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Paper abstract:

This paper aims to critically narrate a novel brand of legal populism purveyed in the politics of President Sadyr Japarov of Kyrgyzstan. The problems in Kyrgyzstan with rule of law and justice are serious and have been building up over the years and multiple presidencies. However, President Japarov, by far the most impressive populist than all his predecessors, has taken the problem to a new level, as he and his administration have treated numerous matters pertaining to law – especially many judicial matters – in a distinctively populist and self-serving manner. The Japarov legal populism has tapped into emotive, popular and customarily “felt” notions of the right and just, as it effectively suppressed formal legal procedure and norms of justice. From phenomena such as “kusturizatsia” and amnesty laws, to demonstrations of will and resolve for justice and forgiveness where strictly legal judicial decisions applied, to much else, President Japarov’s treatment of law risks doing deep damage to the already seriously ailing legal and justice affairs of Kyrgyzstan. It also stands as an interesting case for analysis from a political ethnographic perspective, promising to broaden our understanding of how and when political populism translates into populism – and, certainly, corruption – of law.

In this undertaking, the paper builds on some earlier works on law and its peculiar workings in Kyrgyzstan, especially that of Judith Beyer, as it tries to introduce some nuances of the latest periods, and hence, an excursus. It will be based on analysis of relevant events, decisions and language based on publicly available information as well as a limited number of interviews with people with close knowledge of the subject.