Cow-owners in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, must be breathing a sigh of relief now that they will be able to keep their livestock within city limits after all.
In the face of apparent disgruntlement, the authorities have had to step back from changes to the “Capital City” law made last year stipulating that residents of Dushanbe would no longer be able to keep livestock, donkeys, rabbits and fowl, Ferghana.ru reports.
As deputy parliamentary speaker Mahkam Makhmudov helpfully explained at the time, however, some animals were excluded from the ban (Interfax via BBC Monitoring, May 20, 2009):
"This ban will not apply to dogs, cats and domestic birds such as canaries, parrots and others, which are kept in cages.”
And what exactly is wrong with keeping farm animals in an urban environment, one might ask?
Makhmudov offered more insights:
“It is not unusual on the streets of Dushanbe to see a small herd of sheep or goats on municipal lawn. Often, in such a herd, there will also be one or two cows, accompanied by a shepherd riding a donkey.
There is nothing exotic about being woken up by a cock crowing in a city of one million people. The capital is not a place for livestock.”
Fair point.
Indeed, as the Ferghana.ru report notes, fellow city-dwellers residents are annoyed that any attempt at embellishing the city or creating a thriving area for trade is undermined by the foul waft of manure in the air.
But a re-think has been prompted by suggestions that many impoverished Dushanbe citizens could be hit in the pocket should they be forced to part with their beasts of labor. Livestock and poultry owners will now be able to keep their animals in specially designated places that will not compromise the city’s sanitary standards.
Ferghana.ru notes in its report, somewhat tangentially, that city has been designated Capital of Islamic Culture 2010, which is an honor that will see it host dozens of events at the initiative of Islamic countries. That has made the government fearful of appearing to victimize the poor, apparently.
This seems like an unconvincing theory. The truth is more likely that Dushanbe authorities are yielding to force majeure over this one, and accepting that sheep roaming about town is just part of the place’s natural charm.
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