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Who deserves the Gold Pen in Uzbekistan?
Written by on Monday, 23 January 2012 | One Comment

Uzbekistan is having its seventh-annual National Journalism Prize Oltin Qalam (Golden Pen), with awards from several state ministries, the UN, UNESCO and the World Bank. The contest’s aim: to award the best achievements in journalism. Celebrating press freedom… in Uzbekistan… seriously? neweurasia’s Tomyris reports.

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Kazakhstan

Kyrgyzstan

Tajikistan

Turkmenistan

Uzbekistan

New “Light” shed on media in Moscow: Tajik journalist attacked and recovering

Media and Internet, Tajikistan »

Written by on Friday, 27 January 2012 | No Comment

New “Light” shed on media in Moscow: Tajik journalist attacked and recovering

Dodojon Atovulloev, according to Wikileaks, is:

“One of the foremost journalists from Tajikistan, Atovulloev has fearlessly sought to get the news out on his native country, where violence and state authoritarianism have been the norm for years.”

Tajik journalist Dodojon Atovulloev – founder and editor of the Tajik opposition monthly Charogi Ruz (“Daily Light”), was stabbed in the Italian restaurant “Viaggio” in Moscow on January 12th. The attack led Atovulloev to be hospitalized at Moscow’s Sklifosovsky Institute, where he underwent surgery.

On January 14th, on their Facebook page, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty said:

“Police apprehended a man who was found with blood on his hands within hours of the attack but released him after concluding that he was not connected to the attack. There are no other known suspects at this time, police said.”

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The Beam In Your Own Eye

Culture and History, Media and Internet, Politics and Society, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan »

Written by on Wednesday, 18 January 2012 | 9 Comments

The Beam In Your Own Eye

“And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thy own eye?”
Matthew 7:3

Karimov knocks out Rahmon? Collage by neweurasia

Karimov knocks out Rahmon?

Official Uzbek media keep downgrading Tajikistan’s Emomali Rahmon regime by reprinting online critical articles written by journalists who are, in fact, perfect “Uzbek state enemies.”

Nowadays, apart from finding disadvantages and ‘assisting’ in postponing the construction of the Roghun project in Tajikistan, Uzbek media representatives decided to impose themselves as ready-to-analyze independent online sources on the search for as much information as possible that tells of the Rahmon’s regime’s failures and lies.

One of them, Tashkentskaya Pravda (Tashkent Truth) allowed itself to publish an article from Paruskg.info website, which refers to Wikileaks information, entitled, “Apple Does Not Fall Far From The Tree.”

Shamsullo Gulov, author of the ‘kompromat’ starts with calling Wikileaks a “famous web site” that gives opinions of U.S. State Department employees regarding Rahmon’s family seizing control over main industrial and financial facilities in the counrty. Later on, the author says that the information provided by Wikileaks are “concrete facts.”

Well, first of all, the fact of using Wikileaks as a source of information is something out of reality for Uzbek media since Wikileaks itself, based on American diplomatic cables, called Karimov an “authoritarian leader” and linked his regime with the Uzbek mafia. Read the full story »

Will Uzbekistan after Karimov experience an “Eurasian Spring”?
Written by on Wednesday, 11 January 2012
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Will Uzbekistan after Karimov experience an “Eurasian Spring”?

Building on my theme of the possibilities and problems for an “Eurasian Spring”, neweruasia‘s Schwartz and I have co-written a three-part article series entitled, “Life After the Taghut”, for the new online magazine Fair Observer. …

Newspapers Get Bigger, More Expensive: What and Who For?
Written by on Friday, 6 January 2012
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Newspapers Get Bigger, More Expensive: What and Who For?

The beginning of 2012 has become quite progressive for Uzbek media. First change: Newspapers of Uzbekistan that used to publish in an A4 format are now being published in an A3 one. The reason — …

Dictators’ mailbox: You’ve Got A Message From Your Fellow ‘Club’ Member
Written by on Tuesday, 3 January 2012
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Dictators’ mailbox: You’ve Got A Message From Your Fellow ‘Club’ Member

Happy New Year’s Mr. Castro! So says Uzbekistan’s strongman president, Islam Karimov. neweurasia’s Abulfazal has some fun with this dreadfully ironic act of diplomacy.

Dec 19-23: New gov’t, blackouts and human rights
Written by on Monday, 26 December 2011
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With the presidential elections “fever” over and the president inaugurated, it is now time in Kyrgyzstan to appoint a new government.  The incumbent president, Almazbek Atambayev, ascended to presidency from the post of the prime …

С Новым Годом!
Written by on Saturday, 24 December 2011
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С Новым Годом!

neweurasia’s English site is taking the Christmas-New Year’s week off. While we’re gone, we invite you to check out our Russian site (www.neweurasia.net/ru/) and our, ahem, seasonal “classical”, “Why Ded Moroz is infinitely more badass than Santa Claus”. ;-)

Minors in worship places in Tajikistan: nothing really changed?
Written by on Saturday, 24 December 2011
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After Tajik President Emomali Rahmon signed into law a bill “On the responsibility of parents for their children’s upbringing and education” in August, 2011, citizens of the poorest country in Central Asia have mixed feelings …

Uzbek newspaper ‘breaks’ the news about riots in Kazakhstan
Written by on Friday, 23 December 2011
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Uzbek Novosti Uzbekistana (News of Uzbekistan) newspaper has published an article, entitled “Arab Wind Over the Kazakh Steppe” (issue #51 of December 23, 2011).
Author mentions about 15 people killed in riots, as well as emphasizes …

Uzbek tabloid suggests ways to avoid censorship
Written by on Wednesday, 21 December 2011
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Uzbek tabloid suggests ways to avoid censorship

Almost apolitical and owned by a group totaly loyal to President Karimov and his daughter, the most tabloid of all the Uzbek tabloids and most lovable by housewifes and celebrity news followers, Darakchi magazine gives …

Uzbekistan has a Human Rights-oriented government? Duh!..
Written by on Tuesday, 20 December 2011
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Uzbekistan has a Human Rights-oriented government? Duh!..

Apart from expensive and useless receptions and seminars on human rights theory for high school and university students and older generations, i.e. former Communists who did not know about human rights during Soviet times, the …

Central Asians Frustrated by Border Checks
Written by on Tuesday, 20 December 2011
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Political tensions, trade rules and simple corruption make travel between Central Asian states a complex and unpleasant business.
By Almaz Rysaliev, Askar Aktalov, Inga Sikorskaya, Dina Tokbaeva, Timur Toktonaliev, Lola Olimova - Central Asia
Twenty years after the newly-independent states of Central Asia began marking …