From: Justin Burke (JBurke@sorosny.org)
Date: Fri Jun 29 2001 - 10:39:37 EDT
TAJIKISTAN NEWS 21-28 June 2001
IRIN
Tajikistan: Dawn attack on former opposition commander
Heavily armed detachments of the Tajik Ministry of the Interior and other law
enforcement units launched a dawn raid on a renegade commander near the village of
Teppai Samarkandi, nine kilometres to the east of the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, on
Friday. A statement by the interior ministry said security forces had launched an
operation to "suppress and render harmless the terrorist group led by Rakhmon
Sanginov".
Local experts told IRIN that the move was an attempt by the authorities to crack
down on Rakhmon Sanginov, a former opposition commander, who has been implicated in
numerous "terrorist attacks", most recently in a hostage-taking incident to the
east of Dushanbe.
On 11 June, a group of 40 armed men under Sanginov's command took seven police and
interior ministry officers hostage nine kilometres to the east of the capital. The
hostage-takers demanded the authorities release accomplices that had been arrested
in connection with the assassination of Deputy Interior Minister General-Mayor
Khabib Sanginov on 11 April, the statement said. According to local experts, Khabib
Sanginov had played a significant role in the resolution of the inter-Tajik
conflict, including operations against renegade military units in Garm and
Kofarnikhon districts.
Although the hostages were later released, it is believed that the 11 June hostage
incident prompted the security authorities to launch the attack against Sanginov.
Residents in the capital reported the sound of heavy-calibre guns overnight on
Friday, and international agencies have been advised by the authorities to avoid
travelling outside the capital until further notice.
The interior ministry statement said the security operation had been launched "in
order to protect rights and order in Tajikistan". It warned that similar illegal
activities would not be tolerated, but "dealt with strictly".
Local experts report a spate of terrorist activities by former opposition
commanders in the last two months, including the hostage taking of 15 international
aid workers from German Agro Action (GAA) in Garm, central Tajikistan, on 15 June,
in a similar attempt to coerce the authorities. The hostages were released soon
after.
Conditions "ideal" for female trafficking
DUSHANBE, 27 June (IRIN) - Acute poverty and economic hardship are
fuelling a growing illegal business in the trafficking of Tajik women.
Last year, an estimated 1,000 Tajik women, mainly young girls, were
deceived, duped or blackmailed into prostitution and bonded labour and
sent mainly to Russia and the United Arab Emirates.
"The situation in Tajikistan is ideal for trafficking, UN Development Fund
for Women (UNIFEM) Coordinator for Tajikistan Nouchine
Yavari-D'Hellencourt told IRIN. "Everything is there to draw young females
into prostitution rings or drug trafficking," she said. Given the harsh
conditions at home, Tajik women are increasingly ready to accept work in
foreign countries and take the risk. "They are never completely naïve, but
many hope that they won't end up in prostitution," she said, adding that
others had become resigned to prostitution in Dushanbe and reasoned that
they might as well do it somewhere else and earn more money. "But they
don't know how exploited and used they are going to be," she said.
Many Tajik women were so poor they were "ready to do anything in order to
find a solution to survive", Yavari-D'Hellencourt said. According to UNDP,
80 percent of Tajiks live under the poverty line, earning less than US $12
a month. In such economic distress, women are extremely vulnerable to
those offering lucrative salaries as domestic helpers or shop attendants
abroad. Female orphans, who had to leave state institutions at 17, were
particularly vulnerable and an obvious target for traffickers, she said.
Used to relying on large extended family support networks, Tajiks were
especially susceptible to being duped by traffickers posing as friendly
acquaintances. "It doesn't seem strange to them when someone who they've
met a few times comes to them and says they will help their daughter -
usually by offering to help her pursue studies outside of the country,"
said Yavari-D'Hellencourt. Recent surveys had uncovered numerous inventive
methods of deception and blackmail used to entrap unsuspecting women.
UNIFEM and local women's NGOs are doing what they can.
Yavari-D'Hellencourt said that once they had grasped the gravity of the
problem through ongoing seminars with local women, they embarked on an
awareness raising campaign. A jointly produced pamphlet entitled "Sincere
Talk" became the first public document on the subject. Published in
Russian and Tajik, it warned women of the dangers posed by traffickers.
"Before this, not only were people scared to talk about it, but they were
afraid of [reprisals from] the trafficking networks," she said.
As in other Central Asian republics, illegal trafficking has spawned an
entire support industry, involving soliciting new victims, newspaper
advertising, and organising fake passport and travel arrangements.
