Zubair Qureshi
Ambassador of Kyrgyzstan, Ulanbek Totuiaev on Wednesday urged the Pakistani people, particularly the students and tourists not to be afraid of visiting Kyrgyzstan as the situation in Bishkek is calm and under full control of the authorities.
The Kyrgyz ambassador was briefing the media persons on the ongoing security situation in the capital city Bishkek after the recent incidents of attacks on foreign students by the local Kyrgyz people.
“The recent incident in Bishkek on May 18th and afterwards should not deter you from visiting Kyrgyzstan as it was an isolated incident that does not reflect the overall safety of the country or the warm hospitality of the Kyrgyz people,” reiterated the ambassador.
The Kyrgyz people are known for their hospitality, the ambassador said, adding that Kyrgyzstan has a rich cultural tradition of welcoming guests. You will be greeted with warmth and kindness by the locals, who will go out of their way to make you feel at home, he said.
While giving a background of what actually happened in Bishkek on the night of May 18, 2024, he said it was actually five days before on May 13, when a fight broke out between the local and the foreign citizens in one of the hostels in the eastern part of Bishkek.
The Kyrgyz police taking prompt action registered a criminal case under the article “Hooliganism” of the Criminal Code of the Kyrgyz Republic and all those who took part in the brawl were taken to the police department.
According to the ambassador later on May 17, a video of the fight and injured Kyrgyz citizens was circulated on one of the social media pages which caused the situation to get worse and on the night of May 18 in Bishkek a crowd of people gathered demanding that the foreigners be brought to justice.
From the moment information about the incident was received, law enforcement agencies of the Kyrgyz Republic took quick action and detained persons involved in the event, both foreign citizens (four Egyptian citizens) and around 10 citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic.
The Chief and nine officers of the Internal Affairs Directorate of the Sverdlovsk region were also removed from their positions after the riots on the night of May 18, he further said.
The situation was completely under the control of law enforcement agencies. The safety of citizens and public order were ensured. There is no seriously injured person among the participants of the incident.
He urged the representatives of the mass media not to disseminate unreliable and unverified information. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic informs that destructive forces in foreign media, social networks, especially in the territory of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan deliberately spread totally false information about the situation in the Kyrgyz Republic that does not correspond to reality. At present the situation in Bishkek is absolutely calm and under control, he said and assured that all necessary measures were taken to ensure security and maintain peace and stability.
He also requested the representatives of the media, the blogging community and foreign colleagues to be guided only by official and verified information from the competent authorities of the Kyrgyz Republic.
