MINSK. Feb 27 (Interfax) - The Belarusian Foreign Ministry is surprised by the statements made by Kyrgyz officials to Belarus, saying it doubts the Kyrgyz state can ensure that its citizens can get a fair trial.
Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev o Thursday called on the Belarusian authorities to extradite family members of Kyrgyzstan's former president Kurmanbek Bakiyev. "I very much hope that respected [Belarusian President] Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko and the friendly Belarusian people will eventually realize that they gave shelter to monsters," the Kyrgyz president said. The Kyrgyz Foreign Ministry also called on Minsk to extradite Kurmabek Bakiyev's brother Zhanysh.
"There is no point in commenting on insulting parallels and statements made by the Kyrgyz authorities to Belarus. Such overemotional statements would have been impossible at the level of the leader of a civilized state," the Belarusian Foreign Ministry said in a statement obtained by Interfax on Friday.
The Belarusian Foreign Ministry said the constitution and laws of any modern state provide that no one can be found guilty of a crime until his guilt is proven by a court ruling in legal force.
For this reason, even "if we ignore their [the Kyrgyz administration's] bias, the accusations of a grave crime made at the highest level contradict the universally accepted international norms of criminal law," the ministry said.
The Belarusian Foreign Ministry believes the position of the Kyrgyz administration calls into question the ability of the Kyrgyz state to protect the right of its citizens, including the right to a far trial.
"The relevant Belarusian authorities are doing their work and they are taking all necessary measures to determine and detain people involved in the killing of the person, who is allegedly a citizen of Kyrgyzstan. Any interference in their work, including by top officials of foreign states, if definitely unacceptable," the Belarusian Foreign Ministry said.
According to the Kyrgyz law enforcement agencies, Zhanysh Bakiyev, who headed the presidential bodyguards service in 2008-2010, currently resides in Minsk and is suspected of involvement in the death of Kyrgyz mafia boss Almambet Anapiyayev, a former member of his inner circle who was killed in the Belarusian capital.
Other suspects in Anapiyayev's murder include former high-ranking officer of the Kyrgyz Interior Minister Aibek Abdyrazakov and Zhanysh Bakiyev's bodyguard Rustam Saidulayev.
Zhanysh Bakiyev left Kyrgyzstan in April 2010. He has been living in Minsk for several years.