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More competition in Kyrgyz election

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, Oct. 7 (UPI) -- The registration of four presidential candidates in Bishkek brings the total number of contenders to 24, the Kyrgyz election commission said.

Authorities at the Kyrgyz Central Election Commission registered Torobai Kolubaev, Tursunbai Bakir Uulu, Nariman Tyuleev and Akbaraly Aitikeev as independent candidates for the Oct. 30 contest.

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The commission in September didn't accept their registration because they couldn't verify adequate support for their candidacy. The four candidates appealed and the commission was able to confirm they had the minimum 30,000 signatures needed to compete, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports.

Though one candidate, Marat Sultanov, informally pulled out of the race, the additions brings the total number of candidates for the contest to 24.

At least 470 people were killed in ethnic conflicts near Osh and Jalal Abad in Kyrgyzstan last year. Most of the victims of the violence were ethnic Uzbeks. The violence followed an April coup that forced Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev to flee the country.

Rights groups warned that social stigmas associated with sexual violence were exacerbated by simmering tensions between ethnic communities in Kyrgyzstan.

Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International in separate reports marking the anniversary of the conflict said investigations into the violence were flawed.

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Kyrgyz President Roza Otunbayeva is ineligible for a second term. Her term expires Dec. 31.

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