FEATURED PHOTOS AND STORIES

January 13, 2020

Two new flags will be flying high at the Olympic Games in Rio.

For the first time, South Sudan and Kosovo have been recognized by the International Olympic Committee. Kosovo, which was a province of the former Yugoslavia, will have 8 athletes competing; and a good shot for a medal in women's judo: Majlinda Kelmendi is considered a favorite. She's ranked first in the world in her weight class.

(South Sudan's James Chiengjiek, Yiech Biel & coach Joe Domongole, © AFP) South Sudan, which became independent in 2011, will have three runners competing in the country's first Olympic Games.

When Will Chile's Post Office's Re-open? 

(PHOTO: Workers set up camp at Santiago's Rio Mapocho/Mason Bryan, The Santiago Times)Chile nears 1 month without mail service as postal worker protests continue. This week local branches of the 5 unions representing Correos de Chile voted on whether to continue their strike into a 2nd month, rejecting the union's offer. For a week the workers have set up camp on the banks of Santiago's Río Mapocho displaying banners outlining their demands; framing the issue as a division of the rich & the poor. The strike’s main slogan? “Si tocan a uno, nos tocan a todos,” it reads - if it affects 1 of us, it affects all of us. (Read more at The Santiago Times)

WHO convenes emergency talks on MERS virus

 

(PHOTO: Saudi men walk to the King Fahad hospital in the city of Hofuf, east of the capital Riyadh on June 16, 2013/Fayez Nureldine)The World Health Organization announced Friday it had convened emergency talks on the enigmatic, deadly MERS virus, which is striking hardest in Saudi Arabia. The move comes amid concern about the potential impact of October's Islamic hajj pilgrimage, when millions of people from around the globe will head to & from Saudi Arabia.  WHO health security chief Keiji Fukuda said the MERS meeting would take place Tuesday as a telephone conference & he  told reporters it was a "proactive move".  The meeting could decide whether to label MERS an international health emergency, he added.  The first recorded MERS death was in June 2012 in Saudi Arabia & the number of infections has ticked up, with almost 20 per month in April, May & June taking it to 79.  (Read more at Xinhua)

LINKS TO OTHER STORIES

                                

Dreams and nightmares - Chinese leaders have come to realize the country should become a great paladin of the free market & democracy & embrace them strongly, just as the West is rejecting them because it's realizing they're backfiring. This is the "Chinese Dream" - working better than the American dream.  Or is it just too fanciful?  By Francesco Sisci

Baby step towards democracy in Myanmar  - While the sweeping wins Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy has projected in Sunday's by-elections haven't been confirmed, it is certain that the surging grassroots support on display has put Myanmar's military-backed ruling party on notice. By Brian McCartan

The South: Busy at the polls - South Korea's parliamentary polls will indicate how potent a national backlash is against President Lee Myung-bak's conservatism, perceived cronyism & pro-conglomerate policies, while offering insight into December's presidential vote. Desire for change in the macho milieu of politics in Seoul can be seen in a proliferation of female candidates.  By Aidan Foster-Carter  

Pakistan climbs 'wind' league - Pakistan is turning to wind power to help ease its desperate shortage of energy,& the country could soon be among the world's top 20 producers. Workers & farmers, their land taken for the turbine towers, may be the last to benefit.  By Zofeen Ebrahim

Turkey cuts Iran oil imports - Turkey is to slash its Iranian oil imports as it seeks exemptions from United States penalties linked to sanctions against Tehran. Less noticed, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in the Iranian capital last week, signed deals aimed at doubling trade between the two countries.  By Robert M. Cutler

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Entries in Kyrgyzstan (11)

Thursday
Jul142011

(HEADLINES) Europe and Eurasia - July 14, 2011 

Finding the heart of AriegeAndorra

Worldhotels expands partnership with Spain-based Husa Hoteles

New Cathedral Village president stresses resident satisfaction

Finding the heart of Ariege, the best-kept secret in the forgotten south of France 

BalticMiles Teams Up With Tez Tour

Armenia

[OPINION] History of peace process disruptions: starring Armenia

AAA: US Administration's current policy on Genocide untenable

Armenia makes its first steps towards free economic zones creation

European Union allocates €19.1 million for institutional reforms ...

Environmentalists protest against plundering of Armenia's earth ...

OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs to visit Azerbaijan, Armenia

Gibraltar

The public speaks up: Gibraltar is one big, noisy place

Gibraltar Private Bank & Trust Promotes Claudia Rupner to ...

