Articles tagged with: Tajikistan corruption
Image from the website of the Electronic Frontier Foundation for public use.
Editor’s note: WikiLeaks may end up becoming Central Asia’s best hope for bringing to light their leaders’ many dark secrets, say neweurasia’s bloggers from Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Yet, there are many problems, not least of which is trust, all of which WikiLeaks or other whistle-blower websites will have to overcome, writes neweurasia’s Schwartz.
The whistle-blower website WikiLeaks has made international headlines for its leaks of sensitive information related to the United States’ wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, yet a little-known aspect of the organization is its work in the former communist world, including Central Asia.
According to AsiaMedia, WikiLeaks has specifically professed interest in the former Soviet Union alongside other regions:
“Our primary interests are oppressive regimes in Asia, the former Soviet bloc, sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East, but we also expect to be of assistance to those in the West who wish to reveal unethical behaviour in their own governments and corporations.”
In a 9 June 2007 e-mail to WikiLeaks volunteers that has been leaked on the website Cryptome, another website specializing in revealing sensitive and secret information, an anonymous author speaking for the operation explains its strategy in the West as ultimately serving the purpose of its strategy in regions like Central Asia:
“Apart from the beneficial effect on Western democracies, we believe this will provide a strong, consistent base where we can operate efficiently and freely, permitting us to concentrate our efforts on the most repressive regimes.”
And more than a year later, an anonymous editorial to WikiLeaks volunteers, also leaked on Cryptome, evinces a sophisticated understanding of the peaks and pitfalls of journalism in the former Communist nations:
“In transitional states, journalistic freedom and journalistic persecution appear to stem from the same root cause: the inability of power groups to defend themselves from journalists by using means more sophisticated than arrest or murder. Because [arrest or murder] comes at some cost to the persecutor, [such tactics] are rarely employed.
“In other words, all but a few ‘off limit’ subjects can be reported freely and these limits are not yet well understood, which is why some journalists are murdered.”
Unfortunately, many here at neweurasia can relate to these remarks, as we’ve all had friends and colleagues who have suffered as a result of these often enigmatic limits.
One of Innovative Road Solution's corrupt tolls. Photograph from the company's own website. Click on it to read more.
Editor’s note: “Don’t ever say that Tajikistan is a bad place for investments,” writes neweurasia’s Dushanbe about a new highway toll company with illicit family ties to the president of Tajikistan. “In fact, it’s a paradise where you can make money out of nothing.” Public unrest is mounting over what is widely perceived as price-gauging on Tajikstan’s most important highway.
Don’t ever say that Tajikistan is a bad place for investments. In fact, it’s a paradise where you can make money out of nothing. Of course it depends on who you are. If you’re a close relative of the President, you can set up an offshore company, for example the Virgin Islands, or arbitrarily stick a toll on a major highway to collect money from passersby. And if you think I’m joking around, think again, because this is precisely what Rahmon’s son-in-law, Jamaluddin Nuraliev, has done.
Photograph by Flickr user bukutgirl (CC-usage).
Editor’s note: Tajikistan’s President Rahmon has given his annual address to the Parliament in which he addresses the plethora of challenges faced by the nation, as well as the potential dangers of Kyrgyzstan’s recent uprising. neweurasia’s Dushanbe listens in from his apartment bloc and checks the pulse of his neighbors to see whether Tajikistan’s tulips are bloody and ready to bloom, or wilting away. [Also read neweurasia's Alpharabius and Botur's views on whether Tajikistan is "the next Kyrgyzstan", and check out our on-going coverage of the uprising and its aftermath, including commentary and audiovisual materials.]
Watching the annual message of Rahmon was frustrating and a bit oppressive for me. He was delivering it on all television and radio channels, forcing out the usual music and movies. His previous annual address to the Tajik Parliament last year was somehow inspiring and energizing in comparison to what he delivered this year. I decisively turned off the television and went out, discovering my neighbors sitting on the bench for an evening conversation while their children played around them. But over the pleasant din I could still hear Rahmon’s voice, coming through the open windows of the apartments in our multistory house.
Who could be listening to the speech? It turned out to be a teenage bride and mother of two who has been left behind as her husband works abroad, actually found the speech very interesting. Why? Because Rahmon, worried that economic hardships have been catching young couples unprepared and causing thousands of divorces, declared that the age of marriage for girls should be raised from 17 to 18. But the young mother and I both knew that such marriages are widespread, happening beyond the reach of the law. They are only registered when the bride comes to the proper age.
And then Rahmon turned to the recent events in Kyrgyzstan. Evidently he seemed concerned by the possibility of a similar uprising here in Tajikistan:
“First of all I should say that the events that took place in our neighboring Kyrgyzstan, although it is their internal affairs, seriously disturb us. [...] No one knows our problems better than ourselves. The only thing we need is honest hearts, common goals, goodwill…”
Is corruption or survival the elephant in the room in Tajikistan? Image by Flickr user David Blackwell (CC-usage).
Editor’s note: neweurasia readers will already be well-acquainted with the ongoing Roghun project and the controversy surrounding it, as well as the news, announced first by our network, of a massive lawsuit by a trio of judges against a trio of independent newspapers. neweurasia’s Averroes sees a potentially serious ethical conflict between the government and press in Tajikistan and wants to know your opinion: whose side is right?
