BISHKEK, April 29 (RIA Novosti) - An opposition rally in central Bishkek ended after Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev and Prime Minister Felix Kulov addressed the protesters Saturday.
Bakiyev and Kulov assured the rally that they were together with the people and promised to look into the demands made by opposition forces.
The action was organized by about 20 political parties and NGOs to demand decisive fight against crime and corruption, immediate reform of the country's Constitution, and dismissal of certain high-level state and government officials.
"The people are dissatisfied. The president was booed and jeered," said Bolotbek Sherniyazov, a member of parliament, adding that the president did not even finish his speech.
"The leadership must see that it is not just five or six politicians, but the country's citizens who are demanding an end to corruption and crime, as well as far-reaching reforms," said Almazbek Atambayev, co-chairman of the For Reforms movement and former industry minister.
According to the Interior Ministry, the rally drew about 15,000 people.
The rally's organizers said that unless their demands were met, protest actions would resume after May 27.
Kyrgyzstan's opposition said earlier after a meeting with the president that it would press ahead with plans to hold mass rallies of protest.
"We hoped to be heard, but [President Kurmanbek Bakiyev], just like [former President Askar] Akayev, is living in a vacuum, he does not understand reality," parliamentary member Melis Eshimkanov said, adding that the meeting only strengthened the opposition's determination to proceed with protests.
