KYRGYZSTAN. THREE SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR KILLING KYRGYZ LAWMAKER

August 3, 2006: a court in Kyrgyzstan sentenced to death three men charged with killing a member of the Central Asian state's parliament.
The penalty will not be implemented because Kyrgyzstan has a moratorium on executions. Instead, the men -- Yevgeny Golovin, Azamat Zakirov and Rustam Abdulin -- will be jailed on death row.
Parliament member Tynychbek Akmatbayev was killed in October 2005 when inmates at a tuberculosis hospital inside a prison took him and his entourage hostage. The murder highlighted the impoverished country's volatility after violent protests toppled veteran leader Askar Akayev earlier that year.
The court also sentenced 35 people to jail terms in connection with the killing. One man got a suspended sentence. (Sources: Reuters, 03/08/2006)