Imagine if you were the government of one of the world’s most economically vulnerable countries. Every winter millions of your citizens go cold as nearly limitless hydro-electrical potential goes untapped. Developing this potential would require an engineering feat.
Gustave Wapper's famous painting depicting the Belgian Revolution.
Editor’s note: The Tajikistan opposition is furious at the recent parliamentary election results and is planning massive protest actions across the country. However, neweurasia’s Dushanbe, who has been following the controversy, advises caution: the opposition must very careful not to open themselves to accusations of fomenting a Color Revolution. Check out his earlier report here, as well as Alpharabius’ now disappointed hopes from before the election.
Three political parties — the Islamic Revival Party (IRP), the Social-Democrats Party (SDP), and the Democratic Party (DP) — say that the election was marred by mass fraud and the results were falsified. As the first step of protest, the two parties have already declared that they are leaving the Public Council, the coalition that was established by the government in 1996 for peace-building consensus. They are planning massive rallies, strikes, court debates, and even a boycott of the new parliament itself.
Is this the real logo of Rahmon's party? Photograph by Flickr user Hugo |-| (CC-usage).
Editor’s note: Opposition parties and candidates in Tajikistan are saying that the parliamentary election was tainted by many irregularities, elicit fraud, and a general lack of transparency. neweurasia’s Dushanbe relates several anecdotes of fraud, intimidation, and manipulation, including some eerily Soviet-style tricks.
Opposition parties and candidates in Tajikistan are saying that the parliamentary election was tainted by many irregularities, elicit fraud, and a general lack of transparency. The Islamic Revival Party of Tajikistan (IRPT) in particular has asked the Central Election Commission to review several dozens official complaints which they have submitted.
The election day was a rainy one in Tajikistan, but according to the Central Election Commission more than 85% of Tajik voters took part. The number of “politically active” populations in the mountainous regions, where a big snow was falling throughout the day and some roads were closed due to avalanches, managed to reach 89%. The figure recalls too uncomfortably similar inflated statistics from Soviet days.
Rustam Emomali, the eldest son of the Tajik President, is set to become deputy of the city parliament, his father’s ruling party has decided.
He was elected to the pro-state Youth Union last April, and to the central board of the party last December, but many people say he was virtually appointed.
Photograph of a statue of Justice by Flickr user RaeA (CC-usage).
Editor’s note: In an exclusive interview with neweurasia, Tajikistan’s Supreme Court Judge Nor Nurov for the first time speaks with the media about the lawsuit against three independent Tajik newspapers. Conducted via phone with our blogger Alpharabius on February 4, 2010 at 18:15 GMT.
Alpharabius: Mr. Nurov, could you tell us what is the cause of your lawsuit against the newspapers?
Nurov: The cause is that all these newspapers are criticizing me and other judges in a very biased manner. Baseless accusations have been directed against us, but nothing, not a single word has been raised against the people who wrote these articles against us. There haven’t even been any doubts if they are telling the truth. All the papers of Tajikistan, all the journalists are against us, am I right?
A: Perhaps, but then why do you think this is happening?
N: I do not know why it is happening. Maybe someone is interested in this situation. I really do not know why it is happening. No one wants to know the details of the cases and the trials, no one asks the question if the judges are guilty or not. I shouldn’t even trust you as I’m answering your questions, because I am not sure if you believe me. It is a very complicated situation that could not be explained by phone.
A: Let’s try. The lawyer Solijona Juraev is accusing you of making illegal court decisions. He wrote that you sentenced several suspects not according to the law, but under pressure from the head of the Supreme Court. How can you deny that?
Image by neweurasia's Schwartz (CC-usage).
Are the Roghun project and the lawsuit against three independent newspapers connected? Alpharabius, neweurasia‘s blogger covering the lawsuit, believes that the trial is at minimum peripherally connected to the dam controversy, not to mention the upcoming parliamentary elections. His sentiment is apparently echoed by much of the Tajik journalistic and human rights community.
Recently, the Uzbek website UzMetronom disseminated information about possible murder of Hasan Sadulloev, the bother-in-law of Tajik President Rahmon. Hasan is considered to be one of the wealthiest and powerful persons in today’s Tajikistan. According to the website, Hasan was shot by his nephew on May 2 and died in a German hospital on May 8. This information was picked up by many other respected information agencies and subsequently by bloggers. For the last two weeks it was one of the main topics of discussions in the Tajik society. However, it still remains on the level of gossips and no one has credible information to either prove or disapprove this.
Everybody is interested in getting information about this story. Tojvar says that Hasan is the most popular person in Tajiksitan [tj]:
Thousands of people everyday are looking for news about him and discuss his possible murder. Several media outlets are having ready articles with different opinions and various further scenarios, all counting the days when the rumors come true or false.
Ian at Beyond the River links the story of Hasan to his business, with the most lucrative part of it being Talco, the aluminum smelter factory:
RFE/RL quotes some loyal employees who claim that they saw him “just a half-hour ago” and that “thank god, he is in good health.” However, there’s no public sign of him and he didn’t accompany Rahmon to Kazakhstan, nor did Rahmon attend the Victory Day parade this year for the first time ever. Read the full story »
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