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The Constitution of Kyrgyzstan was the supreme law of the Kyrgyz Republic. The constitution in force from 2010 until 2021 was passed by referendum on June 27, 2010, [1] replacing the previous constitution. It introduced a strong parliament to the country, reducing the power of the historically strong president. The constitution is similar in many ways to the previous one.
This constitution was replaced by the current Constitution of Kyrgyzstan in April 2021.
The referendum passed with 90% of the votes and 70% voter turnout, despite 400,000 people, mostly ethnic Uzbeks, having fled ethnic violence in the south of the country who had still not returned. This replaced the older constitution.
The constitution replaced the old immediately upon publication of the voting results, although according to the document, limited sections do not come into force until later.
Despite fears of illegitimacy due to the recent violence, there were no major reports of violence or fraud during the election. International monitor organizations such as the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe approved of the vote. Prior to voting day the government dropped leaflets over Bishkek, urging citizens to remain peaceful and keep the future of their country in mind. [2]
Support for the constitution was strong throughout the country and among all major ethnic groups, despite a relatively low voter turnout in the south of the country and some fears that a parliamentary system would be weaker than a single strong president. [3]
Prior to the drafting of the document, input was received from the Venice Commission, who later said they were pleased with the result. [4] [5]
President Dmitriy Medvedev of Russia stated concerns that it would lead to instability and volatility, giving rise to extremism. [4]
The constitution legislated a shift in the country's politics away from a presidential system and toward a parliamentary system, reducing the power of the president. The last two presidents of Kyrgyzstan under the old system, Askar Akayev and Kurmanbek Bakiyev, were ousted in revolutions.
Under the new constitution, the president serves a single six-year term and cannot be re-elected. [3] Although the president is weaker in the new system than previously, the presidency is not a figurehead position as in many parliamentary systems. The president has veto power and the ability to appoint heads of state bodies.
The constitution limits any single political party to 65 of the parliament's 120 seats as an unusual way to limit power concentration. In addition, political parties may not be founded on ethnic or religious grounds, and members of the police, armed forces, and judiciary are prohibited from joining parties. [4]
The document gives significant mention to human rights in Kyrgyzstan, particularly section two. It declares men and women to be equal and prohibits discrimination in article 16. The rights of prisoners are outlined in article 20, including a ban on the death penalty and torture.
In 2016, while several amendments to the constitution were being considered for passage, government officials were unable to locate the original document. [6] The office of President Almazbek Atambayev claimed that the Ministry of Justice possessed the constitution, while the Ministry said that the document was being held by the Presidential Administration. The President's office eventually claimed that an original copy of the document had never existed, it was simply reprinted in newspapers when it was passed in 2010. [7]
The constitution is split into nine sections comprising 114 separate articles. The sections, which are structured similarly to the old constitution are:
In addition, there is a last section which details the implementation of the constitution, including date of effect, nullification of the previous constitution, and creation of the interim government.
The history of the Kyrgyz people and the land now called Kyrgyzstan goes back more than 3,000 years. Although geographically isolated by its mountainous location, it had an important role as part of the historical Silk Road trade route. In between periods of self-government it was ruled by Göktürks, the Uyghur Empire, and the Khitan people, before being conquered by the Mongols in the 13th century; subsequently it regained independence but was invaded by Kalmyks, Manchus and Uzbeks. In 1876 it became part of the Russian Empire, remaining in the USSR as the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic after the Russian Revolution. Following Mikhael Gorbachev's democratic reforms in the USSR, in 1990 pro-independence candidate Askar Akayev was elected president of the SSR. On 31 August 1991, Kyrgyzstan declared independence from Moscow, and a democratic government was subsequently established.
The politics of Kyrgyzstan, officially known as the Kyrgyz Republic, takes place in the framework of a presidential system representative democratic republic, whereby the President is head of state and the Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers is head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament. The Economist Intelligence Unit rated Kyrgyzstan a "hybrid regime" in 2019.
The Kyrgyz Republic, commonly known as Kyrgyzstan, is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and China to the east. Its capital and largest city is Bishkek. Ethnic Kyrgyz make up the majority of the country's six million people, followed by significant minorities of Uzbeks and Russians. The Kyrgyz language is closely related to other Turkic languages, although Russian remains spoken and is a co-official language. Ninety percent of Kyrgyzstan's population are Muslim, with the majority of its population following Sunni Islam. In addition to its Turkic origins, Kyrgyz culture bears elements of Iranic, Mongolian and Russian influence.
