Author: Shukurbek Isanov

In September 2022, at least 23 schools and kindergartens in southwestern Kyrgyzstan were attacked during a short but violent border conflict between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Some schools were damaged by shrapnel, and at least one was used as a military base by Tajik armed forces. Fifty-three other schools were converted into shelters to accommodate families as an estimated 140,000 people were displaced. The education of more than 130,000 students was disrupted as 161 schools across the Batken and Osh regions were temporarily closed, according to the United Nations, with some children suffering psychosocial trauma. In Tajikistan, according to Human Rights Watch’s report on the conflict, at least one school was…

China will step up construction of strategic railroad links in the autonomous regions of Xinjiang and Tibet in the coming years to strengthen its hold over its westernmost regions, according to a senior Chinese rail planner. “The rail network layout still needs to be improved. There are still many places in the western regions left undeveloped, and the major strategic channels for entering and exiting Tibet and Xinjiang need to be strengthened,” said Liu Wenxian, a senior official with China Railway Group’s planning department. In an interview with The People’s Rail, a newspaper affiliated with the state-owned rail operator, Liu said the priority was…

Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh resigned on February 26 in anticipation of postwar governance challenges. “I see that the next stage and its challenges will require new governmental and political arrangements,” Shtayyeh said, emphasizing “the emerging reality in the Gaza Strip, the national unity talks, and the urgent need for an inter-Palestinian consensus.” American and Palestinian officials expect that Abbas will nominate Mohammed Mustafa, the chairman of the Palestine Investment Fund, as Shtayyeh’s successor. Expert Analysis “Bringing in Palestine Investment Fund chief Mohammed Mustafa and pushing out the current prime minister Mohammed Shtayyeh is the rearranging of the…

The Soviet Union’s collapse 32 years ago led to rapid change, economic collapse, and violence. In Tajikistan, that violence slid rapidly into civil war. Reflecting on the Soviet Union’s collapse 32 years ago and attempting to draw any sort of conclusion is often a matter of perspective. In his new book, “Moscow’s Heavy Shadow: The Violent Collapse of the USSR,” Dr. Isaac McKean Scarborough, an assistant professor of Russian and Eurasian Studies at Leiden University, writes of the collapse from one of the Soviet Union’s most distant peripheries — Dushanbe. In doing so, he highlights a perspective not often taken…

Nearly two years ago, police in Kyrgyzstan raided the offices of a media group famed for its investigations into political corruption, slapping narcotics charges on its leader. As images of Temirov Live founder Bolot Temirov being manhandled by officers in SWAT gear were shared online on January 22, 2022, many predicted the start of an extended crackdown on independent media by the administration of President Sadyr Japarov. That crackdown reached an alarming crescendo this week as nearly a dozen current and former staff of Temirov Live were arrested on suspicion of trying to foment unrest in the country, while one…

Giant portraits of President Emomali Rahmon adorn even the most nondescript buildings in Tajikistan’s capital of Dushanbe. Throughout the country, his sayings are featured on posters and billboards. Their ubiquitous presence underscores the consolidation of power by Rahmon – officially described as “Founder of Peace and Unity, Leader of the Nation” – since he emerged victorious from the 1992-1997 Tajikistan civil war that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union. After three decades in power, he has established himself as an absolute ruler with no tolerance for dissent. Rahmon’s bid to centralize control includes efforts to silence political opponents, human rights activists, and independent…

This marks the first time in the event’s history that a non-Naga wrestler has taken home the top prize. Kelsinbekov stands at a height of 5.8ft, weighs 100 kgs, and is a 10-time champion of the Kyrgyzstan belt wrestling. In a groundbreaking moment for the Hornbill International Naga wrestling Championship, a non-Naga wrestler has claimed the coveted title. Hailing from Kyrgyzstan, 33-year-old Kadyr Kelsinbekov emerged victorious at the 16th edition of the championship, held at Chiechama Amphitheatre on Monday. This marks the first time in the event’s history that a non-Naga wrestler has taken home the top prize. Kelsinbekov who…

According to the Tajikistan Ministry of Agriculture, the number of greenhouses in the country is increasing every year. “There are 950 greenhouses operating across the republic with a total area of 166 hectares, while in 2020 greenhouses occupied only 101.5 hectares. To this day, vegetables have been planted in greenhouses on an area of 43.9 hectares, including tomatoes on 16.2 hectares, cucumbers on 9.3 hectares and other types of vegetables on 18.5 hectares, as well as citrus fruits. Sowing in greenhouses continues,” the ministry said. Tajikistan’s commitment to agricultural innovation is evident in the continuous evolution of greenhouse cultivation methods.…

Brussels (25/11 – 33.3) Tajikistan Supreme Court has sentenced a widely respected 65-year-old female journalist, Ulfathonim Mamadshoeva, to 21 years in prison on charges of incitement to overthrowing the government. Mamadshoeva was accused by the authorities of being a leading figure behind the political turbulence that rocked her native Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO) earlier this year. State propaganda has previously alleged that the veteran reporter and activist hatched the purported plot, for which no credible evidence has been produced, at the behest of an unnamed foreign government. Mamadshoeva’s brother, Khursand, was last week sentenced to 18 years in prison on…

Brussel, Frankfurt (16/11 – 23) A levying of embargoes and export bans, the imposition of sanctions, erection of fearsome “license” (= restriction) protocol: there’s nothing new about this back-and-forth in world trade, in the eternal jousting for advantage among markets and nations. The clever Chinese imagined they had the world tea market all locked up until an earnest Scottish botanist carrying the telling name of “Robert Fortune” snuck into the Middle Kingdom to observe their agriculture, steal tea plants, and pick up tricks of tea processing. The Chinese global tea monopoly was busted wide open. The fortunate Mr. Fortune was…