Kyrgyz opposition leader says death threat forced him to flee

A leader of the opposition in Kyrgyzstan`s parliament said on Monday he was forced to leave the republic because his life was in danger.

"I was forced to temporarily leave the country because of a direct attempt to kill me in August, after a long and purposeful persecution," Baktybek Beshimov, the head of the Social Democratic Party`s parliamentary group, said in a statement.

Beshimov did not attend the parliamentary session on September 1. His colleagues said at the time he had gone abroad for treatment.

In his Monday`s statement, Beshimov said he "does not recognize the illegitimate power that is currently ruling the state," and remains true to the opposition`s platform.

The Social Democratic Party is the second-largest group in the Kyrgyz parliament, with 11 of the 90 seats. The party led the country`s opposition in 2007 parliamentary elections. The presidential Ak Zhol party has an overwhelming majority in the unicameral parliament.

According to the Kyrgyz 24.kg news agency, the opposition leader is currently in the United States giving lectures at various universities.

The leader of the Social Democratic Party, former Kyrgyz prime minister Almazbek Atambayev, had previously said unidentified people were trying to poison him.

Last year, the head of the Kyrgyz central election committee, Klara Kabilova, also left the country secretly, citing she was threatened by President Kurmanbek Bakiyev`s inner circle.

sections: World News