Conscious of the vested interests, UNIFEM and NGO partners have opted to
take a low-key approach. Instead of a mass-media campaign, they advocate
directly with Tajik parliamentarians, police and judicial officials, local
journalists and at-risk women.
So far 3,000 copies of "Sincere Talk" have been distributed, providing
women with frank information they otherwise would not have access to.
Yavari-D'Hellencourt maintained it had brought the subject into the public
domain. "Once the topic was out in the open, we had a sudden surge of
interest, especially from international groups such as the International
Organisation of Migration (IOM), the Organisation for Security in Central
Europe (OSCE) and the US embassy," she said. Last year, IOM initiated a
detailed study of illegal trafficking from Tajikistan. Due to be released
in the coming weeks, the report will contribute to a better understanding
of the phenomenon and explore options as to how it
RELIEFWEB
Tajik violence may threaten aid
On May 29, the US State Department warned all US citizens going overseas about
possible terrorist attacks, in particular advising them not to visit Tajikistan.
It followed a New York City court judgment, which found four followers of the
alleged international terrorist Usama Bin Laden, America's arch-enemy, guilty on
several counts. Bin Laden is based in Afghanistan, which a shares a long border
with Tajikistan.
Much to the embarrassment of the authorities in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, Tajik
gunmen then took 19 foreigners and government officials captive. They were released
two days later unharmed.
The gunmen were demanding the release of four suspects held after the April 11
killing of the republic's deputy interior minister, Khabib Sanginov. The
hostage-takers were believed to be former rebels of the Tajik opposition.
After the breakup of the Soviet Union, Tajikistan descended into a five-year civil
war between a Russian-backed secular government and the mostly Islamic opposition.
The war ended when opposition leaders agreed to stop fighting in return for
participation in the government.
But many of their followers refused to hand over their weapons, joining criminal
gangs - now one of the main sources of instability in the country.
The Tajik authorities have criticised the Americans for over-reacting, clearly
worried that the State Department's remarks might discourage humanitarian aid
workers from visiting Tajikistan, the poorest Central Asian state.
The secretary of the National Security Council, Amirkul Azimov, told IWPR that the
US warning was 'unwarranted and regrettable'. "It is imperative that foreign
nationals gain first-hand experience of Tajikistan, instead of forming their
opinions from biased press reports," he said.
Curiously, the US embassy in Dushanbe has played down the State Department's
remarks, pointing out that it had been circulating similar warnings since 1993.
Nonetheless, embassy employees have been advised not to visit the eastern part of
the country, where much of the violence is centred.
In early June, the permanent envoy of the UN Secretary-General in Tajikistan, Ivo
Petrov, visited the Karategin valley, one of the most unstable areas. Following his
visit, Petrov told IWPR he thought the place looked safe and tranquil.
However, three days later on June 3 the chairman of the local community council of
Kaznok, Muhammadsolekh Saimukhiddinov, was attacked by unidentified assassins. He
survived.
"I cannot say it was a political action," Petrov said. "It could have been related
to local faction rivalry, but it [the assassination attempt] certainly did not add
to the region's safety."
Tavildara, also in the east of the country, has also had its fair share of
problems. Some members of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan are said to have
established training camps there.
Trouble persisted in the area, however, in the form of a local criminal group, led
by Mullo Abdullo, an uncompromising former opposition fighter. Following a
month-long standoff with the security forces, Abdullo surrendered whereupon the
area was brought under full government control.
But the violence continued elsewhere. In April and May 2001, the Kofarnikhon
district, in the vicinity of Dushanbe, emerged as a new focus of hostility, when
former opposition guerrillas fell out with the local law enforcement authorities.
According to Tajikistan's interior minister, Khumdin Sharipov, fighting was
triggered by a household quarrel, but swiftly escalated to shooting match which
left 3 dead and many injured. Things have since quietened down according to Petrov,
who visited the area on June 6 and met both the local authorities and former
opposition fighters.
The response of international organisations to the violence has been mixed. Some
continue to move freely around Tajikistan, while others have imposed travel
restrictions on their staff. Most of them avoid Karategin.
Filaret Motsko, a political adviser to the OSCE mission in Tajikistan, told IWPR
that OSCE employees are free to travel around the country, although he preferred to
"stay in after dark".
And, rather surprisingly, the recent spate of violence has not put off
holiday-makers. According to Kasym Gafarov, president of Sayekh, the state tourist
firm, two groups of overseas visitors have come to Tajikistan in the last two
weeks, one from Great Britain and the other from Germany.
