 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
Adoption of the Constitution of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan and Law of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan 'Establishment of the Constitution of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan', which have been submitted by the Provisional Government as drafts of the referendum. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Results | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|---|
| Constitution |
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. [1] Parliamentary elections followed on 10 October 2010.
Following the ousting of Kurmanbek Bakiyev, the interim administration of Roza Otunbayeva called for a referendum to decrease presidential powers. The proposed constitution would make Kyrgyzstan Central Asia's first parliamentary republic.
In the weeks before the election ethnic unrest in the south of the country (Bakiyev's home region) in the cities of Osh and Jalal-Abad between minority Uzbeks and indigenous Kyrgyz curfew was imposed in a clampdown by Bishkek. Some refugees returned from camps in Uzbekistan amid a humanitarian crisis. The curfew was lifted for the elections. In Bishkek, the situation was reportedly "calm, with people displaying a mixture of skepticism and hope that the vote would create a new future for Kyrgyzstan." [2]
The vote came amid international fears over the stability of the country.
The interim government's deputy leader Omurbek Tekebayev responded to this criticism saying the foreign intelligence bureaus imply that the parliamentary democracy envisioned in the referendum was incompatible with Kyrgyzstan. "Some top officials from different states have spoken about a possible Afghanization of Kyrgyzstan, about a break-up of the state. I mean the statements by President Dmitry Medvedev and others. They may have been misinformed, that they blindly believe the officials from their special services who have long been at the service of the local oligarchs." [3]
The new constitution would make Kyrgyzstan a parliamentary democracy, [4] moving it away from a presidential system. The presidency would become a mostly ceremonial position, with officeholders serving a single term. [4] The president would have the right to veto legislation, but would not be able to dissolve parliament. Otunbayeva would also continue to hold the office of "President of the transitional period" until the end of 2011. [4]
The Supreme Council would be unicameral and have 120 seats, with no party able to hold more than 65. [4] Political parties based on religion or ethnicity would be banned, whilst Russian would replace Uzbek as the country's second official language. [4] Constitutional amendments would require a two-thirds majority in the Supreme Council. [4] The Supreme Council would also choose the Prime Minister and play a key role in forming the new government. [5]
The result was a resounding "Yes," with more than 90 percent of voters supporting the amendment to the constitution. [6] Voter turnout was 72%. The result, however, did not include many of the 400,000 ethnic Uzbeks who had left during recent ethnic clashes since they were residing in Uzbekistan at the time of the elections. [6]
| Choice | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| For | 1,777,339 | 91.82 | |
| Against | 158,373 | 8.18 | |
| Total | 1,935,712 | 100.00 | |
| Valid votes | 1,935,712 | 98.62 | |
| Invalid/blank votes | 27,092 | 1.38 | |
| Total votes | 1,962,804 | 100.00 | |
| Registered voters/turnout | 2,716,687 | 72.25 | |
| Source: Direct Democracy | |||
President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev said the result might lead to a "collapse of the state" as "eventually, won't it enable the political parties, which have extremist direction, to receive the power?".[ citation needed ] The U.S. Department of State praised the referendum and called upon the provisional government and people of Kyrgyzstan to "advance the process of reconciliation and accountability to ensure future interethnic harmony and move Kyrgyzstan forward on the path toward stability, security, democracy and prosperity for all citizens of the republic." [7]
Following the legislative election, with an expanded and further empowered parliament, the pro-Baikiyev Ata-Zhurt party won a plurality with 15.41% of the votes as it advocated rolling back the new laws and bringing the former president back from exile.
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. Turkic nomads, who trace their ancestry to many Turkic states such as the First and Second Turkic Khaganates, have inhabited the country throughout its history. In the 13th century, Kyrgyzstan was conquered by the Mongols; 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 an "authoritarian regime" in 2022.
Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia, lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir mountain ranges. Bishkek is the capital and largest city of the country. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and China to the east and southeast. Ethnic Kyrgyz make up the majority of the country's 7 million people, followed by significant minorities of Uzbeks and Russians.
