24.kg quotes Zhusuev saying [ru]:

I came accross very interesting picture - the park after Panfilov from high up represented pentagonal geometric figure known as a pentagram: a sign of Satan or also known as the “Sigil of Baphomet” - the official symbol of the Church of Satan. It is absurd to say that the pentacle accidentally appeared on the map of the city or it is simply the star of the USSR. Since the figure has a perfect proportion of angles to the poles of the Earth.

Leader of ErK Shairbek Zhusuev thinks it is high time to clear Bishkek from such religious symbols, as they are not traditional religions of Kyrgyzstan. Prior to Zhusuev, the party ErK was headed by Tursunbai Bakir uulu, former ombudsman of Kyrgyzstan, who is well known for his pro-Islamic public statements. It was Tursunbai Bakir uulu, head of Muslims Union of Kyrgyzsan and member of ErK, who earlier this year burned down Israel's flag in the center of Bishkek as a form of protest against Israeli actions in Gaza sector.

Kyrgyz internet users started actively discussing the news about the biggest Satan symbol in Bishkek. Users of internet forum Diesel are the most active in debating over this topic.

Alx. says pentacle is a common symbol and does not necessarily mean religion [ru]:

It is difficult to comment on this nonsense. They [party members] do not have anything else to do! Such satanic symbols are on the shoulder straps of each policemen. And the fact about the perfect corners - it is just the easiest way to draw a star. It is unequivocally the legacy of the Soviet era.

photo.kg accuses the party leader of not working on more serious issues, but glad that he is a computer literate [ru]:

I think the leader of the Erk party to has to do nothing else… I am glad that the party members are learning the computer literacy and Google Maps, instead of spending time playing computer solitaire and surfing porn sites.

Don.Speekenglish thinks that Shairbek Zhusuev must better learn the history of Bishkek city [ru]:

Mr. Zhusuev apparently is not aware that this park was originally called “Star”. The park was named after Panfilov after the World War II.

CAJAX! ironises the situation with interesting fact [ru]:

By the way! The Ferris Wheel in the park is called the Satan's Wheel (Rus. Чертово колесо). It explains everything! Thats why the park attracts kids and youth - people with a fragile psychology. Elite houses with swimming pools and a casino [in parks territory] in staggered order will correct the situation.

Talking about symbols. Kyrgyzstan is still full of visible Soviet era symbols and signs, including pentagram stars, statues of Lenin, hammer and sickle symbols, etc.

Also posted on neweurasia.

Immediately after it became known that Daniyar Usenov assumed Igor Chudinov’s former post, members of the Diesel internet forum began actively discussing the country’s new second-in-command. There were many comments, most of them negative. The new appointment was not a popular one.

Here are some sample responses [ru]:

Alx.: He reminds me of that character from [comedy film] The 12 Chairs played by Savelii Kramarov. Anything he tries his hand at, he fails.

Havez: Whoever said earlier that he has a “season pass” for the job is right. It’s sad that we’re in for yet another scam of the century. I just wonder what it will be.

XWalker [ru]: It seems like developed capitalism is a ways away… Onward to the past!

Queer [ru]: Now they’re definitely going to litter Friendship Park with cottages. Not only that, they’re probably going to start building apartment buildings in the middle of Dzerzhinka.

So far, Diesel is one of the few places where the new appointment is being discussed. Most bloggers have kept silent. Perhaps, they’re still digesting all the information that has come out in the past two days, of which there has been plenty.

Morrire, the prominent Kyrgyz blogger on LiveJournal is one of the few who have commented on Usenov’s appointment as PM. She writes laconically, but succinctly [ru]:

I’m nauseous, simply nauseous.

Why such strong antipathy towards Daniyar Usenov? There are many answers. For example, today one of my blogger friends joked that “we’ll probably start playing the lottery again soon,” referring to the unpopular lotteries Usenov organized during his reign as mayor of Bishkek. Nariman Tiuleev, who took the mayor seat after Usenov, accomplished more in one year than the latter did in two.

Also posted on neweurasia.net, translated by Andrey

There is a confusion among media, both local and foreign, that candidates Nazaraliev and Atambaev have withdrawn their candidacies. However, both Nazaraliev and Atambaev have several times stated that according to the law on elections, they cant withdraw their candidacies during the election day. They are just considering this election corrupt, and want it to be reheld.

There's video, too:

That's Omurbek Tekebaev, calling the Kyrgyz government criminal and declaring “war” on current president Kurmabnek Bakiev. He has good reason to think so—in 2006 he was basically framed at the Bishkek airport.

There is a lot of internet chatter about supposed fraud.

Blive.kg, one of the video servers in Kyrgyz internet domain, has several videos showing the violations of election norms, including opening of polling stations before arrival of observers, ballot stuffingand carousel voting. As Blive is not accessible outside of Kyrgyzstan, I downloaded ‘norms violations videos’ from there and uploaded in YouTube. But the problem is that one cannot really prove that all these movies were taken during the 2009 presidential elections.

There are also videos of so-called “carousel-voting,” where groups go to different polling stations using different sets of IDs, and election observers arriving on site to find ballots already in the ballot box.

Topchubek Turgunaliev, an opposition politician who has spent a lot of time fighting electoral fraud, has alleged that there are large numbers of dead people on the voter rolls. Even though he no longer wants to be considered for President, former Prime Minister Almazbek Atambaev has lead much of the charge against the elections. A former Prime Minister, he accused officials of election fraud and announced he was quitting the race shortly after learning that one of his local campaign managers had been detained. He's also alleged that an additional 20-30 “opposition members” have been arrested in Issyk-Kul.

Kurmanbek Bakiev, however, seems to have squeaked through, though maybe not with the reported 67% margin. The New York Times ran a depressing story today about how the U.S. goal is to look the other way, as they're too excited about getting Manas back to rock to boat too much on those pesky human rights abuses.

Obviously we don't know for certain that there was specifically voter fraud, in part because most of the observers seemed to have given up and left early (their report will be interesting). We do know, however, there was widespread intimidation beforehand, and there are certainly indications that some forms of voter fraud were widespread and not just limited to somewhere like Bishkek. It's still early, and it's just turning morning in Kyrgyzstan, so there will probably be a lot more news today. A good place to keep up is the #kyrgyzelections tag on Twitter. It doesn't garner the same amount of attention as Iran or Michael Jackson, but it's a good source for news.

This is now the second post-Soviet ally whose abuses the U.S. has remained officially silent about in the last few months (the other, obviously, is Georgia). I'm no bleeding heart, but it is interesting that, as much as the U.S. makes hay about human rights and vote fraud when it suits a simplistic good versus evil narrative, it also prefers to look away when its friends behave even kind of similarly. The U.S. doesn't have to walk on egg shells, it just needs to point out that it's not comfortable or happy with these kinds of things. Baby steps.

Update: The OSCE has officially said the Kyrgyz election “failed to meet key OSCE commitments, despite some positive elements.” Before the elections, OSCE observers saw “instances of obstruction of opposition campaign events as well as pressure and intimidation of opposition supporters.” Then, on election day, there were “many problems and irregularities, including ballot box stuffing, inaccuracies in the voter lists, and multiple voting.” But hey, at least they had multiple candidates!