The 10 Englishmen and 14 Germans trekked across the mountainous Sogd region in
northern Tajikistan and apparently enjoyed their trip. Twenty-two German tourists
will arrive on July 3 to travel from Khatlon region in the south to the north of
the country.
Tajikistan and, especially the capital, Dushanbe, are certainly safer now than they
were four years ago. There are no more armed people in fatigues on the street and
no more cars with tinted windows and no license plates.
One well-known Indian hotelier based in the country said, "I came to Tajikistan
when the civil war was still on. Now we are starting construction on a 5-star hotel
in Dushanbe, and I've been bringing my wife and kids here routinely.
"Do you think I would do it if I didn't feel perfectly safe here? I've been also
making lovely trips to other places in Tajikistan, including the mountains."
Life is returning to normal in Tajikistan, even though the recent clashes have
shaken the country's fragile stability.
YAHOO GROUPS- CENTRAL ASIA NEWS
Tajik opposition says instability caused by failure to implement peace accord
(Asia-Plus News Agency)
The fourth anniversary of the signing of a general agreement on the establishment
of peace and national accord in Tajikistan [signed between the government and the
Islamic opposition in Moscow on 27th June 1997] is just a few days away.
[Passage omitted: The agreement was a crucial document; there have been many
changes in the country since then; presidential and parliamentary elections were
held]
Tajikistan resolutely took the path of peace and construction. The recent
successful release of hostages the staff of the German Agro Action (GAA) [office in
Tajikistan] and representatives of the special services and police officers
kidnapped by an armed group is evidence of this. The hostages were freed without a
shot being fired, that is exclusively through negotiations. If a similar conflict
occurred some years ago with the involvement of representatives of the former
United Tajik Opposition [UTO] and the Tajik government, more participants could be
dragged into it and it would lead to the destabilization of the situation. This
time, the leaders of the Islamic Rebirth Party of Tajikistan themselves strongly
condemned the hostage-taking incident, and they also said that they would not
accept the use of force to resolve conflict situations or various sorts of issues.
At the same time they said that the roots of such conflict situations lay in the
incomplete implementation of certain provisions of the peace agreement. In
particular, they asserted, the amnesty law for participants in the [political and
military] confrontation [the civil war between 1992-1997] has not been fully
implemented yet. Such problems as the provision of jobs for former UTO fighters
have not been resolved either.
[Passage to end omitted: Tajikistan needs assistance to restore its economy which
was ruined in that war. Representatives of donor countries and international
organizations met in Tokyo in May and pledged financial aid for Tajikistan]
Kazakh heads signs law on opening international Islamic university
(Khabar TV, Almaty)
The head of state [Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev] signed the law ratifying
the agreement between the Republic of Tajikistan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Republic
of Kazakhstan and the Ismaili Imamate on creating a university in Central Asia, the
presidential press service reported.
The university, which will have the status of an international educational
organization, is a secular higher educational establishment that meets
international quality standards. The activities of the university are aimed at
economic, social and cultural development of the Central Asian region and will be
carried out on a noncommercial basis.
EU officials due in Tajikistan in July to discuss loans and debts
(Asia- Plus News Agency)
Dushanbe, 26 June: Representatives of the European Commission's directorate for
economic and financial issues, Peter Bekx [listed as head of the European
Commission's Unit for Economic Affairs within the Asian and Latin American
countries and within Russia and the CIS] and Andreas Papadopoulos, intend to visit
Tajikistan in July this year. Asia-Plus learned this from the press attache of the
EU humanitarian office in Tajikistan, Azamat Hasanov.
The European Commission representatives intend to discuss once again with Tajik
partners the amounts of grants, the amounts and the time of payment of Tajikistan's
debts under loans. Hasanov said that the delegation is expected to meet the
government leadership and the heads of a number of ministries.
You will recall that last year the EU Council of Ministers adopted a decision to
provide Tajikistan with exclusive financial aid. In this connection,
representatives of the EU directorate-general for economic and financial issues
visited Tajikistan from Brussels in 2000 to have talks with the Tajik government to
discuss the principles and terms of the "Agreement on a new loan" and the
"Memorandum on mutual understanding".
