Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08BISHKEK422
2008-04-30 10:56:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Bishkek
Cable title:
Kyrgyz Media Reaction on Shooting of Russian Officer Based
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BISHKEK 000422
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/PPD
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV KPAO KG
SUBJECT: Kyrgyz Media Reaction on Shooting of Russian Officer Based
in Kant
BISHKEK 00000422 001.2 OF 002
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. NOT FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION.
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BISHKEK 000422
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/PPD
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV KPAO KG
SUBJECT: Kyrgyz Media Reaction on Shooting of Russian Officer Based
in Kant
BISHKEK 00000422 001.2 OF 002
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. NOT FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION.
1. (U) SUMMARY: On Sunday, April 20th, there was an altercation
between Russian servicemen and Kyrgyz traffic police outside
Bishkek. As a result, Kyrgyz traffic police shot a Russian officer
based at the Russian air base in Kant, who was severely injured,
losing a rib and his spleen. While the Kyrgyz and Russians pointed
fingers at each other, the Kyrgyz Ministry of Interior Affairs urged
the media not to "politicize" the incident. The plea apparently
succeeded; there were few comments in the press and little public
outrage. END SUMMARY.
2. (U) On Sunday, April 20th, at approximately 2:00 am local time,
there was an altercation between Russian servicemen and Kyrgyz
traffic police outside Bishkek. The shooting of the Russian officer
was first reported in Kyrgyzstan by Rosbalt, a Russian Information
Agency, which was quick to blame the Kyrgyz traffic police, alleging
that the Kyrgyz fired at the Russian officers without provocation.
The Rosbalt report was picked up and rerun by Kyrgyz electronic news
outlets, AkiPress and 24.kg.
3. (U) Independent Kyrgyz-language "Radio Azattyk" (the local
affiliate of RFE/RL) gave a different account of the incident:
"According to the Interior Ministry, a car carrying Russian
servicemen did not obey an order from traffic policemen to stop and
continued to travel. The policemen had to pursue the vehicle and
opened fire when the Russian servicemen resisted. [The Kyrgyz
policemen] first fired a warning shot into the air, then shot to
kill. As a result, one of the three servicemen was injured."
4. (U) On April 22nd, the opposition Kyrgyz-language newspaper "De
Facto" lead with a front-page article entitled, "Drunk Russian
Officer Shot by Kyrgyz Traffic Police," which criticized the
Russians: "They should drink inside the base and do whatever they
want to inside the base. Once outside the base, representatives of a
foreign military force must follow Kyrgyz laws." The Former
Secretary of the Security Council Miroslav Niazov commented: "Russia
SIPDIS
should work together to investigate the case, and Kyrgyz side must
provide people with full facts." The De Facto article was followed
by another opposition Kyrgyz-language newspaper, "Agym," which
editorialized: "We don't want Russian servicemen to forget that they
are in the land of Kyrgyzstan."
5. (U) Independent, pro-Russian "Belyi Parohod" compared the Russian
and Kyrgyz versions of the incident and concluded: "The incident is
possibly an attempt by a third party to damage Kyrgyz-Russian
relations. Only a third power present in Kyrgyzstan with observer
status and that is not interested in the Russian presence here may
benefit from destabilization of mutually beneficial, both for Russia
and our country, bilateral relations - that is what a number of
pro-Russian political analysts think."
6. (U) The most popular online discussion forum, "Diesel," was open
briefly for discussion of the incident. As often happens with
politically-sensitive issues, the discussion was quickly closed - 27
hours after it began. The moderator explained: "This topic is
closed until the moment of agreement between 'ours' and yours' [i.e.
between Kyrgyz and Russians]."
7. (SBU) COMMENT: Time and again, when there are negative incidents
involving Russians, they receive scant attention in the local press
and spontaneous online discussion, however benign, is quickly
suppressed. "Diesel" forum quickly closed discussions on the topic
of the 1916 uprising (which took the lives of at least 100,000
ethnic Kyrgyz) and when a car driven by a Russian diplomat fatally
killed a passerby in December 2007. The limited press coverage of
the recent incident is yet another example of the double standard in
media coverage of U.S. versus Russian incidents in Kyrgyzstan. It
is also interesting to note that three days after the shooting of
the Russian officer, local press picked up a story from the Air
Force Times about servicemen at the U.S. Base at Manas being
BISHKEK 00000422 002.2 OF 002
penalized for excessive consumption of alcohol. Though it was
strictly factual and based on the Air Force's own reporting, it was
widely disseminated in the local press.