Remembering Gibraltar's brave

Steel band set to bring the Caribbean to Gibraltar's Ocean Village

European Dance Championships 2011

Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan to need approximately KGS 449 M for presidential elections

Kyrgyz intelligence agency explains wiretapping system use

Kyrgyzstan adopts Malaysian halal production standard

Russia and Kazakhstan do not export POL in Kyrgyzstan

Military Union is in Kyrgyzstan

Liechtenstein

Liechtenstein determined to progress

High risk tax avoidance schemes to be listed by HMRC

Moldomin mines Moldova

EU pledges €78.6 million to boost energy and justice reform in Moldova

Moldovan Ministers discuss reform agenda with NATO Allies

Moldova. Agency for material reserves will allot 1.15 thousand ...

Moldova's Ministry of Agriculture recommends machine operators ...

Nine investors interested in Moldomin mines

Mongolia

Lucky Strike Resources to acquire 80% of 6 Mongolian coal licenses

Mongolia: Looking East, looking West

Mongolia pay for Petro Matad

Montenegro

Montenegro – a census like no other?

Balkan leaders: EU and NATO membership goal unites region

Government decriminalises speech offences

Ukraine to launch regular flights to Montenegro, Albania

The Republic of San Marino

Exhibition in San Marino of works from Vatican Museums

World Service reporter freed on bail Tajikistan

World Service reporter freed on bail

53 Islamist militants on trial in Tajikistan over September ...

Tajikistan, A Frail Nation-State Amidst the New Great Game

WB, Tajikistan sign 3 agreements on aid

US Drawdown Stirs Fears In Central Asia

Turkmenistan

20 companies to lodge claims against Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan starts gas extraction on Caspian

Turkmenistan's Journalists Enhance Capacity And Knowledge Of Human ...

Turkmenistan: Third Cheleken rig reactivated

Turkmens to raise salaries 10%, admit 6045 college freshmen

Tuesday
May242011

Tajikistan: The Changing Insurgent Threats (ANALYSIS)

Photo courtesy of ICGby The International Crisis Group

Tajikistan, by most measures Central Asia’s poorest and most vulnerable state, is now facing yet another major problem: the growing security threat from both local and external insurgencies.

After his security forces failed to bring warlords and a small group of young insurgents to heel in the eastern region of Rasht in 2010-2011, President Emomali Rakhmon did a deal to bring a temporary peace to the area. But he may soon face a tougher challenge from the resurgent Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), a group with a vision of an Islamist caliphate that is fighting in Afghanistan alongside the Taliban.

That conflict is moving closer to the 1,400km Afghan-Tajik border. Many anti-government guerrillas operating in northern Afghanistan are of Central Asian origin and are largely affiliated with the IMU, which seems to be focusing on its fight against the government in Kabul but may at some stage turn its attention northwards. Tajikistan has almost no capacity to tackle a dedicated insurgent force; its efforts to quell problems in Rasht have left its only well-trained counter-insurgency unit with just over 30 fighters.

A decade of increased international attention and aid has failed to make Tajikistan more secure or prosperous. A kleptocracy centred on the presidential family has taken much of the money from assistance and aluminium. Popular discontent over poverty and failing services has been kept in check by repression and an exodus of the dissatisfied as migrant workers. All institutions have been hollowed out, leaving a state with no resilience to cope with natural disasters, economic crises or political shocks.

A new generation of guerrillas is emerging, both within Tajikistan and in the IMU. They are mostly men in their twenties with little memory of the Tajik civil war of 1992-1997. This development has punctured two comfortable assumptions: that the IMU was a forlorn rump of ageing jihadists and that Tajiks were too scarred by the memory of the brutal civil war to turn on the regime. The latter has long been central to the analyses of both the Tajik leadership and many foreign governments.

The secular, Soviet-trained leadership that emerged from the civil war now finds itself dealing with a society increasingly drawn to observant Islam. The regime’s response to this is as inept as its efforts to bring Rasht to heel. Tajiks studying in foreign Islamic institutions have been called home; the government is trying to control the content of Friday sermons and prevent young people from visiting mosques; it has also dismissed some clerics. Officials allege that the main opposition party, the Islamic Renaissance Party, is becoming increasingly radicalised. Clumsy policies may make this a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Jihadist groups, too, are paying more attention to Tajikistan. Limited infiltration of armed guerrillas from Afghanistan has been taking place for several years. The numbers seem relatively small and their intent unknown. Many pass through to other countries – notably Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. Some, however, are probably probing for government vulnerabilities. A small number of fighters from the North Caucasus have also been active in Tajikistan in recent years.

Radicalization by osmosis is growing: Tajikistan is gradually becoming part of the virtual jihad. Islamist websites are paying increasing attention to events in the country. Islamic militants in Tajikistan are adopting tactics already well known in other jihadist struggles, notably in the North Caucasus. In September 2010 the country witnessed what was described as its first suicide bombing. And while most military attention is focused on Rasht, the northern border area of Isfara, not far from Khujand, is developing the reputation of a safe haven for armed militants.

