Chinese leather traders unharmed during Kyrgyzstan unrest
According to the Chinese embassy in Kyrgyzstan, a Chinese trading area was cleared before the recent violence escalated. As a result, no casualties have been reported.
Nevertheless, many shops in Bishkek, where many Chinese leathergoods firms were based, have been damaged and even destroyed in the chaos. The majority of Chinese firms trading there were from Zhejiang and Fujian provinces and were selling leather footwear and small leathergoods.
Rioting on April 6-7 resulted in an uprising against the existing government. Opposition leaders have formed a provisional government headed by Roza Otunbayeva, a former foreign minister, which will govern the country for six months. The country’s fugitive president, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, said on April 13 he would step down, but only if the new interim government would guarantee his and his family’s personal safety.