UNITED NATIONS
Assistance for Afghanistan
Statement of the Emergency Relief Co-ordinator
The Under-Secretary-General for Humani-tarian Affairs and Emergency
Relief Co-ordinator, Mr. Kenzo Oshima, is relieved to learn that four
Afghan women working with the World Food Programme (WFP) in Kabul,
Afghanistan, have been released from custody on 23 June after a
three-day detention by Taliban authorities. The USG is however
concerned about the increasing harassment and abuse of Afghan national
staff of the UN and NGO community, and restrictions against programmes
that at-tempt to help women as well as men.
Humanitarian aid currently reaches well over four million people in
Afghanistan, one of the world's worst crisis areas. Yet the recent
pattern of harassment represents a general narrowing of space available
for humanitarian agencies to operate effec-tively. Such behaviour may
limit the ability of aid agencies to continue helping Afghans in need.
He called upon the Taliban to take immediate steps to improve the
working environment of the humanitarian commu-nity.
IRIN - Afghanistan
ISLAMABAD, 25 June (IRIN) - The International Day against Drug Abuse and
Illicit Trafficking is being marked worldwide on 26 June. Working at the
forefront of the global war effort against drugs is the United Nations
Office for Drug Control (UNDCP), an agency particularly active in war-torn
Afghanistan, once the leading producer of opium in the world. During the
1990s and up until 2000, Afghanistan was firmly established as the main
source of the illicit opium produced, trafficked and consumed in the
world. More specifically, it had become the source of 79 percent of the
global illicit opium production in 1999, with a record harvest of 4,600
mt. Today, the opium poppy has been effectively eliminated in those parts
of Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban, who imposed a ban on its
cultivation, an act in which UNDCP was particularly instrumental. However,
the successful ban on poppy cultivation is only one part of the equation
in the war against drugs. In an interview with IRIN, UNDCP representative
for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Bernard Frahi, highlighted what still needed
to be done to sustain the ban and why immediate action by the
international community has never been so important.
QUESTION: Could you tell us about your recent mission into Afghanistan
last month?
ANSWER: The donors' mission to Afghanistan's former poppy-growing
provinces last month was organised by UNDCP. This mission went to places
that had already been surveyed last February by a special pre-assessment
survey conducted by UNDCP. The mission, composed of six countries,
including the US, confirmed our primary survey results that there was no
poppy in this area, which in the past covered 75,000 hectares. UNDCP is
currently carrying out the annual poppy survey in all of Afghanistan,
including the northern regions. We will have the final results of this by
mid-August.
Q: Do you believe that the poppy eradication programme put in place by the
Taliban is being maintained?
A: That is what the experts from the donor countries concluded. Indeed,
wherever they went, this was the conclusion. We covered a large territory
in the provinces of Helmand, Kandahar, Zabul and Nangarhar. We didn't find
poppy in any of these areas and the mission returned with the conviction
that in the areas visited, the ban was being implemented. Again, we are
talking about 75,000 hectares, which had been surveyed last year and which
had not been cultivated with poppy this year.
Q: What effect has the ban had on the poppy and heroin trade, both in
Afghanistan and internationally?
A: Regarding the price of opium in Afghanistan, there was an immediate
increase as a result of the ban. It is clear there was a fluctuation over
the last year with regard to opium due to weather conditions affecting
supply, with the price increasing or decreasing. In 2000, at harvest time,
the price of opium was about US $35 per kilo, which was very low. Just
after the announcement of the decree banning poppy, in July, the price of
a kilo rose from US $35 to about US $100 per kilo. This past March, a kilo
was US $600, but has now stabilised at about US $300 per kilo. In other
words, using the premise of simple supply and demand, there has been a
huge increase within Afghanistan. This in turn has created a lot of
speculation. Of course, some farmers holding stocks of opium sold off some
of their stocks to receive cash. At the same time, we have also noted over
the past two months, an increase in the price of opium in Pakistan and
Iran. The price in Pakistan is currently 40,000 rupees [US $630]. In the
year 2000 in Iran, the figure was US $400. In February it rose to US
$1,300 and US $2,750 in March. While it is a bit too early to say, we
haven't noticed a change in price of heroin in Europe - resulting in a lot
of questions. Does it mean that the stocks are already in Europe for
example? Maybe it is too early to say what effect it will have on the
price of heroin, but this is certainly something that UNDCP will be
monitoring over the next coming months.
Q: How has the poppy ban affected the farmers and labourers in the area?
A: That is a fundamental question, and there is always a reversal of the
coin. The positive side is that based on our requests, the Taliban have
complied with international standards with regard to drug control, calling
for the elimination of illicit drugs, and particularly poppy cultivation.