Billions of dollars of drugs pass through Tajikistan en route to Russia and China every year. There is a strong suspicion within the international community that senior members of the ruling elite are protecting the transit of narcotics from Afghanistan. High-level protection is almost certainly undermining international organisations’ attempts to control the border with Afghanistan – efforts that officials involved admit have had very little effect. At a time of growing menace from Afghanistan, the first line of defence is being kept artificially weak.

With the IMU engaged, for now, in Afghanistan, it would be advisable to use whatever breathing space is available to re-evaluate security and aid policies.

China, a silent but crucial player in the region with vital security interests, could usefully be drawn into joint consultations, along with the U.S., Russia and others, on measures to assess the security problems and possible responses.

Bilateral and multilateral donors should examine the utility of providing assistance to a regime that cannot prevent a very significant proportion being lost to corruption. Conditionality should be adopted as the norm. The Tajik government should be put on notice that a failure to address support for the narcotics trade within its own elite will seriously damage its credibility and outside support.

President Rakhmon denies that the North African scenario of popular unrest and revolt could happen in Tajikistan; despite the different circumstances, such confidence is questionable.

Tajikistan is so vulnerable that a small, localised problem could quickly spiral into a threat to the regime’s existence. The speed with which the popular mood can move from passivity to anger was demonstrated not just in the Middle East, but much closer to home, in Kyrgyzstan, in April 2010. Tajikistan is not immune.

- The International Crisis Group is an independent, non-profit, non-governmental organisation committed to preventing and resolving deadly conflict. The recommendations by ICG on the above topic can be found  here.

Friday
Nov192010

HUMNEWS HEADLINES - November 19, 2010 (Europe and Eurasia) 

Rock of Gibraltar as seen from La Linea de la Concepcion just across the border in Spain (Photo David Stanley via Flickr)Andorra

Snow, snow and more snow (travel)

Armenia

Armenia’s President not to leave for Lisbon: The draft declaration not acceptable to Armenia

Armenia should sign new protocols (opinion)

Human rights activists say children’s rights are not protected in Armenia

Yerevan hosts Armenian-Indian tourism promotion seminar

Armenia’s political forces no positive breakthrough from OSCE summit

Chess: Armenia’s Aronian wins at World Blitz Championships

Armenia’s foreign trade turnover grows 21.1% in Jan-Oct. 2010  

Gibraltar

Gibraltar tobacco contraband on the rise

Should British Gibraltar be sovereign or Spanish? Why the Tripartite won’t work  

Kyrgyzstan

Violence at Kyrgyzstan court stops trial for April uprising

OSCE participating States agree to adapt police support to Kyrgyzstan  

EU to give Kyrgyzstan 4m euros in food, reconstruction aid

Montenegro capital Podgorica: the country will become an EU candidate in December. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Lakebolt)Liechtenstein

Liechtenstein keen to deepen ties with India

Govt. examining black money estimate reports

Moldova

Romanian president supports Moldova’s pro-European government before election there

Moldovan citizens to vote in polling station at embassy

EU may abolish visas for “Eastern Partnership” members

Mongolia

UK has worse wireless broadband than Mongolia

Japan, Mongolia aim to start FTA talks early FY11

Montenegro

No starting date for Montenegro’s EU accession talks

Hungary is interested in providing financial and technical assistance to Montenegro in energy

Russia, Turkmenistan, Iran Presidents finish visits in Azerbaijan (photo: Trend.az) Tajikistan

Premier Wen’s Tajikistan visit to deepen bilateral cooperation

Tajikistan denies laundering money

Tajikistan: The authorities of Gorney Badakhshan shut down 28 mosques

Tajikistan, Afghanistan pool efforts to combat terrorism

Turkmenistan

Caspian summit fails to clarify status, resource issues

Russia, Iran, Turkmenistan presidents end visits to Azerbaijan

Friday
Oct222010

HUMNEWS HEADLINES - October 22, 2010 (Europe and Eurasia) 

Armenia

Azerbaijani top official calls on Russia to say decisive word on Armenia’s “occupation”

Referendum on border opening to be conducted in Kars

Armenia-EU political cooperation efficiently develops

Armenian opposition leader upbeat on prisoner release

Most of Armenia’s economy in shadow

Seyran Ohanyan hopes for Armenian-British further military cooperation

Misinterpreted Encyclopedia: British and Russian publishers distort basic facts about Armenia  

Armenia’s National Assembly has renovated oval hall

Gibraltar

UK must defend waters, says opposition

Talks with Spain make a sudden return

Remembering Trafalgar

Kyrgyzstan

Russia, US could cooperate in Kyrgyzstan: president

CEC not ready to announce final election results in Kyrgyzstan

India facilitates Kyrgyzstan on parliamentary elections

In Kyrgyzstan 7-safe boxes containing ballot papers drip wet

German Development Bank to annul Kyrgyzstan’s €5 million debt to Germany

Troupe from Kyrgyzstan brings nomadic melodies

Liechtenstein

Corruption: Finance probes stretch limits of justice system

Moldova

EU gives green light to visa-free talks with Moldova

How to battle illegal logging in the face of low incomes and high wood demand?