Yovanovitch
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/PPD
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV KPAO KG
SUBJECT: Kyrgyz Media Reaction on Shooting of Russian Officer Based
in Kant
BISHKEK 00000422 001.2 OF 002
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. NOT FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION.
1. (U) SUMMARY: On Sunday, April 20th, there was an altercation
between Russian servicemen and Kyrgyz traffic police outside
Bishkek. As a result, Kyrgyz traffic police shot a Russian officer
based at the Russian air base in Kant, who was severely injured,
losing a rib and his spleen. While the Kyrgyz and Russians pointed
fingers at each other, the Kyrgyz Ministry of Interior Affairs urged
the media not to "politicize" the incident. The plea apparently
succeeded; there were few comments in the press and little public
outrage. END SUMMARY.
2. (U) On Sunday, April 20th, at approximately 2:00 am local time,
there was an altercation between Russian servicemen and Kyrgyz
traffic police outside Bishkek. The shooting of the Russian officer
was first reported in Kyrgyzstan by Rosbalt, a Russian Information
Agency, which was quick to blame the Kyrgyz traffic police, alleging
that the Kyrgyz fired at the Russian officers without provocation.
The Rosbalt report was picked up and rerun by Kyrgyz electronic news
outlets, AkiPress and 24.kg.
3. (U) Independent Kyrgyz-language "Radio Azattyk" (the local
affiliate of RFE/RL) gave a different account of the incident:
"According to the Interior Ministry, a car carrying Russian
servicemen did not obey an order from traffic policemen to stop and
continued to travel. The policemen had to pursue the vehicle and
opened fire when the Russian servicemen resisted. [The Kyrgyz
policemen] first fired a warning shot into the air, then shot to
kill. As a result, one of the three servicemen was injured."
4. (U) On April 22nd, the opposition Kyrgyz-language newspaper "De
Facto" lead with a front-page article entitled, "Drunk Russian
Officer Shot by Kyrgyz Traffic Police," which criticized the
Russians: "They should drink inside the base and do whatever they
want to inside the base. Once outside the base, representatives of a
foreign military force must follow Kyrgyz laws." The Former
Secretary of the Security Council Miroslav Niazov commented: "Russia
SIPDIS
should work together to investigate the case, and Kyrgyz side must
provide people with full facts." The De Facto article was followed
by another opposition Kyrgyz-language newspaper, "Agym," which
editorialized: "We don't want Russian servicemen to forget that they
are in the land of Kyrgyzstan."
5. (U) Independent, pro-Russian "Belyi Parohod" compared the Russian
and Kyrgyz versions of the incident and concluded: "The incident is
possibly an attempt by a third party to damage Kyrgyz-Russian
relations. Only a third power present in Kyrgyzstan with observer
status and that is not interested in the Russian presence here may
benefit from destabilization of mutually beneficial, both for Russia
and our country, bilateral relations - that is what a number of
pro-Russian political analysts think."
6. (U) The most popular online discussion forum, "Diesel," was open
briefly for discussion of the incident. As often happens with
politically-sensitive issues, the discussion was quickly closed - 27
hours after it began. The moderator explained: "This topic is
closed until the moment of agreement between 'ours' and yours' [i.e.
between Kyrgyz and Russians]."
7. (SBU) COMMENT: Time and again, when there are negative incidents
involving Russians, they receive scant attention in the local press
and spontaneous online discussion, however benign, is quickly
suppressed. "Diesel" forum quickly closed discussions on the topic
of the 1916 uprising (which took the lives of at least 100,000
ethnic Kyrgyz) and when a car driven by a Russian diplomat fatally
killed a passerby in December 2007. The limited press coverage of
the recent incident is yet another example of the double standard in
media coverage of U.S. versus Russian incidents in Kyrgyzstan. It
is also interesting to note that three days after the shooting of
the Russian officer, local press picked up a story from the Air
Force Times about servicemen at the U.S. Base at Manas being
BISHKEK 00000422 002.2 OF 002
penalized for excessive consumption of alcohol. Though it was
strictly factual and based on the Air Force's own reporting, it was
widely disseminated in the local press.
Yovanovitch