By empty (11/8/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)
The announcement follows a day of clashes between government and opposition supporters in Bishkek. Hundreds of troops are still on the streets, and rival demonstrations are set to carry on into the night. The violence, in which several people were injured, is the first in six days of protests by opposition supporters calling for the president to resign.
The announcement follows a day of clashes between government and opposition supporters in Bishkek. Hundreds of troops are still on the streets, and rival demonstrations are set to carry on into the night. The violence, in which several people were injured, is the first in six days of protests by opposition supporters calling for the president to resign. Parliament is due to vote on the new constitution on Wednesday. \"If the new constitution is adopted tomorrow, the protests will end,\" said Azimbek Beknazarov, a leader of the opposition movement For Reforms. Parliament speaker Marat Sultanov said the draft called for a 90-member parliament instead of the current 75, and the majority grouping after parliamentary elections would form a government. There has been no immediate comment from President Bakiyev. Earlier on Tuesday, the opposition presented their own draft constitution - which the government rejected. The Kyrgyz president described the opposition move as an open attempt to seize power. But legislators who back the president have now endorsed the compromise deal. AFP news agency quoted opposition MP Almaz Atambayev as saying they changed their minds after the protests turned violent. \"The pro-Bakiyev MPs, after the shots, understood that the country was being led in the wrong direction,\" he said. President Bakiyev had warned before the deal was made that he could dissolve parliament. (BBC)