WELCOME TO IWPR'S REPORTING CENTRAL ASIA, No. 593, October 23, 2009 KYRGYZ REFORMS LEAVE PRESIDENT STRONGER Plan for leaner, tighter government seems as much about increasing presidents role as about turning economy round. By Timur Toktonaliev and Ainagul Abdrakhmanova in Bishkek
DISMAY AS KAZAK COURT UPHOLDS ZHOVTIS CONVICTION Western diplomats join OSCE and rights activists in questioning judges decision that trial was sound. 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For more information about how you can support IWPR go to: http://iwpr.net/donate **** www.iwpr.net ******************************************************************** KYRGYZ REFORMS LEAVE PRESIDENT STRONGER Plan for leaner, tighter government seems as much about increasing presidents role as about turning economy round. By Timur Toktonaliev and Ainagul Abdrakhmanova in Bishkek Wide-ranging reforms announced by President Kurmanbek Bakiev were headlined as an attempt to overcome economic crisis by means of technocratic government and sweeping away bureaucracy. However, some aspects of the new structure look suspiciously like an attempt to concentrate power in the presidents hands. President Bakiev unveiled details of his much-anticipated reform package at an October 20 meeting with central and local government officials. Before embarking on economic reforms, he said, governance systems themselves must be restructured, starting with his own presidential office. As a result, the current presidential administration has been abolished, and replaced by a Presidential Institution with less staff but with several new functions and much more authority. In the presidents words, this becomes the unified decision-making body. In line with the economic focus of the reforms, the Institution will include a Central Agency for Development, Investment and Innovation. For less obvious reasons, it will also include the foreign minister, and a presidential advisor for defense, security, and law and order, who takes over the functions of the now-defunct national Security Council, on which the defence, internal affairs and other power ministers used to sit. The Presidential Institution also acquires direct control over the state security service and the financial police. Also within the Presidential Institution is a new council called the Presidential Council. When Bakiev outlined his reforms to parliament in early December, it appeared that this body would draw its members from various interest groups, but it is now looking more like a super-cabinet, with the presidents new defence and security adviser, the foreign minister, the prime minister and the speaker of parliament among its members. For the government itself, Bakiev prescribed a massive streamlining of civil servants in the ministries, in a bid to slash a bureaucracy that he said had proven itself incapable of pro-active planning to combat the ongoing economic crisis. He noted that the reduced wage burden on government would be an additional benefit. As the president made clear in his speech, this phase is about fixing the structural obstacles to change, and the substantive economic policy decisions are yet to come. At this point, politicians and commentators are divided on whether the reforms are enough to steer Kyrgyzstan out of troubled economic waters. Begaly Nargozuev, a member of parliament from Bakievs Ak Jol party, is certain that things are going to get better. These reforms are likely to produce results, since many things have been achieved so far. There is no way back, he said. Mars Sariev, an independent political analyst, argues that making the presidency look visibly different is essential to recruiting highly educated technocrats capable of delivering effective government, who might not have wanted to work in the old structure. This had to be done, with a new title and new, more attractive watchwords, so as to make educated intellectuals more inclined to join the Presidential Institution, he said. Pavel Dyatlenko, an analyst at the Polis Asia think-tank, believes the new development and investment agency shows how serious the president is about having direct control over the way economic policy is planned and resources distributed. Dyatlenko believe the plan is designed to ensure political stability, which in turn creates a window for modernisation led from the top. If this is carried through successfully, President Bakiev will go down in history as a reformer, he added. Dyatlenko is less enthusiastic about the reduction in the army of public servants, calling it a step to increase the presidents popularity rating by showing that the state cares about its people at a time of hardship. In reality, he said, The practical efficacy of this step is questionable, as reorganising government institutions and finding employment for a large number of redundant civil servants will take substantial resources, which are in short supply during this economic crisis. If it leads to economies in government funds, that will happen only after some time. Arkady Dubnov, a Moscow-based journalist and veteran Central Asia-watcher, believes Bakiev wants to use the new structures to bring together a variety of political interest groups. Creating the Presidential Institution represents a solution to the problems surrounding him [Bakiev], and to regional and clan strife, says Dubnov. Regional, tribal and clan affinities remain important factors in Kyrgyz politics. Dubnov does not, however, think Bakiev will achieve his overarching aim of turning the economy around. His idea that this reform will provide the impetus for an economic breakthrough is unlikely to come to fruition, because Kyrgyzstan is a country without resources, without high levels of human capacity among officials, and with little in the way of financial investment, said Dubnov. Reshuffling the bureaucracy and redistributing the functions are hardly going to produce economic change. The most controversial part of Bakievs reform package is the appropriation of foreign affairs and security functions which traditionally with the government led by the prime minister. Bakievs explanation of why the foreign minister should shift from government to presidency was that this role should involve oversight of all ministries and agencies which have a foreign policy element to their activities. As for the security sector changes, Dubnov suggested that the Kyrgyz leadership might be trying to create more effective systems for striking at corruption a move which could win Bakiev a lot of popular support. Cholpon Nogoibayeva, who heads the Institute for Public Studies in Bishkek, is worried by the growing focus on internal security. The problem of terrorism is now discussed constantly, and