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| “It's the people who have taken power,” said Ulan Shambetov, an opposition activist sitting in longtime President Askar Akayev's office chair, surrounded by supporters. “They have been fighting for so long against corruption, against that (Akayev) family,” Mr. Shambetov said. Opposition politicians pleaded in vain with the youths to stop smashing furniture and looting supplies they found in government offices and in a small pharmacy inside the building. “It's the victory of the people. But now we don't know how to stop these young guys,” said Noman Akabayev, who ran unsuccessfully in this year's disputed parliamentary elections, which sparked the unrest that has shaken this Central Asian nation of 5 million people to its roots. |
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| Key opposition figures in Kyrgyzstan are claiming control of the government the day after President Askar Akayev reportedly fled the country. Meanwhile, widespread unrest and looting continues in the capital city of Bishkek. Kurmanbek Bakiyev, a former Kyrgyz prime minister, has taken over as the acting leader of the Central Asian republic. On Friday he named an acting cabinet made up of key figures within the opposition movement and said presidential elections would be held in June. Mr. Bakiyev appointed a prominent opposition leader, who was released from prison on Thursday, as the new security chief. With the police refusing to patrol the streets of Bishkek, the opposition protests against the Akayev government have disintegrated into rampant disorder and looting. |