RFE/RL CENTRAL ASIA REPORT
10/24/2011 7:14:09 PM
A review of RFE/RL reporting and analysis about the five countries of Central Asia.For more stories on Central Asia, please visit and bookmark our Central Asia page . |
 'Arson' Hits Tajik Politician's Factory A cotton-processing plant belonging to a prominent Tajik religious and political figure has been damaged by fire in what he is calling an arson attack. More  Calls To Free Former Kyrgyz Officials Some 50 protesters have picketed the building of the Kyrgyz National Philharmonic Orchestra to demand the immediate release of two former security officials on trial over the deaths of protesters during last year's popular uprising.More  Kazakh Communist Party Ban Upheld The Court of Appeals in Almaty has upheld a six-month suspension of the activities of Kazakhstan's Communist Party, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports.More  'Bribe' Leaflets Rile Kyrgyz Candidate The spokesman for a prominent Kyrgyz presidential hopeful has described as a provocation leaflets accusing the candidate of accepting a multimillion-dollar bribe from a rival to quit the race ahead of an October 30 election. More  Clinton Talks Rights, Economy With Tajiks U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has told a meeting of citizens in the Tajik capital that Washington strongly supports human rights in their country, RFE/RL's Tajik Service reports. More U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has arrived in the Tajik capital on her first official visit to that country, the poorest of Central Asia's former Soviet republics but a partner in the supply chain to neighboring Afghanistan. More  Tatarstan To Host International Turkology Conference Experts from the region and beyond are gathering in Kazan to discuss how to preserve Turkic languages in a rapidly globalizing world. More  Kyrgyzstan Extradites Alleged Terrorist The Kyrgyz authorities have extradited to the Russian Federation a Russian citizen wanted for alleged terrorism and involvement in creating an armed criminal group. More  Kazakh Parliament To Debate Amnesty The Kazakh parliament is soon to debate a draft law that would grant an amnesty to thousands of prisoners on the occasion of Kazakhstan's independence anniversary. More  Turkic Bloc Invites Turkmen, Uzbeks Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev has called on neighboring Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to join a new regional economic body linking Turkic-speaking countries. More  Kazakh Inmate 'Tortured' Before Death Relatives of a Kazakh labor camp inmate say he was murdered after alleging that prisoners were tortured there. More  Members Of Kazakh Sufi Group Jailed Nine members of a Sufi group in Kazakhstan have been jailed after being convicted on charges including religious extremism. More  Jailed Kazakh Activist's Request For Early Release Rejected A Kazakh opposition activist jailed on hooliganism charges has been turned down for early release. More Kyrgyz Police On Trial Over Man's Death Some 200 protesters blocked the Osh-Bishkek highway in southern Kyrgyzstan on October 18 to demand the release of four policemen detained in connection with the death of a Russian citizen. More  Bid For UN Security Council Seat Pits Newcomer Kyrgyzstan Against Veteran Pakistan Five UN members will be elected to nonpermanent seats on the Security Council later this week. This year, the competition for the Asia-Arab bloc seat, currently held by Lebanon, is especially intense. Both Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan have set their sights on winning the spot. More  Most CIS Countries Sign Up To Free-Trade Zone Heads of government from eight member states of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) have announced the signing of a free-trade agreement during a meeting in St. Petersburg. More Protest Held For Jailed Kyrgyz Police Some 200 protesters blocked the Osh-Bishkek highway in southern Kyrgyzstan on October 18 to demand the release of four policemen detained in connection with the death of a Russian citizen. More  In Kyrgyzstan, An Unsolved Murder Casts Shadow Over Election In 2009 in Kyrgyzstan, a powerful political insider was brutally murdered. Two years later, his case is threatening to overshadow the country's October 30 elections. More  Upsurge In Kyrgyz Extremism Cases Thirty criminal cases against alleged members of Islamic extremist groups have been launched in southern Kyrgyzstan in the last nine months. More  Electric Boogie From Planet Kyrgyzstan Appearing on the Czech/Slovak version of the popular talent show "Got Talent" on October 16, Atai Omurzakov appeared to show off his talent in the "electric boogie" style. More Court Upholds Kazakh Judge's Sacking The Kazakh Supreme Court has upheld a court decision to fire a judge in western Kazakhstan for his alleged connection to religious extremists. More  Hizb Ut-Tahrir Members Sentenced A provincial court in Tajikistan has sentenced four men to lengthy prison terms after finding them guilty of membership in a banned religious extremist group.More  Debates Start In Kyrgyz Campaign Two former senior security officials are among the Kyrgyz presidential candidates taking part in the first televised debate today ahead of the October 30 elections. More |
