Roberto Abraham Scaruffi

RFE/RL Central Asia Report 21.05.2012 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 .

 

Rights Groups Demand Respect For Uzbek Rights Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have urged the European Union and the United States to revise their relationships with the Uzbek government in light of Tashkent's enduring poor record on human rights. More   Putin Prepares To Host Summits Russian President Vladimir Putin hosts two summits on May 15 as the CIS Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) marks an anniversary and CIS leaders gather for an informal meeting. More   Uzbek Police Probe Minister's Murder Police in Tashkent say they are investigating the abduction and murder of Uzbekistan’s former minister of culture and sports. More   CPJ: Free Central Asian Reporters The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has urged world leaders to "hold Central Asian regimes responsible for denying global access to information by throwing critical reporters behind bars." More   Kazakh Cinema Steppes Up For anyone apart from the most ardent movie buff, the enduring cinematic image of Kazakhstan is probably what was presented in Sacha Baron Cohen's movie "Borat," which lampooned Kazakhs as ridiculously backward and ignorant. But this may change thanks to a new blockbuster movie from the state-administered Kazakhfilm studio. More   U.S. Urged To Aid Central Asian Inmates Civil liberties advocates and a former political prisoner from Uzbekistan have urged the United States to continue "naming names" in support of Central Asia's jailed opposition leaders, religious figures, and journalists. More   FIFA President In Tashkent The president of the world football federation FIFA has arrived in Tashkent for talks with Uzbekistan's leadership about the future of football in the Central Asian country. More   Tajik Opposition Party Revived Ex-leaders of Tajikistan's former Popular Front party have announced plans to resurrect the party to help unite the political opposition in the Central Asian nation. More   It's A Bird, It's A Plane, It's...Astana Man? Seeking a superhero, officials in Kazakhstan are calling for entries for an unusual creative contest -- to conceptualize a mythic national man of action reflecting the Central Asian republic's nobler qualities. More   Swedish Trial In Exiled Imam Shooting Sweden’s chief public prosecutor says two Uzbeks arrested for alleged involvement in the attempted assassination of prominent Uzbek cleric will face trial this week. More   Kazakh Jailed For Zhanaozen Death A former head of a detention facility in Kazakhstan’s western town of Zhanaozen has been sentenced to five years in jail for abusing his authority in connection with a man's death. More   Baron Cohen Tries Straight Comedy In 'The Dictator' British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen has earned worldwide notoriety for his edgy brand of humor. The star of the blockbuster hits "Borat" and "Bruno" is back on the screen, this time as an eccentric dictator hell-bent on maintaining an iron grip over his subjects. But does "The Dictator" deliver? RFE/RL went along to find out. More   'The Dictator' Star Says UN Banned Him To Protect Dictators "Borat" and "The Dictator" star Sacha Baron Cohen has told BBC that the United Nations refused to let him film scenes from his most recent movie on its premises for fear the move could upset dictators. More   Tajikistan Gives Thumbs-Down To 'Dictator' The head of Tajikistan's leading film-distribution company says "The Dictator," the new satire from comedian and actor Sacha Baron Cohen, won't be shown in Tajik cinemas. More   Kazakhs Jail Wife Of Unrest Suspect The wife of an oil worker charged in connection with the deadly unrest in the Kazakh town of Zhanaozen has been given a suspended prison sentence of two years for illegally distributing leaflets and obstruction of justice. More   Monument To Slain Reporter Vanishes A bronze monument to the late Kyrgyz opposition journalist Gennady Pavlyuk, who died two years ago after he was bound and thrown from a building, has been stolen. More   The Birthrate Of A Nation: Karimov Comments Censored Back Home They were comments apparently too hot even for his own country's state-controlled media to handle. During a visit to Moscow last week, Uzbek President Islam Karimov met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, during which the topic of population growth and family planning came up. More   Verdicts Pronounced In Kazakh Riot Case A court in Aqtau -- the capital of the Manghystau region in western Kazakhstan -- has sentenced four local men from the small town of Shetpe to four, five, and seven years in jail for their alleged roles in a deadly protest action on December 17. More