Police Fire Tear Gas at Protesters in Kyrgyzstan, Interfax Says

(Bloomberg) -- Police in Kyrgyzstan used tear gas and stun grenades to disperse protesters in the capital, Bishkek, who had gathered to denounce the results of elections dominated by pro-presidential parties, the Interfax news service reported Monday.

Law enforcement drove back protesters who attempted to storm the parliament building, which also houses the office of the president, according to Interfax. Observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe have said Sunday’s elections in the central Asian republic were tainted by allegations of vote-buying.

President Sooronbay Jeenbekov, who has friendly ties with Russia, won election in 2017, backed by his predecessor Almazbek Atambayev, who was later charged with abuse of power. A Kyrgyz court sentenced the former president to 11 years and 2 months in prison for involvement in the 2013 release of a convicted mobster, Eurasianet.org reported in June.

Rich in gold and other minerals, Kyrgyzstan hosts a strategic Russian military base and is a member of the Moscow-led Eurasian Economic Union. Bordering China, it’s had a turbulent history since independence in 1992 after the Soviet Union’s collapse. The first Kyrgyz president, Askar Akayev, was overthrown in the 2005 “Tulip Revolution,” and his successor, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, fled into exile in 2010, when rioters stormed the presidential palace amid corruption allegations.

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