TCA
KABUL (TCA) — Activists, journalists, musicians and artists from Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Pakistan participated in a one-day festival for peace to bring their ideas together strengthening ties between the three nations, Afghan broadcaster TOLOnews reported on July 27.
TCA
DUSHANBE (TCA) — Senior trade and customs officials from five Central Asian countries, Afghanistan, and their main trading partners – Russia and Turkey, received practical guidance on trade facilitation at a three-day annual training workshop this week in Dushanbe. The event was jointly organized by the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.
EurasiaNet
DUSHANBE (TCA) — In recent years, authorities in Tajikistan have tightened the control of Islam and any Muslim activities in the country, under the pretext of combating Islamic extremism. We are republishing this article on the issue, originally published by Eurasianet:
TCA
KABUL (TCA) — Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on July 26 traveled to Badghis province where he inaugurated a much-needed power transmission line from neighboring Turkmenistan and a substation, Afghan broadcaster TOLOnews reported.
The 110 kilovolt power line transmits 16 megawatts of imported power from Rabat Kashan in Turkmenistan to the center of Badghis province in Afghanistan over a distance of 52 km.
The project has cost $14 million, local officials said. Work on the project started in December 2010 but was delayed on numerous occasions.
The construction of the substation, which was initially contracted out to an Iranian company, was eventually finished by a local firm.
At least 7,000 families in Qala-e-Naw city, the provincial capital, will benefit from this power, while another 10,000 families in Qades, Muqur and Ab Kamari districts will get the electricity in the near future.
The vast majority of Badghis residents have not had power until now – except for a few who used thermal power at 40 AFs per kilowatt.
“With the inauguration of the substation, the price of power in Badghis for each kilowatt has dropped to 6 AFs from 40 AFs (per kilowatt),” Ghani said at the inauguration event in the province.
Meanwhile, a memorandum of understanding was signed at the event on Thursday between acting minister of energy and water and the minister of energy of Turkmenistan Döwran Rejepow for a 110 kilovolt power transmission line from Ata Murad in Turkmenistan to Khum Ab and Qarqin districts in Jawzjan. Two substations will also be built in the province.
“I firmly believe that with the strengthening of friendly ties and extending of cooperation between the two countries, we will be able to ensure improvement in different sectors and meanwhile it will help improve people’s lives,” Rejepow said.
TCA
TASHKENT (TCA) — Six Uzbek women were jailed after they tried to approach President Shavkat Mirziyoev to complain about problems they and their families have encountered with police and prosecutors, RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service reported.
Tashkent-based rights defender Tatyana Dovlatova told RFE/RL on July 25 that 30 women were detained on July 23 after they gathered in front of the presidential office.
Six of the women were later convicted of minor hooliganism and sentenced to 15 days in jail. The others were released after about six hours in the Yakka Saroy district police department.
The Yakka Saroy police did not respond to RFE/RL’s request for comment.
Dovlatova told RFE/RL the women wanted to meet with the president to talk about ordeals faced by their family members in police custody and penitentiaries, as well as other issues.
Since taking over the Central Asian country in 2016 following the death of his authoritarian predecessor, Islam Karimov, Mirziyoev has called for more openness and closer ties between officials and ordinary people.
Mirziyoev opened an online “virtual office” to enable people to convey their problems.
Although the government has claimed the virtual office was effectively helping resolve citizens’ problems, Dovlatova said the women decided to meet with the president directly after they were unable to register with the online system.
Mirziyoev’s press service refused to comment, telling RFE/RL that it had no information regarding the jailed women.
TCA
ALMATY (TCA) — A court in Kazakhstan opened preliminary hearings in the case against former Almaty Mayor Viktor Khrapunov and his wife, Leila Kharpunova, on July 26, RFE/RL’s Kazakh Service reports.
