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Kyrgyzstan Battles Misinformation about Vaccines as Measles Cases Rise

Dear parents! Vaccinate your child. That’s the message from the health ministry in Kyrgyzstan, where the number of reported measles cases this year has soared to nearly 8,000 despite government efforts to overcome the anti-vaccine sentiment fueling the outbreak. “It has been proven that there is no connection between vaccinations and autism!” Kyrgyzstan’s health ministry said this month on Facebook. The announcement cited British and American medical studies in the last few decades that it said confirm “there is no biological link between vaccination and morbidity.” Despite the campaign, at least 7,864 cases of measles have been reported in the Central Asian country as of April 8, according to the Republican Center for Immunoprophylaxis, a health ministry organization that oversees vaccinations. The 24.kg news agency reported “intense circulation” of the virus that causes measles in Bishkek, Chui and Jalal-Abad regions. In December, UNICEF said cases of measles in Europe and Central Asia had skyrocketed by 3000 percent in 2023, in comparison to the previous year, and that a backsliding in vaccine coverage was responsible. It said Kazakhstan had the highest rate of measles cases, though officials there reported in March that cases were in decline after a successful vaccination drive. Kyrgyzstan had the second highest rate at the time. “A decrease in vaccine demand – in part fuelled by misinformation and mistrust which worsened during and following the COVID-19 pandemic, disruption to health services and weak primary health care systems are some of the contributing factors,” the U.N. agency said. Nine children died from measles in Kyrgyzstan in 2023, according to the government. The Health Ministry says “myths” about vaccines include the belief that they contain dangerous preservatives; Europe is testing new drugs by sending them to Kyrgyzstan as humanitarian aid; and that it’s better to let a child get sick and develop natural immunity rather than get the shot. Measles, which is highly contagious, infects the respiratory tract and then spreads around the body. The vaccine, the World Health Organization says, is safe and effective.

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Scientists in Kyrgyzstan Predicting More Earthquakes

Speaking to members of Parliament, the head of the Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan, Akylbek Japarov, said that 13,000 seismic shocks have been recorded in Kyrgyzstan just this year. According to Japarov, specialists are currently studying dangerous zones. "Only on April 2, 828 earthquakes were registered worldwide within 24 hours, and 6,892 in seven days... Over the past 150 years, more than a dozen earthquakes with a magnitude above seven have occurred on the territory of the republic," Japarov said. The prime minister noted that scientists from the Kyrgyz National Academy of Sciences are now studying dangerous zones where destruction can be expected. In addition, he instructed members of parliament to strengthen regulatory control over the seismic resistance of buildings, as well as the quality of facilities under construction. Following a strong earthquake on the border of Kyrgyzstan and China in late February this year (seven points in its epicenter), the authorities of Kyrgyzstan created an interdepartmental commission to check buildings that are at risk of being destroyed, but that commission didn't record serious damage at that time. Additionally, special services raided construction sites. Despite corruption scandals in the industry - several directors of large construction companies are under investigation - the special services did not identify any major violations. Meanwhile, according to the National Academy of Sciences of Kyrgyzstan, in 2024 the republic is indeed among the top five countries in terms of earthquakes registered. In 2023, the Institute of Seismology of Kyrgyzstan recorded twice as many tremors as a year earlier. At the same time, most of these tremors were not felt by people, they were recorded only by special devices. However, the public shouldn't worry too much about it, Kanatbek Abdrakhmatov, the country's chief seismologist said, adding that any seismic activity has its own periodicity. "We are now living in the fourth period of seismic activity, which began in 2008 and will end according to our forecasts in 2026... The strength of earthquakes in this active period was not supposed to exceed 5-6 points. Until today, these predictions have been realized. The only event that exceeded our expectations was the Chinese earthquake on February 23, 2024. Well, it happens! Don't be afraid, people!" Abdrakhmatov, head of the laboratory at the Institute of Seismology of Kyrgyzstan, wrote on his Facebook page. As a mountainous country, Kyrgyzstan is in an earthquake-prone zone, and in recent months the country's residents have felt more tremors than usual. The Institute of Seismology believes there is nothing to fear, because the tremors are not strong, but the panic that these tremors can provoke is much more dangerous. That's why, almost every time there is another tremor in Kyrgyzstan, the head of the Institute of Seismology writes a note on his social media, attempting to reassure the population. "Probably many people felt the small earthquake that occurred a few minutes ago. The epicenter was in the mountains, under the Kyrgyz ridge, about 25-30 kilometers south of Bishkek. In Bishkek it was 2-3 points. Nothing...

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Kyrgyzstan to Switch to 12-Year School System

From the next academic year pupils in Kyrgyzstan are to stay at school for an extra year, a move that authorities believe will improve the quality of education, and make it easier for students to enter foreign universities. The Kyrgyz Ministry of Education and Science said the 12-year system will be introduced in schools in stages from September. By common consensus, Kyrgyzstan's school system has long been in need of modernization, as many approaches to education have not changed in decades. "We will gradually introduce this system so that children will not be overloaded. We have been working on this for more than a year. The transformation of the education system is aimed at updating the content of school education, improving its structure, aimed at preparing competitive youth, and integrating [them] into the global educational space," said education minister Dogdurkul Kendirbayeva at a press conference in Bishkek. Ms Kendirbayeva also explained how the transition to a 12-year system would take place. All of the country's first grade students will be tested in September this year; those children who are already comfortable with the second-grade curriculum will move to the second grade in January 2025. To improve the quality of teaching at Kyrgyz schools, the Asian Development Bank has provided a $20 million grant, as well as a loan for the same amount for 24 years. This money will pay for teachers to go on courses in science, technology, engineering and math. A new education system is also needed because currently only 30% of preschool-aged children in Kyrgyzstan are in preschools. This is partly because many parents use their young children as additional labor in the household, or use them as nannies for their younger siblings, and are in no hurry to send their children to school. Many families also don't have the money to send their children to preschool classes. But from the fall the preschool education program will become compulsory for all as part of the first year of education. Critics of the new system argue that it will hamper the most able young children, because they will now have to wait for their peers.

