SUMMARY
A major underlying reason for the conflict between Kyrgyz and Uzbeks in Osh, a region in the southern parts of Kyrgyzstan, was the demand for land, which is in short supply in the province. The shortage of land was a driving force behind the Uzbek group Adalat as well as the Kyrgyz group Osh-aimagy. The disputes over land became particularly overt in Fergana Valley that has been inhabited by various ethnic groups for centuries, which all occupied different economic niches. Uzbeks, along with Tajiks, traditionally lived as farmers while the Kyrgyz herded in the mountains. Ethnic tensions arose due to population increase, making the Fergana Valley one of the agriculturally most heavily exploited areas in Central Asia on the one hand; and the borders of three countries cutting through the region arbitrarily and without paying attention to the nationalities of the people on the other hand.
The precise trigger for the violent clashes between Kyrgyz and Uzbeks in early June 1990 differ according to accounts of both groups. A major factor, however, was the announcement made by the Kyrgyz-dominated Osh City Council to construct a plant on land that belonged to an Uzbek collective farm. The tensions between Uzbeks and Kyrgyz that followed the decision over land allocation escalated in early June and resulted in bloody clashes in Osh. Both sides, headed by youth gangs, attacked each other with firearms and primitive weapons and houses and cars were destroyed and burned down. The fighting mostly occurred in Osh, but also spread to areas surrounding the town. Kyrgyz and Uzbeks mobs, gathered along the border between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbeks trying to cross the border from Uzbekistan to take part in the fighting had to be held back by security forces. Demonstrations were also held in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek. Only the massive deployment of security forces was able to stop the clashes. The violence left around 300 people dead, the highest death toll from ethnic violence in the Soviet Union to that date.
The non-state conflict between Kyrgyz and Uzbeks was first included in UCDP data in 1990. In June that year, the clashes between the groups escalated and resulted in more than 25 battle-related deaths.
