Kyrgyzstan Life & Culture - The Times Of Central Asia

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Central Asia’s First Center for the Support of Women and Girls to Open in Kyrgyzstan

Women whose rights are violated at home and at work will now be able to receive protection at a special center, according to the Kyrgyz Republic's Ministry of Labor, Social Security and Migration. It will be the first such center in Central Asia in support of female victims of violence, and will offer women and girls free psychological and legal assistance, as well as medical examinations. "When the one-stop shop opens, women and girls will receive all necessary services in one place, namely investigative and forensic medical examinations, as well as legal and psychological assistance," Deputy Minister of Labor, Social Security and Migration, Zhanyl Alybayeva said at a meeting with international organizations and human rights activists. Alybayeva stated that the UN Office on Drugs and Crime is providing technical support for the center's opening. According to statistics, the number of cases of domestic violence against women in Kyrgyzstan today remains high. In 2022, according to official data, 8,620 cases of domestic violence against women were registered, and in the first 10 months of 2023, there were more than 8,000 instances. The majority of those who contacted law enforcement are women between the age of 18 and 34. At the end of last year, parliament ratified the international convention on the eradication of violence and harassment in the field of labor. A draft law "on amendments to some legislative acts of the Kyrgyz Republic in the field of protection and defense against family, sexual and gender violence" was also put forward. In their debate, MPs noted that most women who suffer from violence do not turn to law enforcement, and therefore the real figures are almost certainly much higher. The new bill also stipulates that perpetrators of violence within the family must temporarily leave the dwelling they share with the victim. "After an act of violence within the family, victims usually move out to acquaintances or to crisis centers, and then the family collapses," MP Dinara Ashimova said. "With this bill, we propose that it should be the accused who has to leave. Even when he returns, there will be a greater likelihood that the spouses will reconcile and the family will be preserved." Currently, ratification of the international convention is awaiting President Japarov's signature.

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Bishkek Plans A Cable Car Line

Following Tashkent in neighboring Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan’s capital Bishkek is planning to build a cable car line to help solve the city’s transport problems. On January 30th in Flums, Switzerland, Bishkek’s mayor Aibek Junushaliev met with Roland Bartholet, the CEO of the engineering company Bartholet Maschinenbau AG. The parties signed an agreement and approved a plan to build a cable car line in Bishkek. The city of Bishkek’s press service called the agreement an important step in the modernization of its urban infrastructure, aimed at providing comfortable transport options for people in the city. Last month the city of Tashkent and the Chinese company Beijing North Bartholet Ropeway Technology agreed on a project to introduce a cable car service in the Uzbek capital. Beijing North Bartholet Ropeway Technology is a joint venture with Bartholet Maschinenbau AG.

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World Bank Provides Additional Support For Rural Water Services In Kyrgyzstan

On January 31st the World Bank’s executive board approved $7.64m in additional financing for its ‘Sustainable Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Development’ project in Kyrgyzstan. This funding tops up the World Bank’s earlier commitment of $59.5m for the project, aimed at improving water supply and sanitation services in rural communities. Naveed Hassan Naqvi, the World Bank’s country manager for Kyrgyzstan, said that the project will improve the quality of life of rural citizens, especially women, children and the most vulnerable, and will bring a major decrease in water-borne diseases. The total combined investments under the project are expected to reach 94 villages in the Osh, Chui and Issyk-Kul regions, and directly benefit some 200,000 people, the World Bank said. The project funds the construction and rehabilitation of 57 climate-resilient water supply subprojects, aiming to enhance both climate adaptation and mitigation by diversifying water supply sources, increasing storage capacity, replacing key assets and installing water meters. It will also retrofit sanitary facilities in 99 social institutions and provide small grants to 1,350 households to upgrade their sanitation facilities. The project will also enhance national and local institutional capacity for sustainable service delivery and climate-informed sector reforms, including the revision of water supply and sanitation laws. Odete Muximpua, the World Bank’s senior water supply and sanitation specialist, commented: “The second additional financing will address the financing gap caused by increased construction material prices as a result of the economic crisis. It will also allow for an increase in the size of grants to poor households in all project villages to finance the upgrades of their sanitation facilities.”

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Why Do People in Kyrgyzstan Refuse Seasonal Vaccinations?

