The anniversary of the uprising of April 2010, which unseated Mr Bakiyev and left almost 100 people dead, passed peacefully. However, small demonstrations of varying intensity have taken place before government buildings weekly, if not daily, some of them blocking traffic or becoming aggressive. Among the most emotional protests have been those by relatives of victims of the inter-ethnic violence in southern Kyrgyzstan in June 2010. Their demands got vocal support from Ata-Jurt. By May 10th the government had approved the distribution of around Som600m (US$12.8m) in compensation to those bereaved or injured by the clashes.

A long-awaited international report on the violence was released May 3rd. The Kyrgyzstan Inquiry Commission (KIC)-led by a Finnish politician, Kimmo Kiljunen-found evidence that crimes against humanity were likely to have been committed when Kyrgyz military units took part in attacks against ethnic Uzbeks, and cited gross miscarriages of justice against the minority group. The report explicitly states that genocide did not take place. However, it disputes government assertions that the violence had been started by Islamist militants or members of the ousted Bakiyev regime, and censures several officials for doing too little to prevent the bloodshed, or even fuelling it; among them are a former defence minister, Ismail Isakov, and the nationalistic mayor of Osh, Melisbek Myrzakmatov. Many Kyrgyz officials have condemned the report and said that it would stoke more inter-ethnic conflict.

Tensions in the south remain high as the June anniversary of the violence approaches. The original protests calling for compensation to victims' families had been staged primarily by ethnic Kyrgyz, some of them brandishing anti-Uzbek slogans. Now new protests have taken their place, demanding that KIC investigators be punished for their report. In the south, the shortage of arable land is a possible flashpoint for renewed violence-small disputes over grazing rights and access to grazing land have been a common theme in previous ethnic disputes. Nationalist rhetoric has been strong nationwide, particularly in the Kyrgyz-language press.