Welcome to Central Asia in Focus, a newsletter offering insight and analysis on events shaping the region’s political future. I’m Bruce Pannier. In this week’s edition: Tajikistan deports Afghan asylum seekers, a man who plotted to assassinate Kyrgyz officials walks free after paying a fine, and more.

In the Region

Tajikistan Deports Afghan Asylum Seekers

Tajik authorities expelled at least 56 Afghan asylum seekers during the first week of December.

A representative of the Afghan consulate in Khorugh, which is staffed by Taliban appointees, confirmed the deportations to RFE/RL’s Tajik Service, known locally as Radio Ozodi.

Speaking under the condition of anonymity, he said a group of 16 Afghans, and later a group of 40 who had been living in Vahdat and Tajikistan’s capital Dushanbe, were returned to Afghanistan.

An Afghan refugee in Vahdat, Ruyo Hafizi, said her husband was expelled on December 4 and that no one had explained to her why.

She added that their family has been living in Tajikistan for five years and without her husband, Hafizi is unsure how to feed their five children.

Tajik Interior Ministry Press Secretary Nusratullo Mahmadzoda told Ozodi he had no information about the expulsion of the 56 Afghans.

On December 7, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, called on Tajik authorities “to immediately halt such actions and uphold their international obligations to protect those fleeing persecution.”

According to UNHCR, between December 3 and 5, Tajik authorities deported at least 41 Afghans.

In its December 7 statement, UNHCR noted that Tajikistan is a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention and “has an obligation not to refoul refugees and those seeking international protection.” 

Why It’s Important: This is not the first time since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in August 2021 that the UNHCR has appealed to Tajikistan to not forcibly send Afghans back.

Tajik authorities deported at least 11 Afghans in November 2021, and at least 85 in August-September 2022.

There are an estimated 10,000 Afghans who fled their homeland and are currently living in Tajikistan, many of whom are seeking asylum. 

Man Who Plotted to Assassinate Kyrgyz Officials Pays Fine, Walks Free

Reputed crime boss Raimbek Matraimov was fined 100,000 som (about $1,150) by a Bishkek court and freed from custody on December 6, 2024.

Matraimov is a former deputy chief of Kyrgyzstan’s Customs Service who is alleged to have embezzled around $700 million.

Matraimov fled the country following the death of Kyrgyzstan’s alleged criminal kingpin Kamchy Kolbaev (also known as Kolya Kyrgyz) during an October 2023 security force raid.

Authorities began seizing Matraimov’s assets inside Kyrgyzstan after he left the country.

On March 23, 2024, Kyrgyzstan’s security service said it detained five members of an Azerbaijani criminal organization who were sent to Kyrgyzstan to kill top government officials.

The security service said Matraimov was in Baku, Azerbaijan and had hired the would-be assassins to kill Kyrgyz officials overseeing the fight against organized crime.

Matraimov was detained in Azerbaijan and extradited back to Kyrgyzstan on March 26, where he was immediately taken into custody on the charge of illegally crossing the state border.

During his trial, Matraimov faced that charge and two others: hooliganism and legalization of criminal proceeds.

He pleaded guilty to illegally crossing the border and hooliganism.

On November 11, a court ordered Matraimov to be released on his own recognizance after he paid back $200 million.

It was the security service that petitioned the court to release Matraimov.

Why It’s Important: Kyrgyzstan’s security chief Kamchybek Tashiev has been leading a highly publicized government battle against organized crime and corruption for nearly two years.

Under President Sadyr Japarov’s government, those who stole state money or profited from criminal acts can avoid prison by returning their ill-gotten gains.

The logic is that it is better to have this money in state coffers than to have it hidden while the government pays the expenses of incarcerating the criminal.

However, Matraimov has not returned even half the money he is alleged to have laundered.

The security service said Matraimov hired assassins to kill government officials, including Tashiev, yet Matraimov just walked out of a courtroom a free man.

What sort of anti-corruption campaign and battle against organized crime is Kyrgyzstan waging? 

Majlis Podcast

To mark the annual “16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence” international campaign, the latest Majlis podcast looks at gender-based violence (GBV) in Central Asia.

Central Asian authorities acknowledge GBV is a huge problem, but despite government efforts, the situation is becoming worse.

What is happening, what is being done, and what still needs to be done to fight GBV in Central Asia? 

The guests on this podcast are:

• Khalida Azhigulova, a Kazakhstan-based lawyer and international consultant on the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse;
• Svetlana Dzardanova, human rights and corruption researcher at Freedom for Eurasia; and
• Niginakhon Saida, a researcher, educator, and freelance journalist from Uzbekistan specializing in Islam, education, and gender issues in Central Asia. 

What I’m Following

Uzbek Lawmaker Proposes Visa Regime for Russians

Alisher Qodirov, the leader of Uzbekistan’s Milli Tiklanish (National Revival) party, is calling for the introduction of visa requirements for Russian citizens to enter Uzbekistan.

Qodirov was responding to calls from several deputies in the Russian Duma, the lower house of parliament, to impose a visa requirement for Uzbek citizens, several million of whom are migrant laborers in Russia.

Qodirov said he agreed with Russia’s proposal and advocated for Uzbekistan to do the same.

Qodirov recommended all the Central Asian states impose a visa regime on Russian citizens ahead of the “expected instability and probable increase in the number of relokanty (Russians fleeing to live somewhere abroad)…”

Qodirov has become Uzbekistan’s most vocal critic of Russia’s increasing xenophobia aimed at Central Asians.

He has called for halting broadcasts of Russian television in Uzbekistan, banning Soviet ideological propaganda, and referred to Uzbekistan’s Soviet past as a “sad period of our history.” 

Kazakhstan’s Ruling Party Calls for Restoring Time Zones

Kazakhstan’s ruling Amanat party would like to rescind a presidential decree that came into effect on March 1, 2024 establishing a single time zone across the nearly 2,000-mile territory of Kazakhstan.

On December 11, Elnur Beysenbaev, an Amanat deputy in the Mazhilis, the lower house of parliament, said Amanat has received more than 10,000 letters from people asking to restore the previous system with two time zones.

The eastern part of the country moved its clocks back one hour, putting the region on the same time as western Kazakhstan.

The move is increasingly unpopular with citizens of Kazakhstan as people in eastern Kazakhstan are unhappy with how early night falls since the change.

Amanat’s backing for the reversal all but guarantees the presidential decree will be canceled.

Fact of the Week

Authorities in Kazakhstan’s commercial capital Almaty plan to install more than 7,800 facial recognition surveillance cameras in the city in 2025.

Thanks for Reading

Thanks for reading Central Asia in Focus! I appreciate you sharing it with other readers who may be interested.

Feel free to contact me on X, especially if you have any questions, comments, or just want to connect about topics concerning Central Asia.

Until next time,
Bruce

P.S. – If you enjoyed this newsletter and don’t want to miss the next edition, subscribe here.