6 July 2011 News Digest

Kyrgyz Parliament leader charged with more serious crimes
22 June
The Kyrgyz Prosecutor-General's Office says the charges against the leader of the Ata-Jurt (Fatherland) party in parliament have been increased, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports. Kamchybek Tashiev was questioned by the Prosecutor-General's Investigative Directorate on June 20 regarding his alleged beating of fellow deputy Bakhadyr Suleimanov. Suleimanov filed a lawsuit against Tashiev on April 1, accusing him of assault and battery. Suleimanov spent several days at the cardiology center in Bishkek after the alleged fight and later also in a hospital. Tashiev said he never physically assaulted Suleimanov, but admits they had a heated conversation and verbally insulted each other on April 1. He has not said what they argued about. Originally, Tashiev was charged with hooliganism and battery. But medical experts say Suleimanov's health was seriously damaged after the alleged beating by Tashiev. The Prosecutor-General's Office said the charges against Tashiev had been changed to "premeditated infliction of significant damage to a person's health." Tashiev -- who was a cabinet minister under ousted President Kurmanbek Bakiev -- could face up to eight years in prison if found guilty of the charges. Tashiev told RFE/RL on June 15 that the hooliganism charges brought against him were an attempt "to prevent my participation in the presidential election" scheduled for the fall. Many experts and other politicians think Tashiev is planning to run for president. Ata-Jurt is a member of Kyrgyzstan's three-party governing coalition. Its members include many former ministers and deputies who were loyal to Bakiev. (RFE/RL)

Shooting deaths reportedly rise on uzbek-kyrgyz border
23 June
Uzbek border guards have shot dead at least 13 people who were crossing into Uzbekistan from Kyrgyzstan's southern Batken region in the past two months, RFE/RL's Uzbek Service reports. Uzbek officials told RFE/RL that security services are only firing on people who illegally cross the border and smugglers who disregard orders from border guards. Khurshidbek Tursunov, deputy head of the Ferghana district, told RFE/RL that the people crossing the border were the ones who should be blamed for the deadly incidents, not the border guards. "We have repeatedly explained that bypassing the border checkpoints or smuggling goods is banned," Tursunov said. Security along the border was stepped up almost two months ago, when the number of deadly shootings increased. The incidents involving shooting deaths occurred in at least four villages close to the Uzbek-Kyrgyz border: Chimyon, Halmiyon, Mindon, and Vodil. Muzaffar Shodmonov, 22, was shot dead and two of his companions wounded last week as they were bringing goods over the border from a nearby bazaar in Kyrgyzstan. His father, Sharof Shodmonov, told RFE/RL that his son's business was to bring foodstuffs and other consumer goods to local bazaars in Uzbekistan. Shodmonov said that the security services were themselves involved in smuggling and were in effect protecting their monopoly rather than the border. For years people along the Kyrgyz-Uzbek have engaged in cross-border trade despite the government's efforts to curtail uncontrolled trade. The Uzbek government imposes high customs fees for imported goods, which traders believe makes them too expensive for local consumers and leads many people to avoid the border checkpoints. Analysts say that under the pretext of protecting the domestic market and curtailing illegal imports, the trade in goods in Uzbekistan has become centralized and is controlled by criminal groups. The Abu-Sahiy company, which is allegedly controlled by President Islam Karimov's youngest daughter, Lola Karimova, is one of the biggest importers of consumer goods from China to Uzbekistan. (RFE/RL)

Armenia, Azerbaijan summit falls short of breakthrough
24 June
Armenia and Azerbaijan reported progress Friday at a summit hosted by Russia but fell short of a breakthrough in a territorial row that world powers fear could erupt into armed conflict.   "The heads of state noted the reaching of mutual understanding on a number of questions, whose resolution helps create conditions to approve the basic principles," the leaders said in a statement published by the Kremlin. The two sides have faced international pressure to sign up to a "basic principles" agreement on the Nagorny Karabakh conflict zone, but apparently did not manage to agree terms at the summit in the Russian Volga city of Kazan. The leaders were shown sitting around a table and smiling for cameras on Russian television, which did not broadcast their remarks. The meeting supervised by Russia President Dmitry Medvedev had sparked optimism that Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian and his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev might achieve the first major progress in many years of fruitless talks. The two sides still exchange deadly fire around the Nagorny Karabakh conflict zone, 17 years after fighting a war over the now Armenian separatist-controlled region in western Azerbaijan. The Russian foreign ministry had said in a statement that the meeting, held behind closed doors, was "expected to play a decisive role in the Nagorny Karabakh peace process." Moscow added that the document Medvedev hoped to get the two enemies to sign at the meeting was designed to pave the way for "a comprehensive peace agreement" to be sealed at a later date. In the statement released after the summit, the leaders expressed "gratitude" to the leaders of Russia, the United States and France for their "constant attention to the problem of regulating Nagorny Karabakh." They also said they "highly rated the personal efforts of the Russian president to help reach agreements." But they failed to meet international pressure, expressed in recent days, that they would sign up to a "basic principles" agreement. US President Barack Obama on Thursday had called the two presidents and urged them to sign the document, the White House said, while French leader Nicolas Sarkozy sent a letter calling for the agreement to be finalised. "There are moments in history when the leadership of a country should demonstrate to its people courage, wisdom and the road toward peace," Sarkozy said in the letter released by the Armenian presidency. (AFP)

