Kyrgyz opposition leaders claim control

Results of this year’s disputed parliamentary elections, which triggered the opposition push for Akayev’s ousting, were annulled by the Supreme Court after Thursday’s takeover. The previous parliament has been declared still valid, but members of the recently elected body also have been meeting.

The parliament’s action came as a semblance of calm returned to the capital Bishkek after two nights of looting and sporadic gunfire that marred celebrations of the sudden political change and underline the challenges facing the Central Asian country’s new leaders.

Iskander Sharshiyev, an opposition leader whose group has been working with police to restore order, said three people he described as “pillagers” were killed overnight amid clashes between police and looters.

Akayev’s whereabouts remained a mystery. Russia’s Interfax news agency, citing unspecified sources, said he had arrived in Russia last night.

Russian President Vladimir Putin had said yesterday that Russia would not object if Akayev wanted to come to the country.

Akayev apparently has not resigned and the technical legitimacy of the new leaders in power in Kyrgyzstan remains unclear.

Last night, mobs of youths roamed the rain-slicked streets of the Kyrgyz capital, wielding sticks and throwing stones at cars after dark, with streetlights shut off and most civilians staying at home because of the tension.

Helmeted police in bullet-proof vests chased the rowdy crowds and fired shots in the air, and volunteers for the interim government helped in efforts to restore order – a major test of the former opposition leaders now in charge.

Anger over disputed February and March elections fuelled massive protests that brought down the government. But the fallout from those elections was still being felt today, with two competing national legislatures jockeying for authority.

In the Parliament building, members of the restored legislature made up of politicians who served before the disputed elections met in one room, while politicians elected in the recent voting gathered in another.

The Supreme Court has declared the recent elections invalid, but winners in the voting – which the opposition now in charge said was marred by fraud - challenged the authority of the restored legislature.

“Our opinion is that we should be the legitimate lawmakers, because the people have chosen us,” said Roman Shin, elected in the voting the court said was invalid. He said the former politicians who had returned to parliament “don’t want to abandon power”.

Shin claimed the recently-elected legislature had more support than the restored old parliament or the opposition leaders now leading the country.

“The revolution was made by 5,000 people,” he said, referring to the swelling crowd that gathered outside the presidential and government headquarters Thursday before some of its members stormed the building and took it over.

The fall of Akayev’s government came swiftly on Thursday after weeks of intensifying protests in the South, propelled by widespread anger over the parliamentary elections. A swelling crowd in Bishkek marched to the central square, and hundreds stormed the government headquarters, overcoming riot police who put up little resistance.

Bakiyev and other opposition leaders said Akayev had fled the country but they did not know where he was.

“An unconstitutional coup d’etat has been staged in Kyrgyzstan,” a statement purportedly from Akayev said. “My current stay outside the country is temporary. Rumours of my resignation are deliberate, malicious lies.”

In the e-mailed statement, with the sender listed as the Kyrgyz presidential press service, Akayev said he had given orders not to use force during the uprising, ignoring the advice of his aides, and that he had left the country to avoid bloodshed.

Akayev’s spokesman, Dosali Esenaliyev, said he did not know of the statement’s existence, and its authenticity could not be determined.