Media watchdog: press freedom in EU, Balkans deteriorating

News report cast spotlight on education in Black Sea countries

Litmus along the Dniester

Mongolia

Internet public relations agencies offer some questionable services

Nomads no more: A steppe-land struggles with new riches

Mongolia win medals in World Sumo Championship (sports)  

Tajikistan

Tajiks drawn into radical Islam groups

War on Terror Tajik-style: Shave those beards  

Tajikistan modernizing Varzob HPP-1

Turkmenistan  

Gazprom considers joining Turkmenistan-to-India pipeline project

WHO recognizes Turkmenistan as free from malaria

Cheleken expansion program nearing completion (oil & gas news) 

Wednesday
Sep012010

HUMNEWS HEADLINES - September 2, 2010 (Europe and Eurasia) 

ANDORRA

A taste of the ‘high life’ in Grandvalira, Andorra (travel)

Injured Duff ‘keen to face Andorrans’ (sports)

An afternoon in Andorra (style)  

ARMENIA

Several killed in Nagorno-Karabakh clash

Russia may resume wheat export to Armenia  

Price for nonfoods up 0.1% in Armenia in August

7.1% unemployment rate recorded in Armenia in January – July 2010

West Nile virus bypasses Armenia

President of Armenia congratulated students and teachers on day of knowledge

Fuller Center, Marriott Armenia partner for rural housing project

Armenia v. Republic of Ireland: Robbie Keane to play but Republic struggle with injury (sports)

GIBRALTAR

They are nervous in Gibraltar because they know the frontier toll is legal, claims Alcalde

Gibraltar National Day events announced

Phoenicia visits Gibraltar (style)  

KYRGYZSTAN

In Central Asia, a new headache for U.S. policy

Kyrgyzstan launches operation of Kambarata – 2 plant

Russia sends five tones humanitarian aid to Kyrgyzstan’s schools

Responsibilities allocated between Prime-Minister and Vice-Prime-Minister of Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan unlikely to receive $1 billion donor funds

Kyrgyzstan’s CEC receives pre-election lists from 29 parties  

Kyrgyzstan 19 years later. Summarizing the results

Exhibition of innovations to take place in Kyrgyzstan

OSCE mission in troubled Kyrgyzstan postponed after protests

LIECHTENSTEIN

UN chief to visit Liechtenstein, Austria in week-long trip

World & European champions Spain red hot favorites to beat Liechtenstein at 1/100 (sports)

MOLDOVA

Why Moldova matters (analysis)

Postal worker to help orphans in Moldova  

MONGOLIA

An examination of China’s epic traffic jam

Inner Mongolia: Tree-planting to end desertification

5,000-year-old village ruins found in China  

MONTENEGRO

Montenegro’s Tehnostil metal cold rolling mill seeks strategic partner

TAJIKISTAN

President Rahmon urges Tajik women not to wear hijabs

1st Tajik hard-copy daily in 18 years publishes

Iran reinvigorates a strategy for regional dominance Tehran’s false ‘three Persian speaking countries’ project aimed at subjugating Afghanistan

Tajik justice ministry criticizes security committee over jailbreak

Tajik parents punished for children’s truancy

Sunday
Aug082010

HUMNEWS - Photo's of the week - August 8, 2010 

 Pakistan Floods: An estimated 13 million Pakistanis affected by the worst floods in the country’s history are bracing from more misery as heavy rains further bloat rivers and streams. Many aid agencies have already begun to respond to the situation. Approximately 1600 people have died. (SOURCE: Irish Times)

Mongolian neo-Nazis: Anti-Chinese sentiment fuels rise of ultra-nationalismAlarm sounds over rise of extreme groups such as Tsagaan Khass who respect Hitler and reject foreign influence. (SOURCE: The Guardian)

 

 

 

 

Russia fires: The capital city of the Russian Federation is covered in thick smog, based on reports from Moscow. The problem is reportedly causing several businesses and schools to close down due to health risks. Moscow has a population of some 10 million people, about the same as the entire population of Hungary. A thick blanket of smog was allegedly caused by uncontrollable ongoing peat fires burning just outside the capital. The problem is also disrupting air traffic at major airports. Television coverage showed how commuters and residents wear masks and ambulances and paramedics are reportedly also on alert as summer temperatures reached 40C. At the same some 700 wildfires are raging in various parts of the country due to the severe drought. (SOURCE: The Budapest Report)

