What is happening in Kyrgyzstan?
| 12:40 UK time, Monday, 14 June 2010
More than 100 people have been killed in , after three days of fighting between Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbeks in city of Osh. Thousands of ethnic Uzbeks have been forced to flee the country. Many of you have been contacting the 91Èȱ¬ from there or asking what is happening there?
We got this email from someone in Osh:
I am living here in Osh - in an Uzbek neighborhood that was attacked Saturday. We are right now in the middle of a standoff between the Uzbeks and Kyrgyz. It is very tense, but since I have contact with the outside, we can help to stop this standoff so that more people will not get killed.
Another email we got here at 91Èȱ¬ :
I was born and grow up in Osh. My Mother, Father, Brother, Sister and their kids are also there, it's very very bad. I'll be glad to share more information, I'm praying for my people, please God help them.
The exact cause of the latest clashes is but it comes two months after President Kurmanbek Bakiyev was ousted in a violent uprising. On World Have Your Say we discussed this back in April.
Kyrgyzstan has appealed for outside help in quelling unrest in the south, Daniel J Grestle in hissays:
You thought that the political arguments going on in post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan faded away, think again. Kyrgyz leaders are calling on Russia to help with peacekeeping and other countries to help with humanitarian response to support its first large wave of families displaced by violence.
Artur comments on global voices:
It is unbelievable. There are two strongest political players in the world - USA and Russia having their military bases in Kyrgyzstan - and they do nothing to stop these irreversible clashes. How to save these people when they no longer feel responsible for stopping the massacre just outside their interests?
This asks if the supporters of President Bakiyev are trying to provoke inter-ethnic clashes and if Bakiyev's people behind the violence?
Aangirfan anotherthinks its all has to do with the drug trade in the area, he says Kyrgyzstan is an important hub for distribution of Afghan heroin to Eurasian markets.
We will discuss on the programme what is happening in Kyrgyzstan, and try and answer your questions?
