protests grew, Jeenbekov announced a state of emergency in Bishkek. Government officials deployed troops to the city and ordered a curfew. The move eased tensions in the city as citizens stopped fearing the violence and destruction that they had experienced with earlier uprisings. Stores and banks reopened. 12To try to stop the protests, Jeenbekov on Wednesday approved the appointment of Sadyr Zhaparov as prime minister. The former lawmaker was freed from jail by demonstrators last week. Jeenbekov also approved the newly-appointed members of Zhaparov's new Cabinet. 13Zhaparov has repeatedly demanded Jeenbekov's resignation and promised his supporters to push for it. The Kyrgyz leader had said he would stay in the job until the political situation had calmed. 14Kyrgyzstan is one of the poorest countries that gained independence from the former Soviet Union. It is a member of Russian-controlled economic and security agreements. It receives economic support from Russia. 15A Russian government spokesman said Thursday that his country would "pause" its support for Kyrgyzstan because "there is no government as such, as far as we see." 16I'm Susan Shand. 17The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 18________________________________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20uprising - n. popular demonstrations against a government 21chaos - n. complete anarchy 22shed - v. to cry or to draw blood 23pause - v. to stop a moment to consider the outcome of events or actions