 

 

 

 

  Kashmir flash floods: At least 115 people confirmed dead and about 412 injured in flash floods near Leh on Thursday night news has also come in that 25 Army jawans in the area are missing after their posts and houses were washed away, Army sources said. (SOURCE: Indian Express/ PHOTO: Video Grab - PTI/Doordarshan)

 

 

 

 

Jamaica Dengue fever: Health Minister Rudyard Spencer told journalists at a press briefing at Jamaica House in Kingston this week that of the 77 cases, seven have been confirmed as of the more severe form of the illness -- the dengue haemorragic fever. Spencer, however, said no cases of dengue shock syndrome have been reported so far nor any related deaths. The health ministry, said Spencer, is on high alert in light of the growing number of cases of dengue fever and dengue haemorragic fever in the country and region. Consequently, he said, all parishes have intensified their fogging and oiling activities. Fogging is being carried out in approximately 800 communities across the island. (SOURCE: The Jamaica Observer)  

Kyrgyzstan protests: The authorities in Kyrgyzstan's southern city of Osh have prevented a mass protest against the deployment of an international police force in the Osh and Jalal-Abad regions, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports. Sonunbek Junusbaev, one of the activists who planned the protest, told RFE/RL that the Osh commandant ordered the removal of a yurt -- the traditional Kyrgyz nomadic dwelling -- from in front of a local theater on August 4. The protest organizers had set up the yurt earlier this week as a symbol of their protest. The 52 unarmed international police are expected to arrive in Osh and Jalal-Abad in early September to accompany police on patrols, engage in training and advising local police, and to monitor the human rights situation. The OSCE and the Kyrgyz government decided to send the police mission in an effort to restore order after clashes between ethnic Uzbeks and Kyrgyz killed at least 356 people and uprooted hundreds of thousands more in June. International human rights groups have reported that Kyrgyz police and other security forces are arbitrarily detaining ethnic Uzbeks and also beating them.The OSCE police are to stay in the southern regions for four months (SOURCE: Radio Free Europe)

  Aura Borealis: NASA announced the discovery of a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) on August 1, 2010. The CME resulted from a class C3 solar flare and was aimed towards Earth. The coronal mass ejection should reach Earth on the night of August 3/4, 2010. The CME will cause a higher than normal possibility of aurora, also called northern lights, activity on the evening of August 3 and the morning of August 4. During a CME the Sun releases high energy charged particles, protons and electrons. When these particles, particularly the electrons, interact with atoms in Earth's upper atmosphere they cause northern and southern lights, which are more properly called the aurora borealis and the aurora australis. Earth's magnetic field causes the auroral displays to be more easily visible near the north and south magnetic poles, but in extreme cases aurora can be visible at lower latitudes. (SOURCE: Examiner.com)

Africa broadband: The East African Submarine System (EASSy) undersea cable, which now has an upgraded 3,84-Tb/s design capacity, has entered commercial operation, ahead of schedule and about 10% below its budgeted $300-million in capital expenditure.Dr Angus Hay, the chief technology officer of Neotel – one of the consortium of investors in the cable – on Thursday announced that the undersea cable had started commercial operations on July 30.The launch of the EASSy cable follows a year after the 1,28-Tb/s Seacom cable, which also runs along Africa’s East Coast, went live on July 23, 2009.The EASSy cable, which has a 25-year life, connects South Africa, Mozambique, Madagascar, Tanzania, Kenya, Somalia, Djibouti and Sudan with multiple other submarine cable networks from Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Americas. (SOURCE: Engineering news)

Cluster bomb ban: Effective Aug.1, an international treaty bans the cluster bomb, one of the world’s worst hazards for millions of farmers. To date, 108 countries have signed and 38 have ratified the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which bans the production, use, stockpiling or transfer of cluster bombs. No country suffers the hazards of cluster bombs more than Laos. Per capita, it’s the most heavily bombed country on earth. Up to 30 percent of all bombs dropped on Laos did not detonate. They remain in the soil today, deadly as ever. (SOURCE: The Faster Times)

 

 