In Kyrgyzstan more than 22,000 refusals of seasonal vaccinations were registered last year, according to the director of the Republican Center for Immunoprophylaxis, Gulbara Ishenapysova. She told journalists at a press conference that 40% of those who refuse doubt that vaccines against flu, measles and other seasonal diseases are of good quality -- while almost half do not want to be vaccinated for religious reasons. The Ministry of Health fears that an influx of infections from abroad could occur at any moment. For example, diphtheria cases are now being registered in Europe, and polio has not yet been defeated in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Doctors in Kyrgyzstan, said Ishenasypova, must be prepared for these diseases. Last year, nine children died of complications from measles in the Republic. Doctors emphasize that all of them had not been vaccinated. Meanwhile, parents refusal to vaccinate their children is punishable. Unvaccinated children may not be admitted to kindergarten or school. Furthermore, an article enshrined in the constitution assigns criminal liability to parents who deliberately fail to seek medical help in cases where a disease harmed a child. "In 2022, we lost a child to tetanus, and in 2023, we lost nine children to measles. If an unjustified refusal led to a fatal outcome, then it is intentional harm to the child's health, and liability under the law is provided for," the Republican Center for Immunoprophylaxis stressed. The rate of refusal of seasonal vaccinations has decreased over the past five years. The Center cited statistics which indicate that the largest group to refuse vaccinations -- those who do so for religious reasons -- is decreasing. Seven or eight years ago, 78% of the total number to refuse did so on religious grounds; today, that figure is down to 48%. "The Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Kyrgyzstan urges parents not to refuse vaccination for allegedly religious reasons. The question of benefits and harms of vaccination belongs to medicine. Therefore, in this situation, the decision on Shariah will be made taking into account the opinion of medicine. Islam is not against vaccinations if there is a conclusion from the Ministry of Health on the safety of the drug," said the head of the information department of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Kyrgyzstan.

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€10bn To Be Invested In Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor

The two-day Global Gateway Investors Forum for EU-Central Asia Transport Connectivity opened on January 29th in Brussels, Belgium. The event brings together high-level representatives from the European Commission, countries of the EU, Central Asia and Caucasus, as well as Turkey. At the forum, the European Commission’s executive vice-president Valdis Dombrovskis announced that European and international financial institutions will commit €10bn ($10.8bn) in support and investments towards sustainable transport connectivity in Central Asia. The forum’s agenda includes discussions of the required investments to transform the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor into a cutting-edge, multimodal, and efficient route, connecting Europe and Central Asia within 15 days. The European Commission said that Russia's invasion of Ukraine has underlined the urgency to find alternative reliable efficient trade routes between Europe and Asia. The development of transport connectivity is also a means to strengthen regional integration and economic development in Central Asia. The €10bn commitment is a mixture of ongoing and planned investments which the European Commission foresees to be mobilized for sustainable transport development in Central Asia in the short term. In concrete terms, several significant commitments are being made on the first day of the forum as part of the overall €10bn. The European Investment Bank (EIB), represented by its vice-president Teresa Czerwińska, signed memoranda of understanding totaling €1.47bn ($1.6bn) with the governments of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, as well as with the Development Bank of Kazakhstan. These loans will be made possible by guarantees provided by the European Commission.

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Violence Against Migrants: Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan Appeal to Russia

Regarding the mistreatment of labor migrants who were made to walk like ducks in Yekaterinburg, the ombudsman of Uzbekistan filed an appeal with the ombudsman of Russia. The number of them who were Uzbek citizens was not stated. A case was started “at the level of Russian federal authorities” by Kyrgyzstan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. On January 17, workers at a construction site in Yekaterinburg, Russia, were forced to walk like ducks during a raid by representatives of the Federal Security Service, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Rosguard, and the Prosecutor’s Office. Approximately 150 people’s documents were examined during the raid. Which country or countries they are citizens of is unclear. Ombudsman Feruza Eshmatova of Uzbekistan appealed to Ombudsman Tatyana Moskalkova of Russia about the unfair treatment of labor migrants in Yekaterinburg. The press office of the parliamentarian’s human rights representative released this information on January 22. In the petition, it was asked that the rights of Uzbek nationals employed in Russia be upheld. Online images and videos depict security personnel compelling migrant laborers to hide as they navigate a snow-covered construction site. The number of migrants who were Uzbek citizens was not stated. There were reportedly also citizens from other nations, including Kyrgyzstan. According to the Kyrgyz Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the republic’s general consulate in Yekaterinburg paid a visit to the police, the center for temporary detention of foreign nationals, and construction sites on January 20. “It was discovered that three construction sites in Yekaterinburg had 150 foreigners’ documents examined, among them were 40 Kyrgyz citizens. There are no known instances of Kyrgyzstani citizens breaking the immigration laws, according to the report. According to the information provided by Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyzstan, three of the migrants who were forced to walk like ducks were Kyrgyz. According to the message from the neighboring country’s MFA, the Consulate General of Kyrgyzstan is taking action to “organize the verification of the legality of the use of methods that degrade the dignity of citizens engaged in labor by law enforcement officers”. The statement from the Kyrgyz Ministry of Foreign Affairs states, “In light of this, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic is initiating a case at the level of the federal authorities of the Russian Federation in order to prevent such actions against citizens working from Kyrgyzstan”.