Russian diplomatic sources on Monday asserted that Bakiyev, now resident in Belarus after being granted special asylum by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, left for Turkey on a vacation, the Russian Interfax news agency reported. The Turkish Embassy in Bishkek on Tuesday denied reports that the former Kyrgyz leader had traveled to Turkey.Similar reports also appeared in major Russian media outlets in mid April, reports that the Turkish Embassy in Bishkek also denied. Subsequent to the bloody coup that brought down Bakiyev’s government, the former Kyrgyz president had to leave his country, first fleeing to Kazakhstan and then to Belarus. Kyrgyzstan demands that Bakiyev be extradited from Belarus to Kyrgyzstan. Bakiyev said last week he does not think he will return to Kyrgyzstan, and the Belarusian president has lent full support to the ousted leader.
Meanwhile, the relatives of protestors killed during the bloody riots of April 7 are expected to hold a rally in front of the Kyrgyz Embassy in Ankara today. Forming a union under the name “Motherland Martyrs,” the relatives of slain protestors will request embassy officials to work to extradite Bakiyev to Kyrgyzstan for trial. Bakiyev is accused of allowing the April 7 events to spiral out of control. The ensuing violence resulted in the toppling of the US-backed government. Kyrgyz courts have already filed more than 100 complaints against Bakiyev and his family members.
