Tazeen Akhtar
Every one in the government of Kyrgyzstan is claiming that the situation was controlled on 18 May after the attacks of angry mobs of local youth and opposition party workers on the foreigners including Pakistani students and workers in Bishkek but no one is ready to answer “If situation was controlled and is in control why our 1000 students and workers had to leave their education and work their to run back as if their lives were in danger there?”
Ambassador and his staff in Islamabad are continuously pointing fingers at Pakistani journalists who ask questions or who make them see the real picture of what happened in Bishkek. Kyrgyz Embassy in Islamabad is dividing the journalists into two parts 1- Who say YES to whatever the embassy states 2- Who are not submissive and ask countering questions. The 2 category has been kept away from the briefing or interview of the Ambassador.
Bishkek Attacks : Destructive Forces , Especially in Pakistan, Deliberately Spread Totally False Information – Ambassador Kyrgyzstan
See, the embassy staff could not bear few questions of this scribe even, who is working on Pakistan Kyrgyzstan Relations for last two decades. I was the one who met Mr. Nuralan the first Ambassador who took charge when the embassy was opened in Islamabad in 2006. The Embassy staff who were issuing sweeping statements about me , may be studying in schools when I was working on bilateral relations.
Since then , I have seen Kyrgyzstan and her Ambassadors very closely. I know who from the embassy was terminated for corruption in Pakistan and who was honored for selfless contributions towards promotion of the bilateral cooperation. The best Ambassador of Kyrgyzstan was Mr. Erik Beishembiev who spent eventful years in Islamabad and enhanced mutual ties in very professional and honorable manner.
I hosted the incumbent Ambassador Mr. Ulanbek Totuiaev in our forum on bilateral relations only a couple of months. We discussed prospects of cooperation especially the students studying in Kyrgyzstan. Two high officials from a private university of Bishkek were also present while from Pakistani side President Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce, Director of Virtual University , Chairman of Inter Board Committee participated. Later we connected Virtual University with the Embassy. Thus , I was promoting the Kyrgyz side in Pakistan but what we had in return ………………………………
Kyrgyzstan is Gateway for Pakistani Businessmen to Eurasian Economic Union : Ambassador Ulanbek Totuiaev
Mr. Ulanbek Totuiaev said, “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic informs that destructive forces in foreign mass media, social networks, especially in the territory of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan deliberately spread totally false information about the situation in the Kyrgyz Republic that does not correspond to reality.”
Compare it with what the President of Kyrgyzstan stated in address to the nation. He said ,” We all saw the consequences of how various unverified information and video reels about the incident that occurred on May 13 were distributed on the Internet on May 18th. Yes, if law enforcement agencies had promptly taken action and disclosed that information in full to the public in a timely manner, perhaps these events would not have happened.”
Here their President is saying that the Kyrgyz social media actually, initially and freely spread the hateful material instigating the locals to gather with weapons and invade the hostels of foreigners. Moreover the President is confirming the leniency of the Law Enforcing Apparatus of his country timely. It can also be seen as conformity of the Police with the invaders. Remember Pakistani students mentioned that Police personnel were there but the locals were still free to do whatever they wanted.
President Kyrgyzstan For Not Allowing Unfortunate Events Again – Reminds Youth of Hospitality not Hostility as their Tradition – Admits Delay in Checking the False/Provocative Material Spread on Social Media
The Embassy of Kyrgyzstan can see here if Pakistani media is wrong then their own President is double wrong.
Ambassador skipped very important part of reality that clearly proves that everything was done with complete planning and full support from the influential political leaders in the region of Bishkek. I published that the local opposition party leaders literally stated that they are with the invaders. Later , the President of Kyrgyzstan admitted it in his national address.
The President stated, ” I want to say directly that those who were unable to come to power and do not approve of the current campaign against corruption, specifically created WhatsApp groups and fake accounts to spread such provocative information.”
Here again 2 points to consider and ponder upon :
1- Kyrgyz Opposition was fully involved and here no need to mention that political parties have their die hard workers to act on whatever directions they get from the leaders.
2- Again , the media and social media of Kyrgyzstan not Pakistan.
Now read it again – Mr. Ulanbek Totuiaev said, “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic informs that destructive forces in foreign mass media, social networks, especially in the territory of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan deliberately spread totally false information about the situation in the Kyrgyz Republic that does not correspond to reality.”
Here one can easily evaluate What their President is saying and What their Information Ministry is trying to prove. It shows there is no coordination among different departments of Kyrgyz government.