Salvador Dali moves to Andorra: The Salvador Dali sculpture, the ‘Nobility of Time’ has been placed in Andorra’s capital city, in the Piazza Rotonda Andorra la Vella. It was donated to the Andorran government by Enric Sabater, who was Dali’s agent, collaborator and confident between 1968 and 1982. The stunning five meter high sculpture has been placed in the city’s most prestigious and historic square, in the towns oldest quarter which dates from the twelfth century. The bronze sculpture is one of the melted watch series of sculptures which was created by Dali to symbolise the passage of time. The soft melting watch is draped around a tree trunk; atop the watch face is a crown, symbolising time’s master over humanity. Beniamino Levi, President of the Stratton Foundation and curator of over eighty Dali exhibitions worldwide, has expressed his approval of the donation and is delighted that the sculpture is now the main artistic attraction in Andorra la Vella. “It is going to be one of the major attractions of the capital and of the country”, pointed out the town’s parish minister Antoni Armengol, who described the donation as akin to ‘a Christmas present in the summer’. Andorra’s minister of Education Culture and Youth, Susanna Vela agrees that the sculpture is certainly , ‘a great point of attraction’. The sculpture ‘ Nobility of Time’ has also been displayed in other European locations such as London, Paris, Berlin, Vienna and most recently Courcheval, France.  (SOURCE: artdaily.org)

 

Monday
Aug022010

HUMNEWS HEADLINES - August 2, 2010 (Europe and Eurasia) 

ARMENIA

Explosion on Armenia – Nakhchivan border

Russian army base to extend stay in Armenia

IAEA experts to inspect site for new unit at Armenian NPP

OSCE to monitor contact line between Azerbaijani, Armenian armies

Baku and Tbilisi to complete anti-Armenian project in 2011

Clinton’s visit gauntlet thrown down to U.S., Heritage MP says

US Senate approves $40mln for Armenia

Difficult for Armenian experts to accept current realities (society)  

38.2% growth record in brandy production in Armenia from January-June 2010

Armenia to import near 1500 tons of wheat seeds

Psychologist and sociologist about suicide

GIBRALTAR

Caruana lambasts Bossano and rejects casino calpe ‘falsehoods’

Spanish workers association concerned that mayor’s action could wreck relations

Gibraltar should have walked away from this indignity (sports/opinion)

Blakenhorn connects continents with Gibraltar swim (sports)

Galliano’s splash of Flamenco for GIB family wedding (fashion)

KYRGYZSTAN

Long-term prospects for Kyrgyzstan are worrying

Uzbek frontier guards held back 3 trucks carrying 43 tons of explosives to Kyrgyzstan

Interests of the Party of Communists in Kyrgyzstan for me are higher than my personal ones

Commission for investigation of reasons for the clashes in the south of Kyrgyzstan to provide results on Sept. 10, 2010

Donor community does not pursue the aim to drive Kyrgyzstan into debtors prison

The first part of Kazakhstan’s humanitarian aid reached in Osh city (Kyrgyzstan)

CCTs a good start to erasing poverty  

LIECHTENSTEIN

Riddle of Haider’s secret 40m pounds: Cash found in European principality of Liechtenstein

Just 419 taxpayers take advantage of Liechtenstein disclosure facility

German state rejects tax data disc purchases

MOLDOVA

Rise in visa applications from Moldova to Bulgaria in 2010

Moldovan PM says EU may double wine exports

EU to fund higher education for Belarus students

Moldova telecommunications report

Global cluster bomb ban becomes binding  

MONGOLIA

Hong Kong beat Mongolia (sports)  

MONTENEGRO

Montenegrin government has adopted strategy on regional development of Montenegro from 2010 – 2014

Montenegro property ‘back on the map’

Serbs shell out 600 million euro’s on vacation

Serbia’s January – June foreign trade goes up

SAN MARINO

Malta, Cyprus off Italian blacklist – San Marino remains on the list

ATP San Marino challenger preview and live stream (sports)

TAJIKISTAN

Five new sites added to world heritage list

Tajik madrasah leaders, students detained

Tajikistan’s defense officials visit Azerbaijan

Iran hosts first meeting of ECO countries ‘drug combating department’ heads

TURKMENISTAN

Is the U.S. violating Turkmenistan’s neutrality with the NDN?

Russian president to visit Turkmenistan

Nabucco project: investors look before they leap

Monday
Jul052010

HUMNEWS HEADLINES - July 5, 2010 (Europe and Eurasia) 

ARMENIA

Armenia’s former ombudsman proposes amendments to constitution

Armenia’s constitution works effectively, president says

US Secretary of State visits Armenia

Baku to sign pact with Armenia ‘only after occupied lands are liberated’

Sargsyan meets with Karabakh mediators

GIBRALTAR

Feetham hails transformation of court system

Give and take budget says Garcia

Holliday says airport will succeed

One year after the pandemic were there any lessons learnt?

