Soros Foundation Ends Operations In Kyrgyzstan

2024-04-16 02:09:29

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, April 16. The Open SocietyFoundations, founded by George Soros, have announced the closure oftheir fund in Kyrgyzstan, Trend reports.

As the organization explained, the decision comes in response toa new law imposing broad restrictions and limitations on theactivities of local organizations funded by internationalsources.

The Open Society Foundations established the Soros-KyrgyzstanFund in 1993. Over the past three decades, the fund has allocatedover $115 million to support various projects in the country,collaborating with both the government and civil society. Theseprojects have spanned areas such as education, public healthcare,access to new digital technologies, criminal justice reform, legalaid systems, and more.

The new law, to which the organization refers, was signed byKyrgyzstan's President Sadyr Zhaparov on April 2, aiming toregulate non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the country to the amendments, non-profit organizations receivingfunding from abroad will be placed in a special registry.

Zhaparov justified the law by citing the necessity foraccountability and transparency among NGOs in Kyrgyzstan. Hehighlighted concerns about the accountability and potential misuseof funds by NGOs operating in the country for decades withoutregistration.

Despite objections from foreign donors, Zhaparov reassured thatthere would be no persecution of NGOs, emphasizing the government'scommitment to transparency.

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