Kyrgyzstan

Daughter Of 'Mastermind' Of Andijon Unrest Arrested

A picture taken in Andijon prior to the crackdown by the Uzbek military (epa) July 20, 2006 -- The daughter of Akram Yuldoshev, the alleged leader of a banned religious group, is reported to be among six Uzbeks who were arrested earlier this week in the southern Kyrgyz city of Osh.

Kyrgyz police accuse the six of being involved in last year's violence in the eastern Uzbek city of Andijon.


Police say they found 400 grams of explosives during a search of one of the suspects' houses on July 18.


Uzbek authorities accuse Yuldoshev's group, Akramiya, of being behind the antigovernment protests in Andijon, and that Yuldoshev masterminded the violence from his prison cell.


He was sentenced in 1999 to 17 years in prison for anticonstitutional activities.


Witnesses claim government troops opened fire on a peaceful protest in Andijon on May 13, 2005, killing hundreds. The Uzbek government describes the incident as an armed uprising and maintains that 187 people -- all either "terrorists," police, or soldiers -- were killed in the ensuing crackdown.


(ferghana.ru)

Andijon Anniversary Conference

Andijon Anniversary Conference

Violence in Andijon, Uzbekistan, on May 14, 2005 (epa)

TALKING ABOUT ANDIJON: On May 9, 2006, RFE/RL, the National Endowment for Democracy, and U.S.-based human rights organizations cohosted a conference on the May 2005 events in Andijon and their aftermath in Uzbekistan and throughout the region. The first panel featured Andijon eyewitness GALIMA BUKHARBAEVA, National Endowment for Democracy Fellow NOZIMA KAMALOVA, RFE/RL Central Asia analyst DANIEL KIMMAGE, and others. The second panel featured presentations by U.S. Senator JOHN MCCAIN and U.S. Congressman CHRISTOPHER SMITH, who used the forum to announce they had introduced legislation calling for sanctions and other measures against the government of President Islam Karimov.


LISTEN

Listen to the Andijon conference.
Part One (70 minutes):
Real Audio Windows Media
Part Two (60 minutes):
Real Audio Windows Media
The Uzbek government's response:
Real Audio Windows Media


THE COMPLETE STORY: A dedicated webpage bringing together all of RFE/RL's coverage of the events in Andijon, Uzbekistan, in May 2005 and their continuing repercussions.


CHRONOLOGY

For an annotated timeline of the Andijon events and their repercussions, click here.