Musabekova's comments were harshly criticized by some parliament members and on social media but echoed in gentler terms by other deputies.ĭeputy Ziyadin Zhamaldinov said that in allowing the march to take place Kyrgyzstan had 'disgraced' itself in front of neighboring countries. Kyrgyz parliament deputy Jyldyz Musabekova: 'We have to beat the craziness out of them.' She warned later during a March 13 debate in parliament that 'if we sit silently.Kyrgyzstan will become a 'Gayistan.'' 'We have to beat the craziness out of them,' she added. 'The men who do not want to have children and the girls who do not want to pour tea.must not only be cursed, they must be beaten,' Kyrgyz parliament deputy Jyldyz Musabekova wrote on Facebook of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) supporters who took part in the march in the Kyrgyz capital, with several of them carrying rainbow flags.
The peaceful march by some 400 people in central Bishkek on Women's Day on March 8 promoting women's rights and 'equality for all' was fiercely criticized by socially conservative lawmakers in the predominantly Muslim country. What many consider the first gay-pride march ever held in Central Asia has unleashed a storm of controversy in Kyrgyzstan, with threats of violence against participants, counterprotests, and fiery parliamentary debate over whether to rein in civil society.
