FORMER KYRGYZ FOREIGN MINISTER, NOW IN OPPOSITION,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BISHKEK 000203 SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/CEN (GORKOWSKI) E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/11/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL KG SUBJECT: FORMER KYRGYZ FOREIGN MINISTER, NOW IN OPPOSITION, ARRESTED REF: A. A. BISHKEK 197 ¶B. B. BISHKEK 156 ¶C. C. 08 BISHKEK 333 BISHKEK 00000203 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: Ambassador Tatiana C. Gfoeller, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Former Foreign Minister and current head of the opposition "For Justice" movement Alykbek Jekshenkulov was arrested on March 9 on suspicion of involvement in a 2007 murder of a Turkish businessman. Kyrgyz authorities claimed a ballistics test showed that the bullet from the murder was fired from Jekshenkulov's pistol. Jekshenkulov's lawyers claimed that his detention is illegal, and they disputed the results of the ballistics test. Jekshenkulov's arrest is the latest in a series of legal troubles for opposition leaders and supporters. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (SBU) Former Foreign Minister and current head of the opposition "For Justice" movement Alykbek Jekshenkulov was arrested on March 9 on suspicion of involvement in the murder of Turkish citizen Servet Cetin in the city of Talas in December 2007. According to a Ministry of Internal Affairs spokesman, a ballistics test matched a Makarov pistol presented to Jekshenkulov in 2004 with the bullet used in the murder. Kyrgyz authorities are reportedly considering whether to charge him with complicity in murder and improper storage of a firearm, which carry penalties of up to 20 years in prison. ¶3. (SBU) According to Jekshenkulov's lawyers, the Makarov has never left Jekshenkulov's possession, but the government may have obtained ballistic data from the test firing that is routine before every presentation. The attorneys questioned why the government has waited since 2007 to test that connection, and they claimed that Jekshenkulov's detention was illegal because of several procedural violations in the case. ¶4. (C) An opposition activist familiar with the case, Bolot Alymkulov, told us on March 10 that Jekshenkulov and his two lawyers had been invited to a meeting at the Ministry of Internal Affairs on March 9 to hear the results of a ballistics test examining whether Jekshenkulov's Makarov pistol fired the bullet that killed journalist Alisher Saipov in 2007. The police reportedly told Jekshenkulov that his pistol had not killed Saipov, but, in a surprising twist, that it had been used to kill Cetin. Alymkulov said police officers did not allow Jekshenkulov or his lawyers to make any phone calls at the time of the arrest, and that his lawyers have not been able to make contact with him since he was arrested. ¶5. (SBU) This incident is only the latest of Jekshenkulov's legal troubles. He was arrested in January in the district of Talas for holding an unauthorized protest, and has been under investigation since December 2008 for illegally using official funds during his tenure as Foreign Minister (Ref B). His son, Bekkut, is also under investigation for wounding two people in a nightclub brawl, supposedly with the same ceremonial pistol, and has reportedly left the country to avoid prosecution. Comment -------------- ¶6. (C) In recent months, the Kyrgyz government has increased pressure on the political opposition (Ref B),helping to keep the opposition disunited and off-balance. As part of this increased harassment, Kyrgyz authorities have launched criminal investigations and brought charges against several opposition figures, including Jekshenkulov, Ata Meken party leader Omurbek Tekebayev, and former Minister of Defense Ismail Isakov. By one count, the government has launched 26 criminal investigations against opposition figures and media BISHKEK 00000203 002.2 OF 002 representatives. ¶7. (C) It is clear that these cases are politically motivated. Other opposition leaders have reported that they and their families have been threatened or pressured by authorities, and recently a journalist was viciously assaulted under suspicious circumstances (Ref A). We expect this heavy-handed harassment to continue -- and possibly increase in scope and violence -- as the country moves toward Presidential elections, which may happen later this year. GFOELLER