On the other side, however, this dramatic shift from illicit drugs to
crops has generated a great deal of economic problems for the population
there. To the landowning farmers is the problem of income. If you compare
the cultivation of wheat with poppy, they lost two-thirds of their income.
For the landless labourer, the problem of income is that they are no
longer employed.
Opium created a lot of work and this has not been replaced by new jobs -
jobs that we could offer. It's very limited, as many of these people were
only employed during harvest time. Nonetheless, this loss of work has
resulted in some cases of people moving, adding to the already steady flow
of internally displaced persons [IDPs] within the country. Another problem
identified is the issue of debt. Before the decree, it was quite normal in
Afghanistan for people to get loans with opium. As we know, opium served
as a form of credit. People were getting money or opium based on the
expected opium that they were going to sell later on, repaying the debt
after the harvest. For people that borrowed last year in January, they
were supposed to pay back with the new crop this year, but now can't.
Furthermore, the creditors ask for the debt on the opium to be paid back
in cash, but not at the price of opium when they took out the loan at US
$35 per kilo, but rather the current market value which is US $300. As a
result, many people wanting to pay off their debt have had to leave or
sell off their assets to do so. In some instances, there have been reports
of farmers having to sell off their daughters to the family of the
creditor. In short, there have been a lot of problems, both economic and
social, generated by this banning within Afghanistan.
Q: Regarding the poppy eradication programme, do you think the Taliban are
sincere in their efforts?
A: They issued a decree imposing a total ban, and that ban has been fully
implemented. UNDCP itself has seen and monitored the implementation of
this ban last fall during the planting season. In the beginning of this
year, we monitored its implementation. The one thing that we can say is
that there is no poppy. In other words, the main cause of the
non-cultivation this year is the decree. In this respect, the Taliban have
fulfilled their commitment.
Q: So you are pleased with the results?
A: Yes, in accordance with the conventions, we are pleased with the
results. There has been a full-fledged elimination of poppy cultivation
in the country. However, with regard to the humanitarian aspect, UNDCP has
always promoted the need to accompany such a measure with alternative
development programmes. Unfortunately, we have not secured proper funding
for this. Last year we had to close a pilot programme due to lack of
funds. The option would have been no assistance at all, and the Taliban,
we believe, implemented their commitment.
Q: What specific efforts is your organisation making today? And what is
your overall strategy in Afghanistan?
A: UNDCP has always been focusing first on the elimination of poppy
cultivation, contributing a great deal of effort to the issuance of this
decree. Getting the decree in place was certainly, because of the dialogue
that UNDCP maintained as the only international organisation working on
drug control with the Taliban. We have managed to ensure [that] the
Taliban take the right decisions, at the right level. Secondly, we have
continually relayed what is happening in Afghanistan back to the
international community. At the end of last year, UNDCP raised the issue
that something very surprising would happen last December after Montreux.
At the donor meeting in Vienna and at the ASG [Afghanistan Support Group]
meeting in Montreux, we were already informing the international community
of the ban, and that the ban would be seriously implemented. We have been
readily encouraging the international community to respond to the
consequences such a ban would have on the people.
We carried out a pre-assessment survey in February. It was the first time
we did it, and we did it because we couldn't wait until September 2001 to
inform the international community of the enforcement of the ban. We
carried out this pre-assessment survey, which covered 80 percent of the
territory. But it was sufficient to demonstrate that the ban was being
seriously implemented. Based on this pre-assessment survey, we mobilised
the donor community as early as 15 February. They decided, in their
initial gesture, to go and see for themselves what was happening in
Afghanistan. For this reason, we organised a special donor mission at the
end of April, beginning of May, which brought back positive dividends.
Donor funding will certainly come back to this issue, but with the
conviction that the ban is in fact being implemented. At the same time,
UNDCP has already used its authority to inform the international media of
the enforcement of the ban. This is an important contribution of UNDCP,
and the Taliban cannot only accept, but praise UNDCP for doing that. The
authorities are actually very happy with the neutral and impartial role
that UNDCP has played in this respect. Advocacy and information are,
therefore, important aspects of UNDCP's activities.
UNDCP is also working on the formulation of projects. We want to help the
population that have been affected by the ban. We have indicated the
social and economic problems being faced by this group. We have a duty to
help this population, which is why we are involved in a series of projects
there. We are now awaiting some funding from some donors, and thus far we
received positive indication from countries like the US. Out of the US $43
million for humanitarian assistance, at least one million would be given
to UNDCP to assist the farmers. We are also working with the chair
[Germany] of the Afghan Support Group to formulate with the agencies a
package of projects for possible funding from donors. Hence, we have the
role of attracting donors, of informing them, and of preparing projects to
address the needs of the population.
