In a letter sent today, Human Rights Watch urged Kyrgyzstan President Askar Akaev to promptly establish an independent team to investigate police killings of at least five protesters on March 17. Human Rights Watch called on President Akaev to ensure that police not use unnecessary lethal force.
According to media accounts, on March 17, an estimated 500 to 2,000 protesters were on their way to the village of Kerben in southern Aksy district when they were blocked by police and special forces. The protesters had gathered to call for the release of parliamentarian Azimbek Beknazarov, then in custody awaiting the verdict in his trial on charges that supporters say were politically motivated. Although details of the incident are unclear, there are consistent reports that police opened fire on the protesters; five were killed and at least eighteen were wounded. Thirteen of those wounded, including a sixteen-year-old who was shot in the chest, required hospitalization for bullet wounds.
"International law is very clear regarding the use of force during public demonstrations," said Elizabeth Andersen, executive director of the Europe and Central Asia division of Human Rights Watch. "The deaths of protestors from police gunfire is more than a tragedy, it may be a crime," added Andersen.
Government authorities said some forty-seven police officers were injured by protestors who allegedly threw stones at officers who refused to let them continue their march.
Minister of Internal Affairs Temirbek Akmataliev blamed the deaths of the demonstrators on human rights activists. According to the BBC, on March 19 he said, "I think that today with all responsibility we can say that the blame for the blood of the deceased lies on Tursunbek Akunov and his associates." Akunov, head of the Human Rights Movement of Kyrgyzstan, was among those arrested on March 17. He was subsequently released.
"Blaming police violence that led to the death of protestors on human rights defenders is among the more cynical moves we've seen during President Akaev's tenure," said Andersen.
In an apparent effort to quell the protests that continued into March 18 and 19, the government released Beknazarov from police custody, where he says officers physically abused him. The charges against him were not dismissed. An estimated thirty-six demonstrators detained during the hostilities were also released on March 19.
The U.N. Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials states that law enforcement officials, in carrying out their duty, shall, as far as possible, apply non-violent means before resorting to the use of force and firearms. Whenever the lawful use of force and firearms is unavoidable, law enforcement officials shall use restraint and act in proportion to the seriousness of the offence. The legitimate objective should be achieved with minimal damage and injury, and preservation of human life respected.
