Kyrgyzstan’s President Sooronbai Jeenbekov resigned on Thursday (October 15). This follows 10 days of unrest over the disputed election. Jeenbekov said he wanted to avoid clashes between security forces and protesters calling for his resignation.
Kyrgyzstan has been in turmoil since the Oct. 4 parliamentary elections, which the opposition refused to accept after Genbekov’s allies were declared the winners.
Authorities declared the vote invalid after opposition supporters took to the streets and occupied government buildings. Genbekov announced last week that he would resign, but this week he postponed his resignation, saying he would remain in office until new elections were held.
On Wednesday, Genbekov accepted parliament’s decision to select Sadyr Japarov as prime minister. Japarov, a nationalist, was released from prison last week by his supporters. Japarov and his followers have called for Genbekov’s departure.
Kyrgyzstan, a small Central Asian country bordering China and formerly a republic of the Soviet Union, has been experiencing civil unrest for years. Since 2005, Genbekov is the third president to be overthrown by a popular uprising.
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