(Caption : Editor Tazeen Akhtar’s report in Daily Azkaar Islamabad on election in Kyrgyzstan in which hardliners were winning and it was only after the riots in Oash City in which one Pakistani student Ali Raza was killed by local mob)
Pakistani people have not forgotten the nightmare of the night of 10 June 2010 when one Pakistani student Ali Raza was killed and many other were injured in riots in Southern cities of Kyrgyzstan, Oash and Jalal Abad. The number of Pakistani students there was 12 Thousand at that time. Most of them were in the Oash City where 15 Pakistani students were made hostages as well. 84 people in total were killed and more than 1000 killed in the riots.
Mentionable here is the hardliner actions of political parties in Kyrgyzstan. Mainstream political parties are always at daggers drawn to one another. Few thousand people come on the roads and the governments are toppled. Kyrgyzstan is the only country in whole Central Asia with least political stability.
It proves the lack of tolerance and inclination towards violence. Ata-Zhurt or Ata-Jurat is considered the most hardliner conservative party. Mekenchil or Patriot party is incumbent government. Mainly they are the same people who were formerly with Ata-Zhurt. They split and formed Patriot party. May be they learnt from Pakistan when Gen Musharraf created PPP Patriots in 2002.
Bishkek Attacks : Students Matter Mishandled @ Both Sides – They are Frightened – Naturally Feel Insecure in Kyrgyzstan : Governor Sindh
Here question rises and even a commoner can better understand that Pakistani students and their parents and the journalists (Few only who took Reality than Relation) were justified to worry about the lives of the students in Bishkek in the background of unfortunate incidents of June 2010.
On 19 May 2024, When I shared this with Kyrgyz Embassy Whatsap Group – One official rejected it – She did not accept the plight of these two students and declared the local Rinat USUPBaev as innocent while Pakistani students identified him as one of the main provocateurs of the attacks – Then the setting of the Embassy whatsapp group was changed to only the admins can share in the group.
Our question is – We are bound to accept everything you claim or state or declare or we should see the worst condition of our students in your country – Better you make your country better for foreigners than judging the others according to your liking and disliking.
Do you now this is the age of android and i phones. It means students , students mean who were present on the spot and who are the victims, were recording the situation and sharing to their groups and families. Or you are still living in USSR, the state of denial was whose identity?
This was the scene in which the staff of the Embassy of Kyrgyzstan treated the journalists writing reality in the context of history as propagandists and fake news promoters. It was not only unjustified but actually it was total nonsense at the part of the Embassy. It also proved their authoritarian attitudes and non professional response to the situation. Instead of being apologetic , they were aggressive and blocking the journalists to approach them with questions or for their side of story.
Meanwhile, this scribe finding the be-wilderness at the Embassy, offered the Ambassador all the platforms of our media group to express himself on the matter what he considers is right. The staff of the Embassy received the questions as well. But even then the Embassy did show up for its point of view.
Later , on 29th May 2024, Ambassador called 4 journalists from dozens of representatives writing and speaking on the matter in Islamabad. Here no one has any issue, It is right of the Embassy who to invite who not. But interestingly the Embassy could not gather the courage to tell the uninvited that you are not invited as you are Persona Non Grata here.
Here the Embassy and a senior journalist Mian Fazal played with the journalists. Embassy shifted the responsibility of inviting the journalists to Mian Fazal while Mian Fazal himself was not present in the press brief and his name was not mentioned on the invitation card as well. When Mian Fazal was contacted , he with half heart admitted , Yes! I advised the Ambassador to hold a press brief. He did not admit that he invited the journalists. Both parties were shifting the burden of inviting only a few selected journalists on to each other.
This is the state of affairs at the Embassy of Kyrgyzstan and the same added to the already tense situation. Reading the statement of the President of Kyrgyzstan and comparing it with allegations of Ambassador of Kyrgyzstan, even a naive mind can conclude that Ambassador and his staff reacted in a very bad manner in Pakistan and about Pakistani media when they needed their support badly.
Last but not the Least – Let the children of the Staff of the Embassy of Kyrgyzstan in Islamabad and the children of Pakistani journalists who are avoiding to write for the rights of Pakistani students, go to some other country – They pay their life saved money in fee and accommodation there – then God Forbid , they are attacked by the local – Only then you can feel the pain through which our Pakistani students and their parents are passing these days.
Editor Tazeen Akhtar interviewed the very first Ambassador of Kyrgyzstan to Pakistan in 2006 for Daily Jinnah Islamabad
