Kyrgyzstan's Minister of Internal Affairs Bolotbek Nogoibayev called on opposition supporters to stay calm and orderly as their protest escalated into violence on Saturday with one local reporter injured.

Protesters, who demand President Kurmanbek Bakiyev step down, started to gather in the capital's main square Wednesday.

Violent fighting broke out between protesters and some unidentified persons when the demonstrators' procession marched to the president's office and the state-owned broadcasting and television company. At least two of the persons were captured by the protesters and many others were seriously beaten in the fighting.

Although Nogoibayev said that the police will look into the case and investigate the causes, opposition leader Omurbek Tekebayev blamed the violence on "government agitators."

Police also beefed up security in key government headquarters on Saturday by deploying armed police staff in front of the president's office and the state-owned broadcasting and television company.

The widespread anger among opposition members was triggered by Bakiyev's signing of a decree in December to reverse several constitutional amendments and recover authority to form a cabinet.

The Kyrgyz opposition has distributed pamphlets advocating five demands, among which are calls for the annulment of the new constitution approved by the legislature on Dec. 30; for President Bakiyev to be held responsible for the adoption of the constitution; and for parliament to announce early elections.

But earlier on Friday, supporters of the government, under the banner of "peace, unification and promoting reform," also launched rallies which spread from the states of Osh and Jalalabad to Naryn and Issyk-kul.

A spokesman for the supporters' rallies said the leaders of the opposition parties had turned a deaf ear to people's cries for the resolution of the dispute through negotiations.

Devoid of the people's support, they were doomed to fail, he added.

Source: Xinhua