There has been a coup in Kyrgyzstan this week. I have received information that up to 50 people were killed in riots in Bishkek the capital.

I bet nobody really noticed. I assume most people don’t even really care. I am sure even fewer have an opinion about the rights and wrongs. I wonder if many people could even find Kyrgyzstan on a map.

So why should I mention this during an important general election in the UK?

Well for me there are two important lessons. First it is about how we take our own democracy for granted. Probably 35% of us won’t bother to even take 10 minutes every 4-5 years to go and vote. Yet here in the streets of Bishkek people were willing to put their lives on the line.

Second. I have been to work on the streets of Bishkek a couple of times. I have met those agitating for change. I have met people looking after some of the poorest people on the planet. You see for me this is not just another news story. There was a worry that I may know some of those who were killed. Suddenly it is personal and matters. What troubled me is that I should think this every time I hear of death and injury around the world. There is always a personal tragedy for the individuals and families concerned. Yet we have all become immune. As I say I bet this has not even registered with most people. And most of you don’t care. But I just wished we lived in a world where more people did.

It mattered enough for it to interrupt talks between Obama and the Russians this week. In Geopolitical terms it is an important pert of the region. So much so that this former Soviet republic had both American and Russian airbases in the country!