KYRGYZSTAN  

Kyrgyzstan, a lesson in democracy for China

Kyrgyzstan considers joining the Customs union

Project to support women and children in conflict zone launches in Kyrgyzstan

Death toll in southern Kyrgyzstan rises to 309

Moderator of the European Council of Religious Leaders visited Kyrgyzstan  

Latvian drug mule held with heroin in airport Manas, Kyrgyzstan

LIECHTENSTEIN

Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein to facilitate its cross-border relations with the EU

Hilti to set up joint venture

Information on use of European health insurance card

Can you rent an entire country? Snoop Dog can (entertainment)

MOLDOVA

Jailed Moldovan confesses to espionage, Transdniester officials say

NORMA gains direct access to global internet market

One day in ‘green’ Kishinev….. (sports)  

MONGOLIA

Winter disaster spurring urban migration

Nepal to strike deal on money laundering  

MONTENEGRO

Montenegro asked to review Thaksin’s passport

Montenegro airlines with welcome the third Embraer E195 jet to its fleet

Montenegro releases tender for the granting of franchise rights for the economic use of Bijela port  

SAN MARINO

Italy appeals European court ban on crucifixes in classrooms

TAJIKISTAN

EEC summit kicked off in Astana

Russian-Kazakh-Belarusian Customs union comes into effect

Russia and poppy cultivation in Afghanistan

TURKMENISTAN

US President appraises ties with Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan works out report on UN Convention on rights of child

Turkmen law on culture complies with UNESCO standards

Monday
Jun282010

HUMNEWS HEADLINES - June 28, 2010 (Europe and Eurasia) 

Friday
Jun182010

HUMNEWS HEADLINES - June 18, 2010 (Europe and Eurasia) 

ARMENIA:

Eye on Kyrgyzstan: Armenia military will not participate as peacekeepers

Armenia, Azerbaijan in another Russia hosted meeting in Karabakh

Opportunity for Armenian genocide resolution rises out of U.S. discontent with Turkey

Turkey seeks peace with Armenia, Turkish FM says

Possible cooperation between Armenia and Jewish lobby won’t last long

Armenia, Switzerland to cooperate in the area of emergency response

Armenia’s first stem cell harvesting completed by ABMDR

ARS-Armenia tackles issue of unregistered births

PM: Armenia’s drinking water supply system needs investments

World Bank to provide Armenia with $424 million as assistance before the end of Q 1, 2011

Deputy PM: Terrorist groups formed in Azerbaijan’s occupied territories

Regional superpowers to ‘increase pressure’ on Armenia

Time-Traveling in Armenia (travel)

Serj Tankian to perform first concert in Armenia on August 12 (entertainment)

GIBRALTAR:

Gibraltar to terminate tax-free offshore status, slashes corporate tax

UN Chairman’s reaction to Bossano speech ‘very positive’

Actuaries set up Gibraltar presence  

Thomas Patchett swims the straits of Gibraltar for charity

Guernsey senior cricket squad announced (sports)

KYRGYZSTAN:

Ethnic unrest grips southern Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan threatens to shut U.S. base unless ex-presidents son is extradited

‘If radicals seize power in Kyrgyzstan if would be dangerous’

Aid trickles into Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, but obstacles remain

Russian-led security group says no peacekeepers for Kyrgyzstan  

Crisis could affect one million

China completes Kyrgyzstan evacuation

21 Indian students return from Kyrgyzstan

Refugees return to Kyrgyzstan as crisis eases

Paralyzed Kyrgyzstan in danger of breaking up

Kazakhstan bars entry to ethnic Uzbeks from Kyrgyzstan  

Turkey out of its “strategic depth’’ in Kyrgyzstan?

Facing tough choices (commentary)

Kyrgyzstan to hold referendum despite unrest

Two comparisons (analysis)

MONGOLIA:

Mongolia to sell mining assets on international market

Biodiesel car races to Mongolia

China plans to put out its coalfield fires

MOLDOVA:

Prostitution and human trafficking in Kosovo

Ukrainian experts: Romania develops intense cultural, economic and foreign policy activity in Moldova, Transdniester and Odessa/Cernauti regions

Volunteers for Peace Corps at risk of violence

Minister invites Turkish investors to Kosovo

The future of EU-Russian relations

MONTENEGRO:

NATO Secretary General impressed with Montenegro’s fast progress

TAJIKISTAN:

Tajikistan ready to accept Kyrgyz refugees

$70mln to be provided to Tajikistan EurAsEC Anti-crisis fund

TURKMENISTAN:

Senior CPC official meets Turkmenistan president, pledges to enhance bilateral ties

Iran to increase gas imports from Turkmenistan

President of Turkmenistan receives heads of major U.S. companies

French diplomat sees Turkmen desire to improve rights situation

 

Thursday
Jun172010

Kyrgyzstan: Media Failed to Adequately Report the Bloodshed in the South (Commentary)

by Cholpon Nogoibaeva

Exclusive Commentary for HUMNEWS

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan - Bloody clashes in Kyrgyzstan’s south have been dominating headlines in the international media for the past several days. Scenes of rioting crowds watched by seemingly clueless law enforcement officers remaining passive have flashed on television screens around the world, suggesting a direct link between the state and the marginalized groups.  Pictures of young men agitated by a feeling of impunity riding captured armored vehicles are coupled with text saying that the government is unable to normalize the situation. The printed and electronic media, blogs are full of stories describing horror, violence and lawlessness.

