Rakhmon will be stripped of the title of Honorary Citizen of Bishkek

Rahmon may be stripped of the title of honorary citizen of Bishkek, but there are currently no mechanisms for this.

Photo: Internet

As previously reported, Deputy Dastan Bekeshev of the Jogorku Kenesh (Parliament of the Kyrgyz Republic) stated that the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon should be stripped of the title of honorary citizen of Bishkek. He sent an official letter to the mayor of the capital and the deputies of the Bishkek city council requesting the cancellation of the decision to confer the title.

However, on September 29, the chairman of the Bishkek city council Kuvanychbek Kongantiev stated that the city council cannot currently strip the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon of the title of honorary citizen of Kyrgyzstan’s capital.

According to him, deputies can award citizens, but they cannot strip titles. The city council’s office is currently working on the issue of making amendments and developing the mechanism for stripping the title. The matter may be considered at the next session.

The President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon was awarded the title of honorary citizen of Bishkek in 1999. While serving as mayor of Bishkek, Felix Kulov presented the Tajik leader with a distinguishing badge. The then-President Askar Akayev also attended the ceremony.

Anti-Tajik sentiment in Kyrgyzstan has intensified following a three-day conflict on the Tajik-Kyrgyz border, resulting in the deaths of over a hundred citizens from Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, with hundreds more injured. The parties accused each other of aggression.