Yan Matusevich

In his podcast Jaratman he interviews entrepreneurs, artists, economists and political analysts. I listen to it regularly to practice my Kyrgyz language comprehension. This is another major attack on freedom of speech in Kyrgyzstan.

Неизвестные задержали и увезли активиста Айбека Тенизбая Родственники активиста Айбека Тенизбая сообщили, что его увезли мужчины, представившиеся сотрудниками силовых структур.

It is being reported that Aibek Tenizbay, arguably the most popular Kyrgyz podcaster, has been abducted from his mother’s village outside of Bishkek. We’ll know more soon, but the assumption is that security services are responsible for his abduction.

kaktus.media/doc/536870_n...

Picture of a box with the words “Shot or not?” and Trinkspiel underneath it

begging Germans to put a stop to trying to do advertising in English. there needs to be a moratorium.

this is…a drinking game (?) being sold at the supermarket checkout counter

Turan Research Center | North, South, and the Tandem: Understanding Kyrgyzstan’s 2025 Parliamentary Elections Why the Elections Came EarlyOn November 30, 2025, Kyrgyzstan held snap parliamentary elections nearly a year ahead of schedule, following the September self-dissolution of the Supreme Council, also kn...

Great overview by @aigiturgunbaeva.bsky.social about the recent Kyrgyz parliamentary elections. Provides historical context and highlights some of the challenges facing Kyrgyzstan as it completes its transition to a consolidated authoritarian regime

www.turancenter.org/analysis/nor...

Just discovered Zama, a Chechen band from the 80s whose legacy has almost been entirely erased. Two of its band members were killed in the Russian bombing of Grozny.Virtually no traces of them online, but managed to find a grainy copy of the music video to their song Daga doglu

Kyrgyzstan is losing its status as Central Asia’s only democracy The president is muffling the opposition and consolidating power

The president is muffling the opposition and consolidating power

Multiple reports of cross border attack from Afghanistan into Tajikistan killing three Chinese workers. This is the second incident where Chinese workers on the border have been killed (the first being last November)

mfa.tj/en/washingto...

And the forum has been cancelled on orders from
the Kyrgyz security services.

Discussing the legacy of Russian colonialism is off limits in Kyrgyzstan

The current government tries to walk a thin line between promoting a new narrative of Kyrgyz nationalism that completely sidesteps the history of Russian colonialism and Soviet rule.

He posted on Instagram that he was given the green light to continue with the event, but it’s part of a broader attempt by security services to clamp down on or downplay the legacy of Russian colonialism in order to appease their close friend and ally to the North.

Iskender Batyrbek Uulu, a Kyrgyz teacher, blogger and historian, is organizing a forum in December dedicated to Ürkün, the 1916 ethnic cleansing of Kyrgyz people by Russian forces.

He was called in for a “chat” with security services to make sure his event did not lead to “inter-ethnic conflict”

Allies of Kyrgyzstan's strongman president sweep snap parliamentary election The results cement Sadyr Japarov's tight control of politics in what had long been Central Asia’s most democratic state.

As expected, Japarov allies sweep the board in parliamentary elections in #Kyrgyzstan, consolidating his power ahead of a presidential election in January 2027 in which he's expected to seek a second term www.reuters.com/world/asia-p...

Labour immigration policy explained:
✅ Net immigration rising: CRACKDOWN REQUIRED
✅ Net immigration plummeting: CRACKDOWN REQUIRED

Truly Next level pettiness

All the effort being put into not triggering Putin with the sight of a Ukrainian flag in the distance (the only Ukrainian flag you can get away with openly displaying in Kyrgyzstan)

Spotted by @grafecristo over on Elon’s hellsite

In Bishkek, the embassy of Ukraine is right next to the new presidential palace (Palace of Unity) built under Japarov. During Putin’s official visit to the palace yesterday, the Kyrgyz authorities covered up the view of the Ukrainian embassy with a giant screen displaying KG and RU flags

More often than not, our politics are a reflection of where we happen to come from, not our individual choices.
If you were born Jewish Israeli, then there's 80% chance you would be supporting the campaign against Gaza.
That's just the unfortunate statistics.

This is the current Kyrgyz government’s MO: convict family members or very minor associates of opposition media/activists on bogus charges, pressure the actual target to shut up or leave the country then release what are effectively hostages on probation

Good news from Kyrgyzstan: these two unjustly convicted cameramen have been released on probation. Huge relief for their friends and families

Red Hands in Paris: A Small Act of Vandalism in a Big Russian Strategy On the afternoon of May 11, 2024, two men arrived at a modest hotel in Paris. One of them, identifying himself as Mircho Angelov, presented a Bulgarian ID

A late-night act of vandalism turned out to be something much bigger, and Moscow knew exactly what it was doing.

A Tool Of Russian Propaganda? New Russia-Linked TV Station To Be Launched In Kyrgyzstan A new Russia-linked television station is set to launch its operations in Kyrgyzstan. There are fears that Russia could use the new media outlet as a tool for spreading its propaganda in Central Asia.

They seem to have a lot of money and are actively recruiting Kyrgyz journalists (a ton have lost their jobs in recent years) with good salaries. Maria Zakharova was present at the launch in Bishkek

www.rferl.org/a/nomad-tv-r...

YouTube video by НОМАД НОМАД ТВ | Открытие нового телеканала в Кыргызстане, рекорд кыргызского кино

A new glitzy Russian propaganda channel called Nomad TV just launched in Kyrgyzstan. They’ve set up a studio right in Ala-Too square, blocking the view of Chingiz Aitmatov’s statue.

The symbolism couldn’t be more in your face

youtu.be/T9LR3nHTfL4?...

There is no bright communist future at the end of the book, but rather the decimation of the Kazakh way of life and allusions to the ecological hardships to come in Central Asia.

It’s really a captivating read that avoids dogmatic cliches

Thoroughly enjoyed Nurpeisov’s epic trilogy “Blood and Sweat” about Russian colonialism and the Bolshevik revolution in the Kazakh steppes

While trying to conform the party lines in terms of the Reds (good), Whites (bad) narrative, I think he got away with a lot more nuance than I expected

I'm lucky to have found some blue-collar(ish) work that helps me pay the bills and I'm hoping my Central Asia hiatus is a temporary one. Not willing to give up on research/reporting just yet, but on cold winter days such as these it can feel a bit hopeless.

thank you, much appreciated!

Thank you, Claudia! Struggling but trying––and I hope I can find the wherewithal to continue because I'm not ready to turn my back on my passions regardless of how dire the situation may seem.

Appreciate the kind words and I can totally relate to what you're going through. I'm trying to learn to accept the way things are for the moment and not beat myself about not finding an immediate solution, but my bigger hope is that we can find ways to stay connected and work together down the road