The coverage of the events in the South has been immediate but its accuracy left much to be desired. It is vitally important that conflicts should be covered, and, preferably, by free media, who adhere to impartiality.  However, reporting on Kyrgyzstan shows that even those enjoying freedom of the press fall victim to stereotyping, generalization and misrepresentation.

Today Kyrgyzstan is shown in international media as a failed state that is about to cease to exist, a country gripped by civil war, where ethnic cleansing and genocide of ethnic Uzbeks takes place. How and why did such an image of Kyrgyzstan and its people arise?  Whatever the reason - uninformed reporters or superficial analysis - is of little importance now: major messages have been communicated and fixed in the minds of millions of people creating fertile ground for panic and rumors.

What happened in the south was horrible – the dead, wounded, refugees and victims of violent crimes. The number of people killed is higher than reported in official statistics because only those who have been delivered to specialized medical institutions for identification are included in the statistics.  While houses and shops were torched on a scale hitherto not seen in Kyrgyzstan, these were not acts of ethnic cleansing and genocide of Kyrgyzstani Uzbeks.  Central and local governments, police and army, government and non-government organizations did not engage in acts that violated the civil rights of Kyrgyzstani Uzbeks.  The Kyrgyz Republic's identity as a state is based on citizenship, not ethnic origin.

Kyrgyzstan does not have a policy that separates or discriminates on the basis of ethnicity. That is why police officers died trying to calm mobs of young Kyrgyz and Uzbeks who were provoked by specially trained mercenaries. Liberal use of the words "genocide" and "ethnic cleansing," irresponsible distribution of information, or, what is much worse, willful distortion of information, have damaged not only the people of Kyrgyzstan, but ethnic Uzbeks and Kyrgyz in Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and other countries.

It is particularly sad that the clashes in two Southern regions of Kyrgyzstan are labeled as ethnic conflict. Willingly or unwillingly, those who do so confuse causes and consequences. The bloodshed in Osh and Jalalabad was caused not by inter-ethnic tension between Uzbeks and Kyrgyz, but by willful provocations that were aimed precisely at causing bloodbath between the two peoples. The perpetrators were nationals of Kyrgyzstan and other countries, while the funding and overall coordination came from ex-President Bakiev's closes relatives. Their purpose was to create havoc to ensure that the 27 June referendum on the new constitution that establishes a parliamentary democracy does not take place.

There were at least three groups of mercenaries. One included highly trained snipers who went around town in cars with tinted glasses, shooting both Kyrgyz and Uzbeks. Presumably, these snipers were the same snipers who shot at the people from the roof of the Government Building in Bishkek in April.

There were also arsonists, who were responsible for setting buildings on fire in Kyrgyz and Uzbek districts. One of the things that contributed to the panic was that the arsonists set on fire buildings with slate roof. At high temperature slate cracks loudly with a sound that can be mistaken for gunfire.

The third group consisted of instigators who prompted males to avenge by spreading rumors of multiple atrocities: committed by Kyrgyz against the Uzbeks, committed by Uzbeks against the Kyrgyz. These planned and deliberate actions caused the conflicts on the night of June 10-11 and the timing was to coincide with the 20th anniversary of serious inter-ethnic disturbances that took place a year before Kyrgyzstan became an independent state in 1991.  Subsequent events followed the intended scenario and resulted in clashes between the two communities. 

The new coalition interim government was not ready for this development and lacked capacity to intervene to turn the events around quickly, which the mercenaries took advantage of very well.  There were cases when residents of neighboring ethnic districts tried to reconcile with each other, but were shot at by unknown snipers. Gunmen fired on trucks that distributed humanitarian aid, sabotaging relief efforts and creating an impression among the people of Osh (who suffered from lack of food and other essentials) that the local and central government abandoned them.

The masterminds of these provocations that caused numerous civilian victims and a flood of refugees knew precisely of various long running social, community and criminal (especially narco-business) tensions which existed in the south and were able to take advantage of weakness of the interim government.

Rehabilitating towns and villages and, most importantly, returning to normal life in Osh and Jalalabad will take years and colossal resources. Kyrgyz citizens will face a wave of post-conflict gore and negative information. A representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said today that the events were orchestrated and planned in advance by shadowy groups and not a spontaneous inter-ethnic clash.

Free media would do a great service to all Kyrgyzstanis by stopping reproduction of clichés and paying more attention to the young nation that tries to create its own civic identity.

Ms. Nogoibaeva is President of Institute for Policy Analysis in Bishkek.