Afghan forces capture burqa wearing leader
28 June
Security forces in Afghanistan have apprehended a senior leader of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan and two associates, a military spokesman said Tuesday. The spokesman for the International Security Assistance Force said the Uzbek leader attempted to avoid capture by wearing a burqa in an attempt to disguise himself as a Muslim woman. He is suspected of facilitating suicide bomb attacks for the Taliban in addition to planning attacks against the Afghan police and security forces, the spokesman said. The leader and his associates were captured in Kunduz province Monday by a combined Afghan and coalition security force. (UPI)

Baku good for energy security, U.S. says
29 June
It makes strategic sense for the U.S. allies in the European Union to get some of their natural gas from the Caspian region, the U.S. envoy to Azerbaijan said. Azerbaijan holds more than 50 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in its Shah Deniz gas field in the Caspian Sea. Azeri gas is viewed by Europe as a supply source for its lauded Nabucco natural gas pipeline, a project included in the so-called Southern Corridor of transit networks meant to break Russia's grip on the European energy sector. Matthew Bryza, U.S. envoy to Baku, told the regional Trend news agency Washington and its European allies felt gas from the Caspian region would help allay some regional energy security concerns. "Of course, it doesn't make sense for all of that gas to come eastwards, but some of it," Bryza was quoted as saying. "Some of it is just situated in deposits in the Caspian Sea or near the Caspian Sea for which the most economical mode of export is across the Caspian Sea." Baku is at the center of a regional energy race spurred by 2009 disputes between Russia and Ukraine, which hosts 80 percent of the Russian natural gas sent to European consumers. (UPI)

Kyrgyz Parliament Sets Presidential Election for October 30
30 June
Kyrgyzstan's parliament today set October 30 as the date for a presidential election designed to move the country closer to completing constitutional reforms aimed at creating Central Asia's first parliamentary democracy. The mandate of current President Roza Otunbaeva is due to expire on December 31. She has run the country since April 2010, when President Kurmanbek Bakiev was toppled by a violent revolt. (RFE/RL)

Ethnic Uzbeks Push for Switch to Kyrgyz Language Schools
1 July
Several prominent members of the ethnic Uzbek community in Kyrgyzstan's southern city of Osh have proposed gradually switching to Kyrgyz as the language of instruction in schools, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports. Osh City Council member Amanullo Iminov, an ethnic Uzbek, told RFE/RL he advocates launching Kyrgyz language classes in schools dominated by ethnic Uzbeks and increasing the teaching hours in Kyrgyz in high schools. He said the proposal will be considered at the next City Council session. Uzbek playwright and journalist Erkin Baynazarov told RFE/RL that the initiative is long overdue. He added he and about 50 other people are holding meetings with the public and lobbying to have only Uzbek language and literature classes taught in Uzbek, and all other classes in Kyrgyz. Independent expert Abdumomun Mamaraimov told RFE/RL he thinks the switch from Uzbek to Kyrgyz as the language of instruction may compound ethnic tensions, and some parents might consider it discrimination. School principal Kadyrzhan Yunusov told RFE/RL that his school in the village of Kashgar switched in 2009 to teaching all subjects in Kyrgyz. He said parents had suggested the change due to a lack of Uzbek-language textbooks. Ar-Namys party member Anvar Artykov told RFE/RL that the initiative could facilitate greater integration after the June 2010 clashes between ethnic Kyrgyz and Uzbeks that left hundreds dead and thousands homeless. (RFE/RL)

