Forward on the yellow

摘要

After the "rose" revolution in Georgia and the "orange" revolution in Ukraine, Kirgizstan appears to be just about ripe for its own (possibly yellow) peaceful revolt. The parliamentary election on February 27th will provide a pointer to the presidential election due in October. President Askar Akayev-who has held office since 1996, the year before Kirgizstan declared its independence from the Soviet Union-has to stand down this year. But if he can stack parliament in his favour (several of his friends and relatives, including two of his children, are competing for its 75 seats) he may be able to bring about the constitutional change that would allow him to run for another term.