The ABU's member in the Kyrgyz Republic – the National TV and Radio Corporation (KTR) - has appealed for help after suffering significant damage in the recent clashes in the country's capital, Bishkek. In the violence that led up to the ousting of the country's former President, Kurmanbek Bakiev, four of KTR's five studios were attacked and suffered irreparable damage. Only the Zamana studio – where morning entertainment programmes are produced – escaped damage because it is located in a separate building away from KTR's headquarters. Currently all of KTR's output is being broadcast from the Zamana studio, but according to Musaeva Janar of KTR's Foreign Affairs Department, equipment there has not been updated for many years and "may lead to overload and failure of the only available equipment of the corporation". KTR is appealing to broadcasters in other parts of Asia for donations of cash or equipment to help it stay on air. The ABU's Technical Department will help coordinate any offers of technical assistance for the station. KTR – which was established in 1958 – is the country's first national channel and covers 90 percent of the Kyrgyz Republic.