Q : What about the large stocks of poppy remaining in Afghanistan today?
What should be done with them?
A: That's a very delicate question. Over the past two or three years we
know that Afghanistan produced huge quantities of opium. These stocks are
part of Afghanistan's underground economy of drug trafficking. How much
stock is actually in the pipeline at the moment is difficult to answer.
The donors' mission last month tried to secure some information about it,
but it was very difficult as we are talking about a black economy. The
only assurance we got was from the Taliban authorities, whose intentions
were to help reduce the flow of drugs leaving the country. That's really
all we can say at this stage.
Q: In a recent interview with IRIN, the director of the Taliban Islamic
Emirate High Commission for Drug Control, Abdol Hamid Akhondzadeh, said it
was the right of Afghans to expect more from the international community.
Do you agree with him?
A: In line with the UN General Assembly special session on drug control in
New York in June 1998, heads of state and government of the UN expressed
in a political declaration their commitment to assist the countries and
populations where the elimination of illicit drugs would take place. Based
on this declaration, there is a responsibility of the international
community to assist those who are taking positive steps towards the
elimination of illicit drugs, particularly when it is of no cost for the
international community, which is the case in Afghanistan. Today we are
facing a serious dilemma, which is strong enforcement and application of a
commitment from the ruling authority in Afghanistan. In one year, we have
eliminated what would correspond to 3,500 mt of opium. That is full
elimination in one go.
Today we have a large population which is not considered part of the
direct "trafficking" population. They are farmers, labourers, and people
who are simply trying to earn a minimal income level in a problematic
country ravished by 20 years of war and drought. This dramatic elimination
has generated immense problems for this group. Therefore, we have a
responsibility towards these people. We need to help them. This sentiment
has already been reflected by many statements said by UNDCP Executive
Director Pino Arlacchi, followed by all authorities within the UN. It has
been confirmed by the donors at the ASG. However, what one has to
understand is the need to launch a machinery, and this always takes time.
There was so much suspicion of Taliban involvement in drugs that we had to
change the stigma or perception of the situation in Afghanistan - in other
words, convince the donors that they could fund a serious programme in
Afghanistan. We are gradually coming to this point. At the last ASG
meeting in Islamabad two weeks ago, it was made clear by the donors that
if there was one sure thing in Afghanistan today, it was the
implementation of the ban. This is a remarkable achievement. It takes
time, but it is coming. I should add that there is no need to challenge
today whether one should come and contribute in Afghanistan. Donors need
to help the farmers. Of course, the Taliban would like to see a flow of
money come in. It will not come in in this form, but things are definitely
proceeding in a proper way.
Q: Regardless of the Taliban's commitment towards the ban placed on the
cultivation of poppy next year, more importantly, do you think the farmers
will be able to maintain it next year?
A: No one has a crystal ball, and we can only speculate. But let me say,
the problems they face now are the problems they faced last year. During
the planting season last fall 2000, the ban was fully implemented, without
any harm to the population. In fact, we were told that some 30 or 40
people were arrested because they resisted the ban. We would expect the
situation to be maintained just as it was last year. At least that is what
the Taliban authorities told us during the donor mission. They said they
were determined to maintain the ban and to enforce it next season. The
farmers that we met confirmed to us that as the edict came directly from
the supreme religious leader of the Taliban regime, they would respect it.
Very few people expressed a desire to use arms to fight this - very few.
So, until the fall, we simply have to wait and see what happens. We have
to remain optimistic that the ban will be maintained. The Taliban had said
they would issue this decree and would enforce it, both of which they did.
This year they said they would maintain it, so we have to believe that it
will be maintained. Nonetheless, we have the responsibility to support
the sustaining of this ban by assisting the communities that are being
affected. Even if it is only symbolic this summer, we have to take some
action to demonstrate that some assistance will be coming. It will never
come in one go, but [will] be gradual. This is our responsibility with
regard to the ban.
Q: Drought and the poppy eradication programme have hit the farmers in the
region twofold. Many, in fact, have become displaced to as far away as
Herat. Do you think that we have missed the boat?
