On May 3, the Independent International Commission of Inquiry (Kyrgyzstan Inquiry Commission – KIC) presented its long-awaited report on the inter-ethnic conflict in southern Kyrgyzstan that took place in June last year. The KIC found the Uzbek minority to have been disproportionally victimized in the conflict, provided evidence of official complicity, and claimed that some of the violent acts committed can be considered crimes against humanity. The report stated that increasing political fanaticism based on ethno-nationalistic sentiments in the wake of April 7 events became the main reason for the tragic conflict. A power vacuum and consequent political rivalries and weak state institutions especially in the south of the country contributed to the eruption of violent clashes, the commission reported.

The report findings were based on 750 interviews, 700 documents and numerous photo and video materials. The commission, consisting of seven highly respected international experts and headed by Kimmo Kiljunen, a member of the Finnish Parliament and OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Special Representative for Central Asia, was mandated by the Kyrgyz President Roza Otunbaeva to conduct the investigation. Apart from the KIC, there are two other commissions, one national and one parliamentary, officially established to investigate the causes of the conflict. Whereas the former presented its findings a few months ago, the latter has promised to publicize its results in the coming weeks.

The KIC established that out of 470 killed, 74 percent were ethnic Uzbek and 25 percent Kyrgyz, leading to the conclusion that the Uzbek community suffered significantly more than their Kyrgyz neighbors. “Hundreds of thousands of people were displaced, not to mention the wide-scale damage to property, most of which was Uzbek-owned”, the report stated. With no intention to downplay the brutal violence against Kyrgyz by Uzbeks, the KIC claimed that certain attacks against the Uzbeks had a systematic nature and can be qualified as crimes against humanity under international law on human rights. Moreover, according to the report, the arrests, criminal investigations and trials after the June events have selectively targeted mainly ethnic Uzbeks. “Currently, 80 percent of the prosecuted after the June events are of Uzbek ethnicity”, the report said.

Furthermore, the commission reported that the Interim Government (IG) led by President Otunbaeva “failed to recognize or underestimated the deterioration of the situation in southern Kyrgyzstan”. Despite the fragile political situation and weak state structures caused by the April government change, the IG was still responsible for providing basic protection for all citizens but failed in this respect, the commission said. Moreover, the KIC claimed to have evidence of the Kyrgyz military, which is mostly made up of ethnic Kyrgyz, taking part in the violence by supporting the ethnic majority.

In turn, the Kyrgyz government responded with a 23-page commentary to the report, where it avoided rejecting the conclusions at large but disagreed with almost all points in the document. “The value and effectiveness of the commission’s work was significantly decreased in view of serious deficiencies making some of the conclusions and findings of the KIC unacceptable”, the commentary stated. The Kyrgyz authorities rejected the commission’s allegations against the IG, claiming that the authorities succeeded in containing the conflict within 3-4 days, thus preventing a large-scale humanitarian catastrophe. Furthermore, the Kyrgyz government regretted that the KIC was unable to identify the forces which had planned and organized the conflict despite numerous pieces of evidence implying that the clashes were provoked.

The Kyrgyz government has repeatedly blamed the supporters of former President Kurmanbek Bakiev and criminal circles for instigating the conflict. However, the KIC presented no facts to support such allegations, as it has not found any evidence incriminating Uzbek minority leaders, including Kadyrjan Batyrov who was reputed as the villain of the conflict in the national commission’s investigation.

The KIC called upon the Kyrgyz authorities to take “numerous measures on inclusive state building and reconciliation. Kyrgyzstan should take a strong public stand against extreme nationalism and ethnic exclusivity”, the report recommended. While agreeing with some of the recommendations, the Kyrgyz side rejected a number of the KIC proposals including the renaming the Kyrgyz Republic to the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, and giving a special status to the Uzbek language in regions with large Uzbek populations.

The KIC’s recommendation on the Uzbek language, as well as the report findings at large, caused an emotional public reaction. Numerous statements by various public groups heavily criticized the commission’s work calling it “biased and one-sided” and claimed that this report may contribute to escalating further inter-ethnic tensions.

Many analysts agree that the report findings will be interpreted differently by various groups and warned that the findings may become a subject of political manipulation in light of the upcoming anniversary of the June events and the presidential elections in the fall of this year.