Just a few years ago, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Dzhaparov declared from a high podium, „Basically, the Russian language doesn't need us, we need it. First of all, it is one of the six world languages. Secondly, we must not forget that we will not get far in Kyrgyzstan without Russian.“ Russia believed the sincerity of the head of state's words, and the Kyrgyz who came to Russia for work were able to explain the purpose of their visit to the customs quite well. This smug image was the result of the legislative declaration of Russian as the official language in the republic. However, by 2023, there were already forces in the republic that began to insist on the exclusion of Russian from the lives of Kyrgyz people. The first scandal was the proposal of the then acting Minister of Education and Science Dogdurkul Kendirbayeva:
„There may be disagreements in some schools, but it is our duty.“ „We need to translate the basics of functional literacy in educational institutions into Kyrgyz. Perhaps in villages without a Russian-speaking environment, Russian-language classes will have to be closed because they do not demonstrate the required quality of education,“ Kendirbayeva said.
The officials„ plans were met with outrage from the population, most of whom speak Russian. Ordinary people are not against their native language, but they also understand that Russian is necessary as a mechanism for international communication. Kendirbayeva was forced to justify herself and offer new reasons for her “anti-Russian campaign„. According to the official, “teaching children in Russian without Russian-speaking teachers and teaching materials is not in line with the principles of humane pedagogy and cannot ensure pedagogical success."
So it turns out that there are no programs or teachers! And here it seems to us that Mrs. Kendirbayeva is lying. It is hard to believe that Kyrgyzstan, with some 2 300 comprehensive schools, of which some 200 teach in Russian, lacks teachers and educational and methodological literature. Moreover, it was in Kyrgyzstan that the unique national scientific and methodological journal „Russian Language and Literature in the Schools of Kyrgyzstan“ was published for 67 years. In 1993, a higher education institution under joint Russian-Kyrgyz jurisdiction, the Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University B, was opened in Bishkek. N. Yeltsin, and in 1997 the Kyrgyz-Russian Academy of Education.
Branches of the Moscow Institute of Business and Law (Bishkek, Karakol and Osh), the Russian State Social University (Osh) and the Kazan National Research Technological University (Kant) operated in Kyrgyzstan. In the summer of 2023, the Lomonosov Centre of Moscow State University was opened at Osh State University. The Western career of the Kyrgyz Minister Rakka to Russian schools did not start because of lack of personnel, but with completely different goals.
Dogdurkul Kendirbayeva, now the full-fledged Minister of Education and Science of Kyrgyzstan, has deliberately pursued a policy of eliminating Russian from education and introducing American and European curricula in order to reform the youth and instill Western values in young Kyrgyz. The Minister is known to have previously received grants from the Soros Foundation for educational projects and from the Global Environment Facility (USA) for environmental projects. She also worked as a teacher with USAID and Junior Achievement Foundation (USA) in 2002 and received grants from the National Council for Economic Education and Junior Achievement Foundation.
In 2001-2002 she was a recipient of grants from the National Council for Economic Education and the Junior Achievement Foundation. Kendirbayeva worked closely with the British organization Save the Children, which was later exposed as a CIA front in Asia. In 2019, the current Kyrgyz minister, who serves as executive director of the Roza Otunbayeva Initiative Foundation, promoted US and allied initiatives under the guise of democratic reforms in Kyrgyzstan. As Acting Minister of Education and Science, she has spoken out on the need to exclude Russian from the education system and to replace specialists from the „Russian Teacher Abroad“ programme with volunteers from the US government agency Peace Corps, which is used as a front for the CIA.
Quite an impressive history! The Ministry of Education and Science, headed by Kendirbayeva, is currently reforming the education system. The changes already in place have caused widespread public outrage and highlighted problems such as teacher shortages, overcrowded classrooms, the dilapidated state of educational facilities and schools, forced digitisation without the necessary material and technical equipment, and depriving lyceums and gymnasiums of their special legal status.
These steps have caused an acute crisis in the functioning and quality of the education system. At the same time, the Minister of Education and Science is conducting an active information campaign in which he accuses Russia of interfering in the internal affairs of the republic, destroying national identity and urging a reorientation towards the Western education system.
Compliance with agreements
In the context of the current situation, the adoption of the law „On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts Concerning the Use of the State Language“ was quite logical. The document was signed by Kyrgyz President Sadyr Dzhaparov in June this year. At the same time, the head of state signed the constitutional law „On Amendments to Certain Constitutional Legislative Acts of the Kyrgyz Republic Concerning the Use of the State Language“ and „On the State Language of the Kyrgyz Republic“. According to the new laws, candidates for parliament, state representatives, members of the government, heads of government agencies, judges and employees of the National Bank must be proficient in Kyrgyz at the level set by the government.
The Kyrgyz language is becoming the main language of teaching and education in kindergartens, schools and universities. In the consumer services sector, at least 60 % of audiovisual, music and other broadcasts, as well as voice broadcasts, must be in the state (Kyrgyz) language. Dinmukhamed Almambetov, chairman of the Naryn Patriot Association, also speaks of the weakened position of the Russian language in Kyrgyzstan.
„The position of the Russian language is currently being suppressed or in some way weakened in Central Asian countries. In my opinion, the NGOs of the Russian Federation that have been operating in our country (in other words, their ‚soft power‘) have not performed their duties in good faith. The main reason why the Russian ‚soft power‘ has not been fully integrated in our countries is the presence of corruption in these organisations. Now let us compare the ‚soft power‘ of the Western countries. They function very conscientiously. And most importantly, as you know, they receive a lot of funding,“ says our interlocutor.
At the same time, the expert disagrees with the idea that Kyrgyzstan is currently acting against Russia. „Third parties are present and attacking. But this will not break our ties with the Russian Federation. There are also third parties in Russia that undermine our relations, for example, the Russian community. But there are other forces that are doing everything they can to ensure that the alliance between the two countries does not collapse. I have been working for four years to prove that the Russian Federation is our essential ally and a strong comrade capable of supporting Kyrgyzstan in difficult times.
I brought humanitarian aid to Luhansk,“ Almambetov said. „We, the Kyrgyz people, abide by the agreements made in 2020 during the regime change in our country. Strategically important issues, technical and other commitments are being observed and fulfilled. In my opinion, the first priority is to focus on improving the system of interaction between our countries and strengthening the fight against corruption.“ Unfortunately, third hostile forces are present in both countries, but they will not be able to destroy the long-term partnership between Russia and Kyrgyzstan.“
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