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RFE/RL Central Asia Report

10/21/2009 3:54:54 PM

A review of RFE/RL reporting and analysis about the five countries of Central Asia.

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Kazakh Activists Criticize Zhovtis Verdict
Activists in Kazakhstan say the government is trying to frighten society with the recent manslaughter conviction of a leading human rights activist, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports. More

Is Kazakhstan Fit To Chair The OSCE?
As an international organization that, among other things, promotes human rights, transparent elections, and the rule of law, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe is taking quite a gamble by entrusting the chairmanship to a country that is taking steps away from -- rather than toward -- democracy. More

Kyrgyz President Names New Prime Minister
Kyrgyzstan's president has nominated Daniyar Usenov as the country's next prime minister, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports. More

Court Upholds Kazakh Rights Activist's Verdict
The Almaty Oblast Court in the city of Taldy-Qorghan has upheld the manslaughter conviction of Kazakhstan's leading rights activist, Yevgeny Zhovtis, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports. More

Jailed Former Kazakh Nuclear Chief Hospitalized
The former head of Kazakhstan's state nuclear corporation, KazAtomProm, who has been in jail since May, was hospitalized on October 19, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports. More

Turkmen Newspaper Editor Reprimanded For Dozing Off
The editor in chief of Turkmenistan's "Bereketli toprak" newspaper has been officially reprimanded for dozing off during an October 14 government session chaired by President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, RFE/RL's Turkmen Service reports. More

Four Suspected IMU Members Killed In Tajikistan
Tajikistan's Interior Ministry has announced that four suspected members of the banned militant group Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) were killed and another arrested in an overnight operation in northeastern Tajikistan. The operation took place in a religiously conservative district located in the restive Ferghana Valley, the stronghold of the IMU in neighboring Uzbekistan. More

Uzbek-Israeli Diplomatic Dust-Up
Darts continue to fly over abortive meetings between Uzbek and Israeli officials, including a trip that would have taken Israeli President Shimon Peres to Tashkent last summer. More

EU Faces Decision On Uzbek Arms Embargo
EU member states are continuing their debate on whether to lift a largely symbolic arms embargo against Uzbekistan at the end of this month. While many influential EU states appear to favor a lifting of the arms embargo, human rights organizations both in Uzbekistan and in Europe are urging the EU to keep up the sanctions as the last means of reminding the international community of Tashkent's dismal human rights record. More

Is Ashgabat Suspicious Of U.S. Education Programs?
Last week, Turkmenistan denied entry for dozens of volunteers from the Peace Corps, a U.S. government-run program engaged in education and healthcare projects. Earlier this month, Turkmen students studying at U.S.-affiliated universities were denied permission to leave the country after their summer holidays. Critics say authorities in Turkmenistan remain suspicious that Western education could change the mindset of Turkmen students. More

Turkmenistan Denies Entry To Peace Corps Volunteers
Turkmenistan has denied entry to dozens of U.S. Peace Corps volunteers, RFE/RL's Turkmen Service reports. More

Russia Facing Resistance On CIS's Southern Flank
Representatives of the CIS are holding a summit in the Moldovan capital today, but most of the Central Asian presidents won't be in attendance. The presidents of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan instead sent lower-level delegations. Focusing on the three Central Asian states that make up the CIS's southern frontier, we examine how, by skipping the summit, they might be exhibiting their discontent with Russia. More

Central Asian Trade Ministers Look To Boost Ties With U.S.
Trade ministers from five Central Asia countries and Afghanistan are in Washington this week for talks on expanding trade and investment. More

Low Turnout Hints At CIS Woes
The mood ahead of the latest gathering of leaders from the Commonwealth of Independent States is tense. Four of five Central Asian leaders have declined to attend. Georgia will be conspicuously absent. And host Moldova's pro-Western prime minister has dismissed the CIS as "not viable." More