BISHKEK, October 27 (RIA Novosti, Yulia Orlova) - Protesters that have been outside Kyrgyzstan's parliament building for the last few days in a bid to secure Prime Minister Felix Kulov's resignation called off their action Thursday after a meeting with the president.
The demonstrators were demanding that the premier step down in connection with the October 20 killing of a senior parliamentarian during an inspection of a penal colony. But they decided to disperse after some of them met with President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who said he had promised that the guilty parties would face justice.
On October 20, parliamentarians, prosecutors and penitentiary officials went on an inspection tour of a high security penal colony where they were attacked by inmates. Tynychbek Aktambayev, the chairman of the law and order committee, and his two assistants were killed. Chief of the penitentiary service Ikmatulla Polotov sustained a gunshot wound and died without regaining consciousness Thursday morning.
Aktambayev's family blamed his death on Kulov, who had served a prison sentence himself, and accused him of ties with crime boss Aziz Batukayev.
Protester Topchubek Turgunaliyev said the Kyrgyz prosecutor general, who attended the meeting with Bakiyev, had promised that prosecutors would question everyone involved in the tragedy, including the premier and members of parliament.
The late parliamentarian's relatives began protests Monday that gathered about 500 people, who demand an objective investigation into the incident and Kulov's resignation. Some members of parliament sided with them, while Kulov supporters also took to the streets.
