INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
with a spate of concert cancellations and the use of facial-recognition technology to track down Russians wanted by Moscow contributing to
of Ukraine, became the third Russian musician to have a Kyrgyz show canceled this month.Authorities in the ex-Soviet Central Asian republic,
Promoters of the music festival that Morgenshtern had been set to headline said they received anonymous death threats over the rapper's
the suspects uploaded into the system.The Kyrgyz interior ministry said last week that the system helped identify and detain four citizens
of Russia and Uzbekistan, another ex-Soviet republic in Central Asia, wanted by their home countries on suspicion of extremism, hooliganism,
activists who face criminal hooliganism and extremism charges in Russia
KyrgyzstanHundreds of thousands of mostly young Russian men and women are estimated to have flocked to neighboring countries such as
Kyrgyzstan after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and launched a draft of military-age men in September.In addition to its arrests of
Russian anti-war activists, Kyrgyzstan made headlines in June after two Russian rock bands had their shows in Bishkek canceled.The anti-war
punk band Pornofilmy said they were forced to call off their show following threats by Kyrgyz security services against local venues.The
an organizational dispute between Kyrgyz and Kazakh promoters.Bi-2, Pornofilmy and Morgenshtern were among the anti-war Russian artists
named in a 2022 blacklist that media said was circulated among promoters within Russia.Other artists on the blacklist, including the rappers
Noize MC and Kasta as well as Eurovision 2021 semifinalist Manizha, have been able to stage shows in Kyrgyzstan in the months since Russia
invaded Ukraine in 2022.Meanwhile, Kyrgyzstan's Central Asian neighbor Kazakhstan on Monday canceled a concert featuring Russian singer
Grigory Leps following a wave of outcry over his support of the invasion of Ukraine.
