Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan, 1991 to today. Draft, not yet reviewed
Following Mikhail Gorbachev's democratic reforms in the USSR, in 1990 pro-independence candidate Askar Akayev was elected president. On 31 August 1991, Kyrgyzstan declared independence from the USSR. After independence, Kyrgyzstan was officially a unitary presidential republic. Following the Tulip Revolution it became a unitary parliamentary republic; however, it gradually developed an executive president and was governed as a semi-presidential republic before reverting to a presidential system in 2021.
Seat of power: Bishkek
Rulers
Askar Akayev
President of Kyrgyzstan, 1990–2005
Akayev served as President of Kyrgyzstan from 1990 until being overthrown in the March 2005 Tulip Revolution. Akayev became president of Kyrgyzstan in 1990, a year before the Fall of the Soviet Union, and he remained in his post after Kyrgyzstan became independent. Initially a communist, Akayev promoted privatization in Kyrgyzstan during his presidency.
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Kurmanbek Bakiyev
President of Kyrgyzstan, 2005–2010
He served as the second president of Kyrgyzstan from 2005 until his removal from office as a result of the Kyrgyz Revolution of 2010. The Legislative Assembly of Kyrgyzstan of the Supreme Council of Kyrgyzstan appointed him acting president on 25 March 2005, following the ousting, during the Tulip Revolution, of President Askar Akayev. Following the events of the 2005 Tulip Revolution, Bakiyev won the 10 July ballot for the presidential election with 89% of the vote with a 53% turnout.
Portrait of Kurmanbek Bakiyev: Steele C. G. Britton, U.S. Air Force, Public domain, file
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Ishenbai Kadyrbekov
President of Kyrgyzstan, 2005–2005
Ishenbai Kadyrbekov was the Chairman of the Legislative Assembly of Kyrgyzstan and the interim president of Kyrgyzstan in 24 March 2005 to 25 March 2005 (only one day).
Roza Otunbayeva
President of Kyrgyzstan, 2010–2011
She served as the President of Kyrgyzstan from 7 April 2010 until 1 December 2011, becoming the first female Central Asian head of state. She was sworn in on 3 July 2010, after acting as interim leader following the 2010 April Revolution, which led to the ousting of President Kurmanbek Bakiyev.
Portrait of Roza Otunbayeva: U.S. Department of State from United States, Public domain, file
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Almazbek Atambaev
President of Kyrgyzstan, 2011–2017
Atambayev served as the fourth president of Kyrgyzstan from 2011 to 2017. Almazbek Atambayev did not try to extend his powers after the term specified by the Constitution and peacefully transferred power, marking the first such precedent in the history of modern Central Asia. Under him, the country passed a constitutional reform that strengthened the role of the parliament, and also introduced a biometric election system, carried out with the help of the European Union.
Portrait of Almazbek Atambaev: Vyacheslav Oseledko / European Commission, CC BY 4.0, file
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Sooronbay Jeenbekov
President of Kyrgyzstan, 2017–2020
He served as the fifth president of Kyrgyzstan from 2017 until his resignation in 2020, following a week of protests. Prior to that he served as the 18th prime minister of Kyrgyzstan from April 2016 to August 2017.
Portrait of Sooronbay Jeenbekov: Sultan Dosaliev, CC BY 4.0, file
Sadyr Japarov
President of Kyrgyzstan, 2020 to today
He has been serving as the sixth president of Kyrgyzstan since 28 January 2021. He previously served as the 22nd prime minister in the 2020 interim government, following the resignation of President Sooronbay Jeenbekov. Japarov also became acting president of Kyrgyzstan after Jeenbekov's resignation, but resigned on 14 November 2020 to run in the 2021 presidential election, in which he was elected to succeed the acting president, Talant Mamytov.
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Talant Mamytov
President of Kyrgyzstan, 2020–2021
Talant Mamytov served as acting President of Kyrgyzstan from 2020 to 2021. He was elected speaker of the council on 4 November 2020 after the resignation of interim President Sadyr Japarov. Due to the vacancy of the Presidency, the speaker of the council became head of state of Kyrgyzstan.
Portrait of Talant Mamytov: Жаслан Жумабеков / Пресс-служба Мажилиса Парламента РК, CC BY 4.0, file
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Culture
- There are many theories about the origin of the word Kyrgyz, and one proposed etymology is that it means "forty tribes", which may refer to the 40 clans of Manas, a legendary hero who united regional clans.
- The 40-ray sun on the flag of Kyrgyzstan is a reference to those same 40 tribes, and the graphical element in the sun's center depicts the wooden crown, called tunduk, of a yurt.
- Although geographically isolated by its highly mountainous terrain, Kyrgyzstan has been at the crossroads of several civilizations as part of the Silk Road along with other commercial routes.
- Ethnic Kyrgyz make up the majority of the 7.5 million people, followed by significant minorities of Uzbeks and Russians.
Picture
Issyk-Kul is an endorheic saline lake in the western Tian Shan mountains in eastern Kyrgyzstan.
Image: Қайырқан Әсем, CC BY-SA 4.0, file
Sources
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.