the budget for equipping and building up the security forces is being expanded. The trend is towards strengthening the security services, and that explains why they are being hived off from government, she said. Kyrgyzstan is turning into a police state. Nogoibayeva predicts that from now on it will be the Presidential Institution that governs it will shape policies, while the cabinet is left to implement them. Sariev agrees with this view, adding that the government was being set up to serve as a scapegoat. They always need someone they can blame for everything later on, he added. On October 21, the day after the president unveiled his reforms, Prime Minister Igor Chudinov and his cabinet stepped down to make way for the changes. His replacement was named as Daniyar Usenov, until that point the head of Bakievs administration. Timur Toktonaliev and Ainagul Abdrakhmanova are IWPR-trained journalists in Bishkek. DISMAY AS KAZAK COURT UPHOLDS ZHOVTIS CONVICTION Western diplomats join OSCE and rights activists in questioning judges decision that trial was sound. By Ainagul Abdrakhmanova in Bishkek There has been widespread criticism of this weeks appeal court decision to confirm a prison sentence passed last month against Yevgeny Zhovtis, a leading human rights defender in Kazakstan. On October 20, the Almaty regional court upheld the four-year sentence given to Zhovtis, who heads the Kazakstan Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law. He was convicted on September 3 of causing the death of a pedestrian by dangerous driving. (For a report on the trial, see Kazakstan: Jailing of Rights Activist Condemned, RCA No. 588, 10-Sep-09) Human rights groups and western diplomats have expressed disappointment that the appeals hearing failed to address concerns about possible procedural violations during the initial trial, and renewed calls for a review of the case. At the appeals session, the judge either rejected outright or suspended judgement on all except one of the motions put to him by Zhovtiss defence team. One of these was a request for new forensic tests to determine technical aspects of the accident. Lawyers for Zhovtis say he was denied an opportunity to question the conduct of forensic testing early on in the investigation, because investigators failed to inform him that his initial status of witness had been changed to that of suspect. Judge Yerzhan Totybay-Tegi turned down a plea for the defendant to be allowed to attend his appeals hearing, but did accept into evidence a statement by the dead mans mother that she had forgiven Zhovtis and wanted the charges against him dropped. The decision to stand by the verdict elicited a wave of criticism from western diplomats, local and foreign human rights activists and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, OSCE, which Kazakstan is to chair next year. The United States embassy voiced concern at the decision and urged the Kazak government to launch a review of the way the case had been dealt with procedurally. Although in this case the Almaty court is the highest place the defendant can appeal to, the law provides for procedural reviews to ensure due process has been followed. The French foreign ministry noted that Zhovtis was not present at the hearing and said that the rights of the defence were not fully respected, adding that it hoped the verdict could be reviewed. The head of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, Janez Lenarcic, issued a statement on October 21, saying, "We are dismayed by the appeal court's reported failure to appropriately address the apparent violations of due process that occurred during the initial trial. Lenarcic said that while Zhovtis should not be entitled to special treatment, it was the responsibility of the Kazak authorities to guarantee his right to a fair trial as enshrined in OSCE documents. The New York-based Human Rights Watch called the ruling a terrible miscarriage of justice. Today's ruling is a blow for anyone who cares about fair trial standards in Kazakstan," said According to Rachel Denber, the groups deputy director for Europe and Central Asia. "The international community should continue to call for a new investigation and should measure Kazakstan by the standards it set for itself when it sought the chairmanship of the OSCE." Local human rights defenders were equally shocked, although less by the ruling itself than by the Kazak authorities apparent disregard for the numerous international expressions of concern, not least from the OSCE. Of course I had no illusions about the Kazak legal system, said Ninel Fokina, head of the Almaty Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, but there were so many violations during the initial trial that [on appeal] the verdict should have been annulled. Viktor Kovtunovsky, a political analyst and head of the Civil Society foundation said that although he had anticipated that Zhovtiss conviction would be upheld, he had been hoping the sentence would be lightened. Countries that supported Kazakstans OSCE chairmanship are now placed in an embarrassing situation by the authorities actions, said Kovtunovsky. They are going to have to respond to whats happening in Kazakstan in a very serious manner. Kovtunovsky says Kazakstan needs to be reminded of its obligations as an OSCE member in light of its forthcoming chairmanship. If the OSCE and its member states tolerate this, it this will mean that the OSCEs values dont exist, he said. Sergei Duvanov, a journalist who is leading the committee set up to defend Zhovtiss rights, said, It is a worrying trend that [President Nursultan] Nazarbaev is less and less receptive to views expressed by western countries. Kazakstan is going to chair the OSCE, so this is a direct challenge Kazakstan is trampling on all the principles of this organisation. Duvanov concluded, We do not have the right to lose hope, and we will fight for Zhovtiss freedom until we are successful. Ainagul Abdrakhmanova is an IWPR-trained journalist in Kyrgyzstan. **** www.iwpr.net ******************************************************************** REPORTING CENTRAL ASIA provides the international community with a unique insiders' perspective on the region. Using our network of local journalists, the service publishes news and analysis from across Central Asia on a weekly basis. The service forms part of IWPR's Central Asia Project based in Almaty, Bishkek, Tashkent and London, which supports media development and encourages better local and international understanding of the region. IWPR's Reporting Central Asia is supported by the UK Community Fund. The service is published online in English and Russian. 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