IWPR Top Stories

Integrating Islamic Trends in Kyrgyzstan

Mon, 03 Jul 2017 14:52:15 +0100

How religion and politics are mixing in a previously secular state.

The role played by Islam in Kyrgystan has been steadily growing ever since independence in the early 1990s. Although it remains a secular republic where religious parties are banned, analysts say that Islam is likely to play a part in upcoming presidential elections.

(See Kyrgyzstan: Election Campaigning Co-opts Islam).

There are also fears of radicalisation, with at least 600 Kyrgyz nationals known to have travelled to fight in Syria and Iraq.

Alexey Malashenko, chief researcher at the Dialogue of Civilizations (DOC) think-tank, spoke to IWPR about the likely impact this trend may have on the future direction of the state.

Alexey Malashenko, chief researcher at the Dialogue of Civilizations (DOC) think-tank. (Photo courtesy of Prof. Malashenko)
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Kyrgyzstan: Election Campaigning Co-opts Islam

Mon, 26 Jun 2017 12:48:04 +0100

Will politicians use religious discourse to appeal to the electorate?

Political scientists are predicting that candidates in Kyrgyzstan’s upcoming presidential elections will try to court growing religious feeling in the country to win over voters.

Although it remains a secular state in which all citizens have equal rights, religion has been growing steadily in popularity in the Muslim majority republic since independence.

For instance, there are now some 2,500 mosques across Kyrgyzstan, in comparison to only a few dozen in the early 1990s.

This increased interest in Islam has also been associated with growing radicalisation. Some 600 Kyrgyz nationals are known to have travelled to fight in Syria and Iraq.

Former prime minister Temir Sariev, gives his old valuable Quran to the lecturer of Islamic university of Kyrgyzstan Chubak Jalilov. (Photo: 24.kg news agency)
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Turkmenistan's Growing Economic Crisis

Tue, 23 May 2017 13:45:21 +0100

Central Asia’s most isolated state remains set against reforms.

Amid an ongoing economic crisis, Turkmenistan’s government is currently struggling to finish a series of lavish building projects ahead of hosting the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (AIMAG) this September.

The event will see more than 5,000 athletes from 62 countries descend on the capital Ashgabat, and the authorities are estimated to have spent nearly seven billion US dollars building a massive sports complex and an international airport.

Most recently, there have been reports that the Turkmen government has cut the salaries of state employees in its efforts to continue funding this huge project.

Muhammad Tahir, an expert on Turkmenistan. (Photo courtesy of M. Tahir)
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Central Asia's Freedom of Speech Stalemate

Wed, 03 May 2017 15:48:18 +0100

Space for critical debate shrinks further amid economic crises and fears over extremism.

Freedom of speech is deteriorating across Central Asia, with the authorities either shoring up already tight controls over media or taking further steps to intimidate any independent voices.

Critics warn that anti-incitement legislation is being used by governments in the region to silence political dissent, while concerns about extremism are being exploited to clamp down on freedom of speech.

The only country which improved its ranking in this year’s World Press Freedom Index was Kazakhstan – but the authors of the annual report by Reporters Without Borders made clear that the modest rise was “due solely to the deterioration in many other countries”.

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Tajikistan’s Abandoned Wives

Thu, 30 Mar 2017 18:19:18 +0100

Many men find new partners while working abroad, leaving families at home without support.

Adolat’s story is a familiar one amongst many Tajik women. She has been on her own ever since her labour migrant husband took a new wife while in Russia.

The 40-year-old mother-of-three from the Bokhtar district of Khatlon region said her husband Muhamad had been working in Russia for many years, but used to visit often and send money home.

But the last time he came to Tajikistan was nine years ago, for his eldest daughter’s wedding. He brought his new “wife” to the event, and Adolat says that she hasn’t seen him since.

While in Russia, Muhamad had married another Tajik labour migrant in a religious wedding ceremony known as a nikoh. He then stopped sending any money home to his first family in Tajikistan.

Up to a quarter of the Tajik population are labour migrants, almost all men. Women back in Tajikistan are left to take care of their families. (Photo: Adil Nurmakov/Flickr)
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Russia's Aims in Central Asia

Tue, 28 Mar 2017 13:33:11 +0100

Regional cooperation revolves around the Eurasia Economic Union.

Russia continues to lack a common policy on Central Asia, preferring instead to pursue bilateral relations with individual states, according to regional expert Chinara Esengul.

The Kyrgyz analyst on Central Asia geopolitics and security told IWPR that she saw no future imminent accessions to the customs union of Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakstan and Kyrgyzstan.

But Russia would still play a key role as a guarantor of the national and regional security of Central Asia, balanced by some economic competition with China.

The only serious threat to Moscow’s dominance in the region, she continued, was the threat of radical Islam.

Chinara Esengul. (Photo courtesy of National Institute for Strategic Studies of the Kyrgyz Republic - nisi.kg)
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President's Lawsuits Intimidate Kyrgyz Media

Fri, 24 Mar 2017 10:03:47 +0000

Independent outlets fear pressure may fuel self-censorship.

Activists are warning of threats to the country’s media freedom after President Almazbek Atambaev filed a series of lawsuits against outlets for allegedly defaming him.

Media professionals fear that the huge sums of money involved might lead to self-censorship, and say they are not convinced the courts will give them a fair hearing.

The prosecutor general has demanded 20 million soms (285.000 US dollars) from Taalaigul Toktakunova, a lawyer for the opposition Ata Meken party and Radio Azattyk, and three million soms (43,000 dollars) from other defendants including the Zanoza.kg, and 24.kg websites.

These are substantial sums in Kyrgyzstan, where the average monthly salary is about 200 dollars.

President of Kyrgyzstan, Almazbek Atambaev. (Photo: kremlin.ru)
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Could Uzbekistan be Opening Up?

Wed, 15 Mar 2017 10:52:42 +0000

Scope for change on foreign policy, but domestic reform may be mostly cosmetic.

In the three months since his appointment, Uzbekistan’s new president Shavkat Mirziyoyev has taken a number of measures that appear to show willingness to open up one of the world’s most isolated states.

His predecessor Islam Karimov, who died in September 2016, was an authoritarian and ruthless leader who had ruled with an iron fist for 27 years.

But recently, as well as apparent efforts to cool tensions with neighbouring states and relax visa restrictions, the regime released three long-serving political prisoners.

John MacLeod, senior analyst for Russia and CIS at Oxford Analytica and a former IWPR managing editor, said that these were “early signals” of an intention to change, but warned that substantive domestic reforms remained unlikely.

Uzbekistan’s new president Shavkat Mirziyoyev. (Photo: Press Service of the Uzbek President)
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