OCT. 6 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Tajik security forces donned full riot gear for a training exercise in central Dushanbe aimed at dealing with large anti-government crowds.The exercise was designed as a show of force against any anti-government movement that may be planning protests ahead of a parliamentary election in February.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 203, published on Oct. 8 2014)
OCT. 4 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Access to various social media and news websites in Tajikistan was blocked, media and sources reported. The government has not officially said that it blocked the websites. It has previously blocked access to facebook and other sites, though, to prevent opposition groups from rallying support.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 203, published on Oct. 8 2014)
OCT. 8 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Tajik opposition groups based abroad are preparing to challenge the political order built up by strongman President Emomali Rakhmon head of the otherwise predictable parliamentary elections set for Feb. 14.
Against the backdrop of the conflict in Ukraine and the stand-off on the streets of Hong Kong, exiled Tajik politicians have been making calls for the overthrow of Mr Rakhmon via the Internet.
One group, Gruppa 24, is promoting a demonstration against the regime on Oct. 10 on the main square in Dushanbe. The government has responded to the threat by shutting down Facebook and other websites where the the group issued calls to protest.
More menacingly, the country’s services held a bizarre simulation of a protest being put down by riot police.
Having experienced civil war in the 1990s, appetite for revolution among Tajiks is weak, and Gruppa 24’s Turkey- based leader, Umrali Quvvatov lacks the political influence in Tajikistan to pull off a coup. Nevertheless, the government’s response to the calls betrays fear, and Mr Quvvatov told the Conway Bulletin via Skype he expects a strong turnout at the protest.
“Tajiks have given up too much for this criminal regime. If the government responds to our meeting with force we will do the same. We are preparing for war,” he said.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 203, published on Oct. 8 2014)
BISHKEK/Kyrgyzstan, OCT. 8 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — Ashraf Ghani, Afghanistan’s new president is on a mission to transform his war-torn country with a shredded economy into a regional force. If he is successful, Central Asia may find in its southern neighbour a strong trading partner and occasional rival rather than the Taliban-tainted bogeyman regional governments have traditionally portrayed it as.
Central Asia’s security-first approach to Afghanistan is understandable. Both Tajikistan and Uzbekistan have had to deal with Islamic extremists linked to the Taliban and other Afghan militants. Neutral Turkmenistan is also taking a newly assertive stance towards events in Afghanistan. Turkmen forces were reported as entering Afghan territory to beat back Taliban that had settled on the two countries’ border (Sept 17).
But Central Asia’s economic ties to Afghanistan are expanding. The long-stalled Turkmenistan- Afghanistan-Tajikistan rail link, which will eventually connect the country to China, looks increasingly likely to happen, while Turkmen gas may one day transit Afghanistan on its way to China.
Mr Ghani is keen to see Afghanistan as a player. His stated ambition to turn the country into an exporter of electricity may make Kabul a rival to both Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. The revival of Afghan agriculture may put pressure on scarce regional energy resources.
It is perhaps noteworthy that upon receiving notes of congratulations from all five Central Asian presidents following his inauguration, Mr Ghani’s warmest words were for Kazakhstan and Nursultan Nazarbayev (Sept.29). “Kazakhstan is an important friend and positive example,” he told Kazakh foreign minister Erlan Idrissov at his inauguration.
If Mr Ghani can take Afghanistan on a similar journey, then the country will be ready to both compete and cooperate with Central Asia.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 203, published on Oct. 8 2014)
SEPT. 30 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – A court in Dushanbe sentenced on Sept. 26 two ethnic Uzbeks to nine years in jail for fighting for the Taliban in Afghanistan.Tajikistan’s government has said it is increasingly worried about the spread north of Taliban fighters.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 202, published on Oct. 1 2014)
SEPT. 27 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Tajikistan’s top state-sponsored Muslim cleric, chief mufti Saidmukarram Abdulkodirzoda, has issued a fatwa against people criticising the government, AFP news agency reported. He said criticising the government should be considered a sin. Opponents said that this underlined government control over society.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 202, published on Oct. 1 2014)
SEPT. 29 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Tajik president Emomalii Rakhmon will visit the city of Khorog in the east of the country for the first time since fighting between local forces and government soldiers in 2012, officials said.
The visit is, officially, part of countrywide tour by Mr Rakhmon but his trip to Khorog will also be seen as a show of strength in the troublesome area. Few would have been surprised if Mr Rakhmon had chalked the city off his tour. It remains a bastion of anti-government opposition where armed groups opposed to the regime in Dushanbe enjoy support from the local population, mostly ethnic Pamiris that have felt shortchanged ever since Mr Rakhmon’s political faction claimed victory in a five year civil war.
For much of the country’s first two decades of independence, Khorog was relatively stable. But a military operation launched by the government against local powerbrokers in July 2012 shattered the calm in the city. Both government and opposition forces suffered heavy losses.
In May this year, another smaller scale operation saw government agents kill three Khorog residents suspected of drug-smuggling, triggering two days of rioting.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 202, published on Oct. 1 2014)
SEPT. 29 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Despite a World Bank report tentatively giving backing to Tajikistan’s Rogun Dam, Uzbekistan foreign minister Abdulaziz Kamilov used a speech at the UN to underline his country’s continued opposition to the project. Increased tension between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan over the dam is an important issue to monitor.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 202, published on Oct. 1 2014)
SEPT. 29 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kyrgyzstan lawmakers want to arm villagers living in disputed areas along its borders with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
A majority of Parliamentarians debating the plan say they want to help people defend themselves but the military has said the strategy will only worsen already tense cross- border relations.
The initiator of the legislation, Bakyt Torobayev of the Progress parliamentary splinter faction claims the initiative will save budget money. Paying a civilian that already lives on the border will cost less than housing, feeding and paying a soldier, he has argued.
Kyrgyzstan’s Defence Council issued a statement as parliament discussed the legislation. “(Arming) ordinary citizens without higher or military education and preparation for border service, can have consequences, including their potential participation in illegal migration, narcotics trafficking and contraband,” it said.
Medet Tiulegenov, a political science professor at the American University of Central Asia was also against the plan.
“This issue has been raised in the context of insufficient formal security on the border,” Mr Tiulegenov told The Conway Bulletin. He also said that security issues are beyond the parliament’s formal mandate.
“But when government itself lacks a clear vision on border issues and security in the country, MPs exploit that lack of clarity and try to make a name for themselves,” he said.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 202, published on Oct. 1 2014)
SEPT. 22 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Remittances to Central Asia from sanctions-hit Russia have fallen by around 8%, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) said. Heaviest hit in Central Asia is Uzbekistan which sends back the most remittances from Russia, although this forms a lower proportion of GDP compared to Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
ENDS
Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 201, published on Sept. 24 2014)
