In the past few days, many Bishkek residents have organized humanitarian relief packages to send to those affected by the violence in Osh and Jalal-Abad provinces. News of drop sites has spread quickly by word of mouth and through social networking sites. Today, I was handed a flyer that read: 

“People of Kyrgyzstan – unite! Join the action ‘From hand to hand’ to provide humanitarian aid and collect items for the population of southern Kyrgyzstan. Aid collection – everyday on Ala-Too Square, from 9am.”

On June 14, the "April 7" youth movement, which is organizing the aid drop, had collected a growing pile of flour, pasta and medicine from city residents and group members.
Iskander Koichumanov, an April 7 member helping organize the collection, explained that the group is a network of around 25,000 students. It does not have any political aims, but was created to promote “development and stability in the country,” he said. When we spoke, he was helping arrange a truck to deliver the food and medicine to April 7 members in the South, who would distribute the packages to those in greatest need.
In humanitarian situations, however, relief aid is notoriously difficult to coordinate.
The April 7 members say they are operating independently of other groups that are also providing aid. In such situations, urgency often strains cooperation, particularly when a group feels that it can obtain the resources to mobilize aid on its own. Yet, multiple groups operating in the same space with no coordination mechanism can lead to further problems, experts say.
Did different groups give aid to the same people? Were some people overlooked? These two issues alone can be a further source of conflict. In a time when unity in the country is critical, humanitarian assistance also needs to be a joint effort.