A: I do not think that we have missed the boat. On the contrary, thanks to
the issuance of the ban, and the full elimination of poppy cultivation
this year, we received the support of all the UN agencies of the need to
do something immediately at the village level. Thanks to the situation and
the strong commitment by the Taliban, we have succeeded in convincing the
international community that at least one devil - the cultivation of opium
- is finished in the country. The fact that there is no opium is immensely
important in proving that the ban is being seriously implemented. Based on
that, and the fact that it has produced adverse consequences for the
population, it became clear to our UN leaders and authorities that instead
of working outside the country to encourage the return of refugees, or to
work on the IDP problem, it was very useful to work at the root of the
problem.
There is a need to work in poppy-growing areas to assist the landowners
and labourers so that they stay where they are. Many labourers were only
getting jobs because of the opium being cultivated, and are now losing
income. This, of course, will only lead to a greater flow of IDPs and
refugees. That is why we are working to generate work for these people.
Food for work, for example, with the minimum of cash to assist the people
to remain settled where they are. This is an important role that all UN
agencies have to address, working together, to assist IDPs and refugees,
not when they are in camps, but today at the [site of the] root problem.
If these people leave, it will only compound the already difficult
problems existing at these camps. This is a humanitarian war that all UN
agencies need to address. Based on what we have heard from the executive
director or high commissioner of these agencies, that is seriously being
considered.
Q: The German Ambassador and current head of the ASG told IRIN in a recent
interview that they were focusing on more alternative income projects for
farmers and farm labourers affected by the Taliban poppy eradication
programme. What sort of programmes do you envision?
A: It could be short-term to medium to long-term programmes. Short-term
programmes being the provision of seeds, fertilisers and pesticides to the
farmers who have land. They need to have improved seeds for the next
season to produce wheat, which is a winter crop. However, we also need to
assist those who have no land, but worked as labourers in the poppy
cultivation areas. For example, food-for-work programmes. Many things
could be done. Renovation of roads, refurbishment of canals, improving
the current irrigation system are all examples of areas in which we could
work together.
There is also a need for medium- to long-term programmes. We cannot just
give immediate assistance to the people to keep them where they are. When
we provide seeds, we need to ensure that the products these people will
have can be properly distributed. In other words, there will be a need for
marketing and for credit. Opium was a credit source, and that credit
source is gone. How are people to live if they only have wheat? If they
only have wheat, they cannot buy clothes, medicine etcetera. We have to
address this issue and establish a revolving fund, a credit scheme that of
course would involve a longer period of time than six months. This is a
good example of a medium- to long-term programme.
Another area we need to address is water. If you switch from growing poppy
to wheat or cotton, for example, you need to have more water and more
efficient irrigation schemes. You need to renovate canals and wells. These
are all major-term programmes. Then there is the issue of marketing. You
need to be able to sell the products. If farmers can't sell the products
they are growing, what good is that? Moreover, we need to work with the
next generation to get rid of this social stigma to grow poppy in the
first place. Instead, we need to encourage people to go to school for
education. We need to ensure that in poppy growing areas, we have schools
and proper training facilities for teachers. It's amazing to see in these
areas that there are no schools. In addition, we need to provide work for
women. Earlier, women were very much involved in the opium production.
These are just a few of the short- and long-term development programmes we
need to work on. Currently, we are working with all UN agencies to
formulate a package of such projects.
Q: Currently funding for your organisation is being done on a one-year
basis. Wouldn't a three-year programme be more realistic?
A: Three years, five years, 10 years would definitely be better. When
funding is only done on an annual basis, it is difficult to launch a
project which is very often a three- to five-year programme. There is
always the risk that the funding will not be secured, and afterwards we
have to close a project before its completion. This is a serious handicap
we face when we have funding that is limited to one year. Sometimes we get
funding for periods longer than one year. This would certainly be more
beneficial.
Q: Aside from funding, what are the main obstacles being faced by your
organisation?
A: That's a good question. I wouldn't say we face obstacles. However,
looking at just Afghanistan, despite the advocacy role being played by
UNDCP, the main obstacle is the lack of immediate response to the problem
through our organisation. The problem today is not merely one of drugs,
but of development and humanitarian issues. This is a problem that be
addressed by all UN agencies, not just UNDCP. In other words, agencies
like WFP, UNOCHA, FAO, and UNDP, should all be participating now. There is
a need now to ensure that since response is related to this drug-control
problem, the need to maintain a minimum support to UNDCP, so that we can
play the role as buffer and spokes-entity for the international community.
That is one role that we can continue to play with the support of the
donors.
