A little about Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan is a beautiful, mountainous country – very scenic, filled with fresh air and skies filled with stars.  It is also landlocked, and has no waterways that connect to oceanic port cities. It is heavily dependent on air transport for import/ export – which is expensive.  Jim makes the analogy to the state of Wyoming.  What if Wyoming had become its own country – at a time when no interstate road or train system connected it to its neighbors?  Comprised primarily of grazing land and mountains, Wyoming’s neighboring states may or may not have been all that interested in its success.   

In 1991, Kyrgyzstan seceded from the Soviet Union, and established itself constitutionally as a parliamentary democracy.  As such a young democracy, it is finding its own path.  And, democracy is not easy.  As Winston Churchill said, “…democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.”  Prices are inflating, pay remains low, and many of Kyrgyzstan's highly educated citizens look to emigrate. 

During our time in Kyrgyzstan, Jim and I so enjoyed talking late into the evening with Kunduz’ family members.  They are very committed to their country’s future, and the conversation ranged widely from concerns over public education (teachers’ salaries average only $100/month; the only teaching materials readily available are in Russian, not Kyrgyz; the percentage of kids attending school is dropping), to mixed feelings about outside investors (e.g. thankfulness for Chinese investment in Kyrgyz infrastructure, accompanied by fears about their growing influence on Kyrgyz life and politics), to worries about their drought which will hurt their already low GNP, to hopes for continued public faith that democracy is the way to go. 

The full moon rises in the sky, as our voices talk on into the night …