The Tulip Revolution or First Kyrgyz Revolution led to President of Kyrgyzstan Askar Akayev's fall from power. The revolution began after parliamentary elections on February 27 and March 13, 2005. The revolutionaries alleged corruption and authoritarianism by Akayev, his family and supporters. Akayev fled to Kazakhstan and then to Russia. On April 4, 2005, at the Kyrgyz embassy in Moscow, Akayev signed his resignation statement in the presence of a Kyrgyz parliamentary delegation. The resignation was ratified by the Kyrgyz interim parliament on April 11, 2005.
The president of Kyrgyzstan, officially the president of the Kyrgyz Republic, is the head of state and head of government of the Kyrgyz Republic. The president directs the executive branch of the national government, is the commander-in-chief of the Kyrgyz military and also heads the National Security Council.
Roza Isakovna Otunbayeva is a Kyrgyz diplomat and politician who served as the President of Kyrgyzstan from 7 April 2010 until 1 December 2011, becoming the first female Central Asian head of state. She was sworn in on July 3, 2010, after acting as interim leader following the 2010 April Revolution, which led to the ousting of President Kurmanbek Bakiyev. She previously served as Minister of Foreign Affairs and as head of the parliamentary caucus for the Social Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan.
Kurmanbek Saliyevich Bakiyev is a Kyrgyz politician who served as the second president of Kyrgyzstan, from 2005 to 2010. Large opposition protests in April 2010 led to the takeover of government offices, forcing Bakiyev to flee the country.
Presidential elections were held in Kyrgyzstan on 10 July 2005. The result was a landslide victory for acting President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, marking the end of his interim government formed after the previous president, Askar Akayev, was overthrown in the revolution in March 2005.
The Supreme Council is the unicameral parliament of the Kyrgyz Republic. It was known as the Supreme Soviet of the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic until 1991.
Almazbek Sharshen uulu Atambayev is a Kyrgyz politician who served as the President of Kyrgyzstan from 1 December 2011 to 24 November 2017. He was Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan from 17 December 2010 to 1 December 2011, and from 29 March 2007 to 28 November 2007. He served as Chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan (SDPK) from 30 July 1999 to 23 September 2011.
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.
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.
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 overall and more than 0.5% in each of the nine provinces, capped at 65 seats per party.
The 2010 Kyrgyz Revolution, also known as the Second Kyrgyz Revolution, the Melon Revolution, the April Events or officially as the People's April Revolution, began in April 2010 with the ousting of Kyrgyz president Kurmanbek Bakiyev in the capital Bishkek. It was followed by increased ethnic tension involving Kyrgyz people and Uzbeks in the south of the country, which escalated in June 2010. The violence ultimately led to the consolidation of a new parliamentary system in Kyrgyzstan.
The 2010 South Kyrgyzstan ethnic clashes were clashes between ethnic Kyrgyz and Uzbeks in southern Kyrgyzstan, primarily in the cities of Osh and Jalal-Abad, in the aftermath of the ouster of former President Kurmanbek Bakiyev on 7 April. It is part of the larger Kyrgyz Revolution of 2010. Violence that started between Kyrgyz and Uzbeks on 19 May in Jalal-Abad escalated on 10 June in Osh.
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, 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.
Ata-Zhurt is a political party in Kyrgyzstan. Its political base is in the south of the country, but the party is headquartered in the capital, Bishkek. In 2014, it merged with the Respublika party to create Respublika–Ata Zhurt, but the two parties ended up splitting again four months before the parliamentary elections of 2020, in which Ata-Zhurt instead formed a joint list with Mekenim Kyrgyzstan. After the results of that vote were annulled, Ata-Zhurt contested the 2021 elections independently and came in first with 19% of the vote. The party is led by Kamchybek Tashiyev, and has previously supported the ousted former President Kurmanbek Bakiyev.
Sadyr Nurgojo uulu Japarov is a Kyrgyz politician who is currently serving as the president of Kyrgyzstan since 28 January 2021. He had previously served as the acting prime minister of Kyrgyzstan in the 2020 interim government following the resignation of President Sooronbay Jeenbekov. Japarov also became acting president of Kyrgyzstan after Jeenbekov's resignation but resigned himself on 14 November 2020 to run for the 2021 presidential election, where he was elected to succeed the acting president Talant Mamytov.
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% of voters chose to readopt a presidential system.
| Presidential elections | |
|---|---|
| Parliamentary elections | |
| Local elections | |
| Referendums | |
