KYRGYZ LEADERSHIP AND ETHNOPOLITICS

The Soviet Union s multi-ethnic legacy in the Central
Asian region, particularly in Kyrgyzstan was a
crucial factor that impacted its post-independence
state consolidation and transition. More recently in
2005 there was the Tulip Revolution , basically an
overthrow of the northern president by the southern
clan leader. Despite the fact that the system and
character of the government and of any other
governmental structures did not change following the
so-called Kyrgyz Tulip Revolution , there have been
observations of the dramatic changes for the worse in
the position of ethnic minorities, more specifically
Russians and Uzbeks, and their relation with the
titular nation. This work uses interviews and media
material in order to demonstrate how the elite change
has caused the changes analyzed in the thesis. The
findings of the research demonstrate that the elite
change, which was a result of 2005 events, is the
main factor that has caused negative shifts in the
political representation, ethnic organizations
becoming more active and politicized, official
policies taking more nationalistic tones, and in
deteriorated inter-ethnic relations.

Autorentext
Munara Omuralieva got her Bachelor's degree in International and Comparative Politics from American University - Central Asia, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. In 2008 she graduated from Central European University with Master's degree in Political Science. Currently she is Returning Scholar at HESP/Academic Fellowship Program, Budapest, Hungary.

Klappentext
The Soviet Union's multi-ethnic legacy in the Central Asian region, particularly in Kyrgyzstan was a crucial factor that impacted its post-independence state consolidation and transition. More recently in 2005 there was the "Tulip Revolution", basically an overthrow of the northern president by the southern clan leader. Despite the fact that the system and character of the government and of any other governmental structures did not change following the so-called Kyrgyz "Tulip Revolution", there have been observations of the dramatic changes for the worse in the position of ethnic minorities, more specifically Russians and Uzbeks, and their relation with the titular nation. This work uses interviews and media material in order to demonstrate how the elite change has caused the changes analyzed in the thesis. The findings of the research demonstrate that the elite change, which was a result of 2005 events, is the main factor that has caused negative shifts in the political representation, ethnic organizations becoming more active and politicized, official policies taking more nationalistic tones, and in deteriorated inter-ethnic relations.