In 1916, Russian forces swept into modern-day Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan to enlist Central Asians to fight for Russia in World War I. The Russians killed an estimated 15,000 people who resisted, and some 100,000 more people died trying to flee to China. More than a century later, the episode still isn’t talked about much because of pressure from Russia to literally erase it from the history books. Levi Bridges reports from Kyrgyzstan on what it means to remember this painful passage in the country today.
The story you just read is not locked behind a paywall because listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. Now more than ever, we need your help to support our global reporting work and power the future of The World. Can we count on you?