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Kyrgyz Teenager Saved Lives During Moscow Terror Attack

The spokesman for Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov made a call to the teenager Islam Khalilov and his parents, to express his admiration for the young man's actions during the Moscow terror attack on March 22. Khalilov, who was one of two teenagers working in the coat-check room at the Crocus Concert Hall, helped save people from the terrorists. "I spoke on the phone with Islam, who saved hundreds of lives during the tragic event in Moscow. His father, Bakhtiyar, is from Suzak district [in Jalal-Abad region] and his mother, Ai-Peri, is from Ozgon. Glory to our hero," President Japarov's spokesman, Dayiryek Orunbekov wrote on his Facebook page, posting a video of the conversation. Islam Khalilov said of the attack: "At first it was a normal working day, then there were strange sounds. We thought maybe the escalator broke down or maybe it came from a drunken [crowd]. Then people started running out, screaming. I realized at that moment that I had to act. I immediately did [everything I could] because I realized that if I stood there in shock, I would lose my life [alongside] the lives of hundreds of people." According to Khalilov, when he saw a large group of people were moving in panic towards a dead end, he led the concertgoers behind him. The young man opened an emergency door and was able to lead the crowd into the hall's service area, through which people were able to get outside and escape the terrorists. Together with another teenager, Artem Donskov, who also worked part-time in the concert hall's coat-check room, they helped people evacuate the hall, and more than once returned to the site of the attack to save more people. According to Khalilov, he along with other administrative staff at Crocus Concert Hall were given instructions on what to do in the event of a terrorist attack - and during the attack they followed these instructions to the letter. According to Russian security forces, as of March 24, 137 people had been killed and 182 injured as a result of the attack on the concert hall. More than 6,000 people were in the building at the time of the attack. Alexander Bastrykin, Head of the Investigative Committee of Russia, has instructed his agency to consider awarding the schoolboys departmental honors for their bravery.

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Kyrgyzstan’s ‘Be Responsible!’ Health Program Screens 680,000 Men

The key aim of Kyrgyzstan's 'Be Responsible!' program is to encourage men to attend primary health care institutions for check-ups and specifically, the early detection of non-communicable and chronic diseases. According to a new report by the country's Ministry of Health, in just under a month, more than 680,000 men visited family doctors. For 149,000, it was either their first ever visit or the first in two years. The Ministry of Health's press centre hailed the success of the widespread campaign to attract attendances saying, "More than 44,000 men were categorized as having a high risk of cardiovascular diseases, and almost 33,000, a high risk of diabetes. The total number of men who visited medical institutions amounted to 47 percent of those over 18 years of age living in the country." Cardiovascular disease, cancer, lung disease and diabetes are categorized as chronic diseases. Data collected by the ministry indicates that in 2022, 52.1% of the mortality rate in men was caused by cardiovascular disease; 12.2% by cancer, and 5.5% by respiratory diseases. Doctors also drew attention to poor nutrition including a high salt intake and insufficient consumption of fruits and vegetables; the use of tobacco, alcohol abuse, and low levels of physical activity as contributing factors to poor health. With financial support from the Swiss government, the first screening campaign for Kyrgyz men was conducted in 2019. In response to doctors' reports of the rising number of men taking better care of their health, the Ministry of Health issued an order for the program to be conducted nationwide, on an annual basis, from 2023 onwards.

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“You’re Afraid I’m Not Beautiful; I’m Afraid You’ll Kill Me” – Women Rally in Bishkek

On International Women's Day on March 8th, hundreds of people took to the streets of Bishkek to participate in the annual march for women's rights. Under the slogan "A woman's life is a mirror of the time," the march started from the monument to revolutionary fighters on Chui Avenue and ended in Gorky Square on Isanov Street. The marchers carried placards and made calls for an end to violence against women, to ensure their freedom and protect freedom of speech. One of the speakers was Asel Nogoibayeva, who said she had first-hand experience of domestic violence. Her words left a lasting impression, as did her call for the police to address the problems of domestic violence. Marches on March 8th in support of women's rights have become an annual tradition in Bishkek, with the main theme always for the authorities to pay attention to women's issues. "I went with a double-sided poster that said: ‘You’re afraid I’m not beautiful; I’m afraid you’ll kill me’ and on the other side, ‘Only a human being can give birth to a human being,’” Saraya, a participant at the rally told TCA. “I also printed out some posters that I handed out." Saraya said that the march went exactly as planned with no deviations and expressed her joy at the increase in the number of participants, including girls with their boyfriends, which is a testament to the expanded audience and impact of the event. "Of course, marching is not the only way to influence people,” she said. “It doesn't work if once a year you walk around with placards and then forget about it. Businesses, for example, have different ways of attracting customers - social media, word of mouth, banners, etc. A march is like an advertising campaign, periodically loudly and announcing itself so that people don't forget it. Only women’s rights are not a business – they’re a struggle for justice."