In mid-June 2010, violence broke out in the south of Kyrgyzstan. Many Uzbek homes were burned, people were killed, and thousands of people fled to the border between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. Some Uzbeks have since returned to their burned-out homes and are living in their yards or porch areas. Others are staying with Uzbek friends in houses away from the city. As of June 23, Catholic Relief Services is assessing needs in Osh and Jalalabad.
Credits: Laura Sheahen/Catholic Relief Services
Caritas is launching an appeal for USD 5.8 million 29,240 (EUR 4.6 million) to help families affected by conflict in Kyrgyzstan.
Over 14,000 people will be supported in building warm shelters before winter arrives. They will also receive warm bedding.
In mid-June 2010, violence broke out suddenly in the southern Kyrgyz cities of Osh and Jalal-Abad and nearby villages, leaving several thousand homes and businesses in flames, up to 400,000 people displaced and an indeterminate number dead and wounded.
Though both the Kyrgyz and Uzbek communities were affected by the violence, the vast majority of the victims were members of the ethnic Uzbek minority.
Approximately 100,000 people fled across the border to Uzbekistan, but most have returned to the country.
A larger number of people have also been internally displaced within Kyrgyzstan, most of them taking refuge with host families close to their burned homes.
The shelters will be built at the sites of their destroyed homes in Osh and Jalal. Shelter programmes will also include homes for the disabled, the elderly, a children’s sanatorium, and two women’s shelters.