Bishkek's NGO plan worries Washington

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov asked other countries, including the United States, not to interfere in the internal affairs of the republic. This is how he interpreted the letter of the American Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who expressed his concern about the draft law on foreign agents that may be adopted in Kyrgyzstan. Mr Japarov said a small but "vocal group" of NGOs funded by other countries was "speculating about their own difficulties and persecution". Allegedly, this forces the foreign entities sponsoring them to "follow their lead" and "spend US and EU taxpayers' money". According to the president of Kyrgyzstan, those NGOs spread "false, unreliable information" among people. He suggested conducting an audit of non-governmental and non-profit organizations funded by the United States.

The US is concerned about the draft law on foreign agents that will be passed in Kyrgyzstan. It should be recalled that US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken wrote about this in a letter to Kyrgyz leader Sadyr Japarov. The letter stated that "an active civil society is a key part of Kyrgyzstan's democracy, and the bill (if passed) could have a negative impact on the whole situation." Thus, according to Mr. Blinken, the bill in its current form "jeopardizes citizens' access to important services in health and education." But the fact is that many of them are implemented through NGO programs funded by the US government and international partners.

The secretary of state told the Kyrgyz leader that some American partners are concerned about the law and are considering suspending operations in Kyrgyzstan: “I urge you to weigh these concerns and discuss them with parliamentary leaders. I hope that we can continue to strengthen bilateral relations between the United States and Kyrgyzstan." At the same time, E. Blinken warned, without going into further details, that "We have already seen the negative consequences of the adoption of such laws."

The amendment to the law on NGOs was proposed by deputy Nadira Narmatova at the beginning of last year. He made a proposal to include the term "foreign representative" in the legislation for NGOs financed from abroad, as well as to create a register of such organizations. Entering the register will mean that the organization is allowed to operate in the country. N. Narmatova also suggested expanding the powers of the state in relation to NGOs: the authorities will be given the opportunity to unilaterally suspend the activities of the organization for a period of six months for violating the law. It is also envisaged to give authorities the right to remove organizations from this register, which in most cases will result in their closure.

In addition, non-commercial organizations are supposed to be banned from participating in any political activities - from the investigation of corruption cases to rallies. For this purpose, Nadira Narmatova proposes to include the article "Creating a non-profit organization that attacks the identity and rights of citizens" in the Criminal Code. Violation of this article will be punishable by a fine of 50-100 thousand soms (1 som is equal to 0.0190 manats-ed.) or imprisonment for up to five years. A fine of 100-200 thousand soms or imprisonment for a term of up to ten years is provided for active participation in the activities of such associations and propaganda of such organizations. The project was almost unanimously adopted by the constitutional committee of the parliament in the second reading.

According to statistics, more than 30 thousand NGOs are registered in Kyrgyzstan today. Official Bishkek highlights the importance of legal regulations in this area. However, Washington declares that it considers the Kyrgyz initiative "a threat to civil society". However, Mr. Japarov's letter to the US Secretary of State shows that Bishkek will not budge on this issue. The Kyrgyz leader said in his letter that Bishkek supports equal cooperation with the United States and is ready to work with all countries and international partners, including the United States. However, Mr. Japarov emphasized that foreign countries should not interfere in the internal affairs of Kyrgyzstan. S. Japarov also invited E. Blinken to visit Bishkek to make sure that human rights and freedoms in the republic are "reliably protected by the Constitution and laws".

The United States' interest in Kyrgyzstan is not only related to civil society. Taking into account the strategic position of Kyrgyzstan, Washington is trying to restore previously weakened relations. The foundations of cooperation between Kyrgyzstan and the United States are based on the cooperation agreement signed in Washington in 1993. After the US operation in Afghanistan in 2001, the bilateral relations rose to the level of "strategic partnership". In 2001, the United States established an air base near Bishkek. But later, relations began to deteriorate and Kyrgyzstan closed the American base. With the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan in August 2021, Washington is interested in increasing its military presence in the Central Asian region once again. The United States is trying to resolve past issues and restore broken relationships. Kyrgyzstan first of all needs new partners to solve its economic problems. However, the latest letter duel shows that Kyrgyzstan will not act according to the dictates of the United States.

S. MAMMADOV
XQ