Ousted leader reappears

KYRGYZSTAN’S ousted president Kurmanbek Bakiyev made his first public appearance yesterday since being toppled in a popular uprising, slamming his opponents and refusing to step down.

Bakiyev, who fled the capital Bishkek last week amid protests against his rule that left at least 81 people dead, addressed a crowd of thousands of supporters in his home village of Teyit in southern Kyrgyzstan.

He was greeted near his family home by throngs of supporters cheering his name.

Speaking from the steps of the local mayor’s office, Bakiyev insisted that he remained the legitimate president of the former Soviet state and accused the interim government of being “natural gangsters“.

It was his first public appearance since fleeing the capital on April 7.

The interim government formed by ex-foreign minister Roza Otunbayeva has demanded he resign and accused him of attempting to foment civil war.

Almazbek Atambayev, first deputy head of the interim government, told reporters in the capital Bishkek that the government was preparing to arrest the ousted leader but was holding off to avoid civilian casualties.