French website cleared of libel accusations brought Uzbekistan president’s daughter
1 July
A Paris court cleared a French website of defamation charges Friday after it called the daughter of Uzbek President Islam Karimov "the daughter of a dictator," the site said in a statement. French news website Rue89.com said the court ruled that the site hadn't personally attacked Lola Karimova, but was legitimately criticizing Uzbekistan's authoritarian government. Karimova had reportedly sought €30,000 ($43,500) in damages over an article that accused her of seeking to whitewash the Central Asian nation's much-criticized rights record. Karimov has led Uzbekistan with an iron fist since the 1980s, when it still formed part of the Soviet Union. The ruling couldn't be immediately confirmed with the court. But the ruling was also reported on by Reporters Without Borders, Radio Free Europe and an Uzbek opposition site that has covered the trial very closely. Uzbekistan was described in the most recent Human Rights Watch country report as having an "abysmal human rights record." In an article published in May 2010, Rue89 described Karimova's involvement in an AIDS charity gala event as an attempt to "whitewash the image of Uzbekistan." The article labeled Karimova a hypocrite for attending an AIDS awareness event while those working to stem the disease in Uzbekistan serve prison sentences for promoting condom use and disposable needles. Health activist Maxim Popov was sentenced in 2009 to seven years in jail for "corrupting minors" with his actions. Paris-based media rights group Reporters Without Borders hailed the court's decision as "logical," but was upset the court didn't go further in bringing improper lawsuit charges against Karimova. (AP)

U.S. shifts supply routes to Central Asia
3 July
The U.S. military is expanding  its Central Asian supply routes for the war in Afghanistan, fearing that the routes going through Pakistan could be endangered by  deteriorating U.S.-Pakistani relations. "The Washington Post" reports on July 3, citing unnamed Pentagon officials, that in  2009, the United States moved 90 percent of its military surface cargo through the Pakistani port of Karachi and then through mountain passes into Afghanistan. Now almost 40 percent of surface cargo arrives in Afghanistan from the north, along a patchwork of Central Asian rail and road routes. In addition, the U.S. government is negotiating expanded agreements with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and other countries that would allow for delivery of additional supplies to the Afghan war zone. There are currently up to 150,000 foreign troops in Afghanistan, including about 99,000 from the United States. (RFE/RL)

British PM Cameron on surprise visit to Afghanistan
4 July
U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron, on an unannounced visit to Afghanistan on July 4, said while Afghan security forces were "increasingly confident," Britain planned to withdraw a "relatively small" number of troops. Cameron arrived on a Royal Air Force plane at Camp Bastion, the main British and U.S. base in the southern Helmand Province. He said he had cancelled a visit to the town of Lashkar Gah so helicopters could be used in the search of a missing British soldier. There are currently 9,500 British troops in Afghanistan.

Tajikistan plans to deliver amnesty
4 July
Tajikistan may declare amnesty in connection with the 20th anniversary of the country's independence, a government source has told Interfax. President Emomali Rahmon is expected to submit an amnesty bill to parliament in late July to early August 2011, the source said. Leader of the Tajik Communists and MP Shodi Shabdolov said that "despite the summer vacation season, the president has a constitutional right to call an emergency session of both houses of parliament to examine the bill." About 10,000 people were amnestied and about half of them were released from prison under the 2009 amnesty, which was timed to coincide with the 15th anniversary of the Tajik Constitution and reduced the number of convicts in penitentiaries to about 11,000, according to the Tajik Prosecutor General's Office. The figure is still too high for the country's penitentiary system. (RFE/RL)

Sting cancels Kazakh show over crackdown
4 July
Sting has called off a concert scheduled in Kazakhstan Monday to protest repression of striking oil workers. Several thousand workers walked out in May to fight wage cuts, and hundreds have been fired and jailed, the BBC reports. In a statement on his Web site, the singer said Amnesty International, which he has long supported, had informed him of the "unacceptable" situation. "Hunger strikes, imprisoned workers and tens of thousands on strike represents a virtual picket line which I have no intention of crossing," Sting said. "The Kazakh gas and oil workers and their families need our support and the spotlight of the international media on their situation in the hope of bringing about positive change." Sting had been planning to perform at a music festival in the Kazakh capital, Astana, as part of his "Symphonicity" world tour. He was criticized in 2009 for a concert in neighboring Uzbekistan, one of the most repressive Soviet successor states. (UPI)

Chevron thanks Russia for Caspian success
5 July
The start of construction on expansions to an oil pipeline in Kazakhstan represents the strong ties between Russia and the Caspian region, Chevron said. Chevron's regional affiliate Chevron Neftegaz announced that construction began on a $5.4 billion upgrade to a 900-mile pipeline carrying crude oil from western Kazakhstan to oil terminals on the Black Sea. Kazakhstan's emergence as an energy giant is generating international attention. The U.S. Energy Information Agency estimates that Kazakhstan will become a top oil exporter in the next decade. Proven oil reserves are estimated at 30 billion barrels. Neftegaz President Andrew McGrahan said in a statement the expansion project came about in part because of the close ties with Russian energy company Transneft. "(The pipeline consortium) is a model of cooperation between Russia and Kazakhstan and is an indication of the confidence we have in Russia and in oil transportation from the Caspian region," he said. The expansion will increase the capacity of the pipeline from 730,000 barrels of oil per day to 1.4 million bpd. It will be completed in three phases through 2015. (UPI)

