The most extensive personnel shake-up of President Imomali Rahmon’s almost two decades in power is going on in Tajikistan. The turnover in the top echelons of government indicates that media outlets are playing an effective watchdog role in Tajik society.
It’s not uncommon for football fans to get emotional about the outcome of a match. But in Tajikistan, an authoritarian-minded country where public protests are rare, a recent wave of post-game rioting has exposed anger over more than just a final score.
Can one measure civil society by how people drive? Over the last two months, journalists and human rights activists have called attention to the driving behavior of Tajikistan’s super-wealthy class. Their expressions of concern are an outgrowth of several high-profile incidents involving reckless driving, episodes that are the subject of widespread gossip in Dushanbe.
A bill under consideration in Tajikistan would allow the state to take over some responsibility from parents in setting limits for children. While officials argue that the draft legislation is primarily designed to combat delinquency, critics say the state wants to use the legislation to mold the religious outlook of young Tajiks.
The casual visitor could not be blamed for believing Iran’s influence is ascendant in Tajikistan’s capital Dushanbe. Iranian pop music blasts from many of the city’s cafés. Iranian-made yellow taxis ferry a bevy of fashionable Iranian businessmen around downtown. Market stalls are stacked with Iranian cookies and cakes.
The Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan is the only officially recognized, faith-based party in Central Asia. But Tajik President Imomali Rahmon’s administration appears to be taking aim at the party as part of a general crackdown against Islamic extremism.
New guest workers are coming to the cotton and rice fields of southern Tajikistan, and they are already sowing seeds of discontent.
Locals are outraged at the prospect of Chinese farmers arriving to work Tajik land, following Dushanbe's decision this week to lease out 2,000 hectares of land to the Uyghur Autonomous Region in western China.
