Leader of Kyrgyz party of communists taken for interrogation from airport
BISHKEK. May 12. KAZINFORM Kyrgyz communist leader Iskhak Masaliyev was detained in Bishkek's airport early on Wednesday and taken to the prosecutor general's office for interrogation, the parliament's press service said, Kazinform refers to Itar-Tass.
Meanwhile, Kyrgyzstan's State National Security Service has not confirmed information on Masaliyev's detention. "He was merely summoned to the prosecutor general's office for interrogation, since law enforcement agencies have a number of questions to him, a spokesman for the country's security service told Itar-Tass.
Several days ago, the country's interim government decreed to dissolve the national parliament, although nearly half of parliament members labelled this decree as illegal and elected Masaliyev a new speaker. On May 20, the lawmakers planned to hold a parliamentary session to legitimize the interim government and then pass a resolution on voluntary dissolution.
Currently, there are two communist-oriented parties in Kyrgyzstan, the Masaliyev-led Party of Communists and the Communist Party led by Klara Azhibekova. Although, only Masaliyev's party was represented in the parliament. Last year, the communist faction voted for extensions of the US airbase in Kyrgyzstan, which came as a surprise for the CIS counterparts, Kazinform cites Itar-Tass. See www.itar-tass.com