In short, there is nothing sustainable thus far, and we have to follow
this closely. In addition, we have to address the issue of drug
cultivation in the northern areas. Here there remains the important job of
advocacy in working with the authorities. That action needs to be taken in
eliminating poppy cultivation. At the same time, alternative work
programmes need to be developed to assist the communities there as well.
Throughout it all, we have to maintain a large security programme that we
have set up around Afghanistan, to ensure that enforcement against drug
trafficking will work properly.
We have to monitor that there is no opium this year in Afghanistan. How
much is still there, how much has been processed, and how much is going to
leave the country are still questions we do not know [the answers to]. We
need to remain vigilant, and this is the role of UNDCP.
Q: What is your prognosis of the drug situation in Afghanistan today?
A: Afghanistan last year was producing 75 percent of the world's opium
production. This year it will not hold such a record, but be a "model"
country in terms of production and cultivation instead. In terms of
prognosis, there is a very high probability that the ban will remain
implemented next year, and Afghanistan, for the second year, will not
produce opium. Nonetheless, it will only be in the medium term that we
will see the full effect of the ban - not in the first year. However, if
in the second year the ban is seriously implemented, we will see opium in
the form of stocks leaving the country, as it is not in the interest of
the people to hold onto them, but to sell them instead. Today we are
seeing decreases in seizures in Iran and Pakistan, as well as Central
Asia, so it will be interesting to see what will happen. In short, we have
to remain vigilant. Normally, when we close a water tap, there is no
water any more except that which remains in the pipeline. The same can be
said about the opium pipeline.
SOURCES USED FOR TAJIKISTAN NEWS (please inform eliza.hilton@akf.org.uk if you know
of other useful online sources)
WEBSITES
Afghan News
<http://www.afghan-web.com/aop/today.html>
Asia Plus Blitz
<http://www.internews.ru/ASIA-PLUS/blitz/index.html>
BBC
<http://news6.thdo.bbc.co.uk/scripts/query.idq?CiRestriction=Tajikistan&CiMaxRecord
sPerPage=32&CiScope=Hi&TemplateName=query&CiSort=rank%5Bd%5D>
Central Asia Analyst
<http://www.cacianalyst.org/>
Eurasianet
<http://www.eurasianet.org/>
<http://www.eurasianet.org/resource/tajikistan/hypermail/news/>
<http://www.eurasianet.org/resource/tajikistan/articles/index.shtml>
Guardian Unlimited
<http://www.searchunlimited.co.uk/search97cgi/s97networkr_cgi?QueryText=%28Tajikist
an%29AND+%28VdkPublicationDate+%3E%3D+01%2DSep%2D1998%29&ResultColSize=2000&ResultT
emplate=ArchiveFull%2Ehts&Collection=archive&SortSpec=Vdkpublicationdate+desc&Query
=Tajikistan&ResultStart=1&ResultCount=10&ResultMaxDocs=1000&Dtv>=
ReliefWeb
<http://www.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf/vCD/Tajikistan?OpenDocument&StartKey=Tajikistan
&ExpandView>
RFERL
<http://www.rferl.org/bd/ta/magazine/default.asp>
Tajikistan Update
<http://www.angelfire.com/sd/tajikistanupdate/news.html>
Transitions On Line
<http://www.tol.cz/week.html>
MAIL LISTS
Harvard
Central Asia mail list: CentralAsia-L@fas.harvard.edu
<mailto:CentralAsia-L@fas.harvard.edu>
Institute of War and Peace Reporting
To subscribe to IWPR news services, e-mail IWPR Project Co-ordinator Saule
Mukhametrakhimova at saule@iwpr.net <mailto:saule@iwpr.net> Website: www.iwpr.net
IRIN
The "asia-english" service of the UN's IRIN humanitarian information unit. For
further information, free subscriptions contact e-mail: irin@ocha.unon.org
<mailto:irin@ocha.unon.org>
The Humanitarian Times
The Humanitarian Times collates news for readers worldwide.
Free Subscriptions -- contact: HTimes@MSN.com <mailto:HTimes@MSN.com>
Yahoo CentralAsiaNews
Central Asia News group at Yahoo! Groups
centralasianews@yahoogroups.com <mailto:centralasianews-subscribe@yahoogroups.com>
Compiled by Eliza Hilton and Tim Holmes
Aga Khan Foundation (UK)
Email: tim.holmes@akf.org.uk
Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7591 6806
Fax: + 44 (0) 20 7589 0641
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