On March 12, a video from the surveillance cameras of a Bishkek restaurant appeared on social networks, where a mass brawl took place with the participation of the deputy of the Jogorku Kenesh, Zhanybek Abirov. The Prosecutor General’s Office wanted to hold the people’s deputy accountable, for which it requested the consent of the parliament, but some of its representatives do not see anything wrong with the behavior of their colleague.
Zhusupbek Korgonbai uulu, a deputy and a member of a special commission that will decide whether to bring Abirov to justice, believes.
“Zhanybek Abirov is my colleague, we met together in the Bishkek city kenesh. Anything happens. All those who call themselves men fight. And this time everything just became public, the camera got in the way. But I wish the victim a speedy recovery and good luck. Today I learned that he wrote a counter statement and they reconciled,” said Korgonbai uulu.
Another member of the commission, deputy Farhad Alimzhanov, asked the Kyrgyz people to forgive Abirov so that the “young and promising politician” would not break down “due to one mistake.”
“Before the holy month of Ramadan, I think it would be appropriate for all of us to forgive each other. We are all human and we all tend to make mistakes,” wrote Alimzhanov.
Deputy Tazabek Ikramov also spoke about the mistake. “Abirov apologized. […] This is youth. Anything happens. They hustled, they quarreled. I don’t see the need to imprison Abirov, but we need to wait for the results of the investigation,” Ikramov said.
People’s Deputy and former Prosecutor General Elmurza Satybaldiev believes that Abirov could have his own reasons for such behavior.
“I am also a man and I know how such things happen, but according to Abirov, I would not say that he was capable of such a thing,” Satybaldiev said.
Deputy Emil Toktoshev believes that Abirov could have been brought or attacked.
“This is wrong and unethical, but you need to ask Abirov himself. Maybe they brought it, maybe there was an attack, but we have a law on self-defense,” Toktoshev said.
According to the police, on the night of March 12, approximately at the Golden Dragon restaurant, two employees of the SBI were “unreasonably beaten up” by a group of 7-8 people, among whom was deputy Zhanybek Abirov.
One of the victims of the fight was seriously injured and is now in the hospital. He has a closed craniocerebral injury, eye contusion and a broken nose.
The actions of the deputy were condemned by the press secretary of the president, Erbol Sultanbaev, noting that such behavior “does not meet the ethical standards of a civil servant of this rank.” He said that the president was informed about a fight involving Abirov.
Abirov himself, two days after the incident, asked for forgiveness and admitted that he, as a people’s choice, “should not have succumbed to emotions.” The deputy said that he was ready to cooperate with the police, provide all the necessary information and bear responsibility under the law.
However, later it became known that the victim wrote a counter statement and refused all claims.