Tag Archives: law

Azerbaijan limits religious freedom

FEB. 22 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) – Azerbaijan’s parliament passed a law limiting the sale of religious books and videos, media reported. Parliamentarians justified the restrictions by insisting they were necessary to reduce the inflow of extremist propaganda. Religious items now have to be vetted and can only be sold in designated shops.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 125, published on Feb. 22 2013)

Georgia delays sensitive trial

FEB. 23 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) – A judge in Georgia delayed the politically sensitive trial of former defence minister Bacho Akhalaia until Feb. 28. Mr Akhalaia is accused of abuse of power. Supporters of President Mikheil Saakashvili have accused his opponents of orchestrating a witch-hunt since they won a parliamentary election last year.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 125, published on Feb. 22 2013)

Georgian court delays former minister’s trial

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 125, published on Feb. 22 2013)

Kyrgyzstan sentences ex-President

FEB. 12 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) – A military court in Bishkek sentenced, in absentia, former Kyrgyz president Kurmanbek Bakiyev and his brother, Janysh, to prison for involvement in the murder of a rival in 2009. Mr Bakiyev fled to Belarus from Kyrgyzstan after a revolution in April 2010. The Kyrgyz authorities have asked Belarus to extradite him.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 124, published on Feb. 15 2013)

Military court in Kyrgyzstan sentences the President

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 124, published on Feb. 15 2013)

Uzbekistan bans foreign cash purchases

FEB. 8 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) – On Feb. 1, Uzbekistan banned buying foreign currencies with cash. Officially, the ban was imposed to stamp out Uzbekistan’s burgeoning black market. Unofficially it appears to be another form of control over ordinary people.

A black market for US dollars in Uzbekistan has been vibrant for years because of heavy currency controls imposed by the government. These controls made it far cheaper to buy US dollars under the counter at the back of a carpet shop than it did in a bank.

But reports from Tashkent already suggest that strategy of banning currency transactions in cash to quash the black market, if this was the real aim, may have backfired. Despite the crackdown US dollars are still being traded. According to Eurasianet, the effect of the currency restrictions was to limit supply of US dollars and push prices up by roughly 40%.

The restrictions on US dollars may also effect wider sales. US dollars are often used in Uzbekistan to buy cars or houses as using sum, the local currency, in a large cash purchase is practically impossible because of the piles of notes needed.

Uzbek officials will point out that if you have a bank account you can, electronically, still buy US dollars. The worth of this, in a cash based economy, is, though, highly questionable.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 123, published on Feb. 8 2013)

Uzbek CBank bans dollars

JAN. 30 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) – Uzbekistan’s Central Bank has banned the cash exchange of foreign currencies, mainly US dollars, from Feb. 1, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported. The Central Bank said it needed to ban the exchange of dollars to clamp down on Uzbekistan’s burgeoning black market. Dollars can still be bought electronically.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 122, published on Feb. 1 2013)

Russia’s base remains in Kyrgyzstan for another 15 years

DEC. 13 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kyrgyzstan’s parliament ratified an agreement to allow Russia’s airbase to remain for another 15 years with an option for a possible 5 year extension, media reported. Under the agreement, Russia will pay $4.5m per year for the airbase, a torpedo testing site on the shores of Lake Issyk-Kul and a seismology centre.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 117, published on Dec. 14 2012)

Kyrgyz ex-president’s son extradition hearing begins

DEC. 13 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Maksim Bakyiev, son or former Kyrgyz president Kurmanbek Bakiyev, appeared for his first court hearing in London over an extradition request from the US where authorities have accused him of masterminding a complex insider dealing system, media reported. Mr Bakiyev fled to London after a revolution in 2010.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 117, published on Dec. 14 2012)

Kazakh court jails dissident

OCT. 8 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – A Kazakh court convicted Vladimir Kozlov, a vocal opposition activist, of calling for a revolution and inciting social discord, and jailed him for 7.5 years. The sentence is linked to a deadly riot in Zhanaozen last year. The US government said the authorities were using the criminal justice system to silence its critics.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 108, published on Oct. 12 2012)