Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan Interim Government | featured news

The interim leaders of Kyrgyzstan said voters approved a new constitution Sunday that will allow the Central Asian nation to form a legitimate government after months of turmoil.

President Roza Otunbayeva called the referendum a success, saying it took place without incident and paved the way for holding parliamentary elections in October. The vote came just weeks after rampages against minority Uzbeks in southern Kyrgyzstan killed as many as 2,000 people and forced 400,000 ethnic Uzbeks to temporarily flee.

Polls opened in violence-wracked Kyrgyzstan for a referendum Sunday to choose a new constitution that the interim government hopes will legitimize its power until new parliamentary elections in October.

Kyrgyzstan's interim rulers sent troops on Tuesday to quell ethnic violence that has threatened their fragile grip on the Central Asian state after the overthrow of President Kurmanbek Bakiyev.