Parliamentary elections were held in Kyrgyzstan on 27 February and 13 March 2005. The belief that the elections had been rigged by the government led to widespread protests, culminating in the Tulip Revolution on 24 March in which President Askar Akayev was overthrown.
The president of Kyrgyzstan is both the head of state and the head of government and the highest official of the Kyrgyz Republic. The president, according to the constitution, "is the symbol of the unity of people and state power, and is the guarantor of the Constitution of the Kyrgyz Republic, and of an individual and citizen." The president is directly elected for no more than one six-year term by the Kyrgyz electorate. The office of president was established in 1990 replacing the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet that existed, in different forms, from 1927 whilst the country was known as the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic.
Presidential elections were held in Kyrgyzstan on 10 July 2005. The result was a landslide victory for acting President Kurmanbek Bakiev, marking the end of his interim government formed after the previous president, Askar Akayev, was overthrown in the revolution in March 2005.
Human rights in Kyrgyzstan improved after the ouster of President Askar Akayev in the 2005 Tulip Revolution and the installment of a more democratic government under Roza Otunbayeva. While the country is performing well compared to other states in Central Asia, many human rights violations still take place. Especially LGBT rights have been getting worse in recent years, freedom of press on the contrary has been improving.
The Jogorku Kenesh is the unicameral Parliament of the Kyrgyz Republic. It was known as the Supreme Soviet of the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic until 1991.
A new constitution of Kyrgyzstan was passed by referendum on 21 October 2007. It is based on the first post-Soviet constitution originally adopted on 5 May 1993.
A constitutional referendum was held in Kyrgyzstan on 21 October 2007, following the constitutional crisis caused by amendments passed since the Tulip Revolution in 2005 being invalidated by the Constitutional Court of Kyrgyzstan on 14 September 2007. Voters were asked whether questions on a new constitution and electoral law. Both were approved by over 95% of voters.
The Republic of Niger has had seven constitutions, two substantial constitutional revisions, and two periods of rule by decree since its independence from French colonial rule in 1960. The current "Seventh Republic" operates under the Constitution of 2010.
Women in Kyrgyzstan traditionally had assigned roles, although only the religious elite sequestered women as was done in other Muslim societies. Rural inhabitants continue the traditional Siberian tribal practice of bride kidnapping. Bride kidnapping, known as ala kachuu, girls as young as 12 years old are kidnapped for forced marriage, by being captured and carried away by groups of men or even relatives who, through violence or deception, take the girl to the abductor's family who forces and coerces the young woman to accept the illegal marriage. In most cases, the young woman is raped immediately in the name of marriage.[8]
Early presidential elections were held in Kyrgyzstan on 30 October 2011 to replace Interim President Roza Otunbayeva. Former Prime Minister Almazbek Atambayev of the Social Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan won in the first round.
A constitutional referendum was held in Kyrgyzstan on 27 June 2010 to reduce presidential powers and strengthen democracy in the wake of the riots earlier in the year. Parliamentary elections followed on 10 October 2010.
Early parliamentary elections were held in Kyrgyzstan on 10 October 2010. All 120 seats of the Supreme Council were elected by the party list system. Seats were allocated to all parties who obtained more than 5% of the vote and more than 0.5% in each of the nine provinces, capped at 65 seats per party.
A constitutional referendum was held in Armenia on 6 December 2015. Its amendments to the constitution put the country on a course from having a semi-presidential system to being a parliamentary republic, with the changes beginning to take place during the 2017–18 electoral cycle. The referendum passed with 66.2% of voters supporting it. Voter turnout was 50.8%, passing the 33% threshold to validate the results.
A constitutional referendum was held in Kyrgyzstan on 11 December 2016. The constitutional amendments were approved by around 80% of voters.
Snap parliamentary elections are scheduled to be held in Kyrgyzstan on 28 November 2021. They follow the annulment of the results of the October 2020 elections and the subsequent protests.
A referendum was held in Kyrgyzstan on 10 January 2021 alongside presidential elections. The referendum asked voters if Kyrgyzstan should adopt a presidential system of government, a parliamentary system, or neither. 84.1% of voters chose to readopt a presidential system.
The Constitution of Kyrgyzstan is the supreme law of the Kyrgyz Republic. Kyrgyzstan first got a constitution in 1993, a year and a half after the country had gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. It has gone through a few constitutions, with the last one being adopted in April 2021.