Militants from Afghanistan attack Pakistani villages: officials
6 July
Up to 600 militants from Afghanistan attacked two Pakistani villages on Wednesday, Pakistani officials said, the latest in a campaign of large-scale raids on civilians and security forces. Militants stormed the border villages of Nusrat Dra and Kharo in the Upper Dir region, fighting soldiers and pro-government tribal militia. "According to reports from the two villages, between 550-600 militants launched the attack at around 5 in the morning and the fighting continued for several hours," police official Abdul Sattar told Reuters. Another official said four pro-government tribesmen who fought along with troops were wounded in the attack. Pakistan says more than 55 soldiers have been killed in several attacks from across the border over the past month. The raids have raised tension between the neighbors as they battle protracted insurgencies by Taliban and al Qaeda-linked militants. Pakistani Taliban fighters who fled to Afghanistan in the face of army offensives have joined allies in Afghanistan to regroup and threaten Pakistan's border regions again, analysts say. Pakistan blames Afghanistan for giving refuge to militants on its side of the border, leaving its troops vulnerable to counter-attack when it chases them out of the tribal areas and into Afghanistan. Kabul in turn has blamed Pakistan for killing dozens of civilians in weeks of cross-border shelling that has angered Afghans at street level and senior officials alike. The lawless frontier is home to some of the world's most dangerous militant groups, who are intricately linked and cross back and forth to carry out operations. The Pakistan army said on Monday it had launched an air and ground offensive against militants in the tribal region of Kurram which also borders Afghanistan. (Reuters)

Azerbaijan plane crashes in Afghanistan
6 July
An Azerbaijani cargo plane with nine crew on board crashed into treacherous mountains outside the Afghan capital overnight where concerns are growing for those on board, officials said on Wednesday. The plane took off from Baku at 9:26 pm Tuesday (1626 GMT) with 18 tons of supplies for the US-led NATO mission in Afghanistan and crashed as it tried to land at Bagram air base to the north of Kabul, officials said. The Azerbaijani embassy in Pakistan said the nine crew were from Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan, and that the plane was operated by private Azerbaijani airline Silk Way. There were no reports of bad weather or fighting in the area and it was not yet clear what caused the crash, with Afghan forces so far unable to reach the high-altitude crash site, the transport ministry said. A spokesman for NATO's International Security Assistance Force confirmed it was a military-contracted flight. "A flight controller at Kabul airport said that they observed a flash of light approximately 25 kilometres (16 miles) from the airport, at a four-kilometre altitude," it said. "Before the loss of contact, the crew did not report any emergency in the plane. It is assumed that the plane collided with an unknown object in the air," the statement added, in a possible reference to the mountains. Afghan transport ministry spokesman Nangyalai Qalatwal said the plane was carrying logistics for the US-led NATO mission when it came down in the Shakar Dara Mountains, around 70 kilometres (40 miles) north of Kabul. "The plane had nine crew members. The fate of the crew is not known so far," he said, adding that the cause of the crash was still under investigation. Qalatwal said Afghan forces had not yet been able to reach the wreckage, stuck in a mountainous area at an altitude of 12,500 feet (3,800 metres). "It is a very difficult area and getting there would be pretty difficult but we are working on that," he said. Officials from the transport, interior and defence ministries would also travel to the region, he added. ISAF spokesman Major Tim James said there were no reports of combat in the area at the time of the crash. The US-led NATO force backs Afghan government forces in fighting a 10-year Taliban insurgency that has been concentrated in the east and south. Azerbaijani civil aviation authorities said there were no technical problems with the plane before it took off for Afghanistan, adding that it was manufactured in 2005 and last had a full inspection in February.Aviation disasters are relatively rare in Afghanistan, where travel by road through vast and remote terrain is made more hazardous by the Taliban insurgency. (Reuters)

Militants with al qaeda links jailed in Azerbaijan
6 July
Azerbaijan handed a group of 17 militants jail sentences of between five years and life on Wednesday for links to al Qaeda, a court official said. Azeri security forces arrested most of the men in late 2007 in a sting operation during which they uncovered an arms cache that included machine guns, pistols, hand-grenades and explosives. The group was accused of possessing illegal weapons, creating an armed group, weapons trading, crossing borders and resisting law enforcement officers during arrest. Sandwiched between Iran, Russia and Turkey, Azerbaijan sells oil and gas to the West from reserves in the Caspian Sea, much of the oil flowing through a BP-led pipeline. Most of Azerbaijan's 9 million people are Shi'ite Muslim, but the government under President Ilham Aliyev is strictly secular and an ally of both the United States and Russia. The majority of Azeris take a relaxed attitude towards religion, but officials say Islam's influence in the country is growing. (Reuters)