Central Asia

Shavkat Mirziyoyev has served as President of Uzbekistan and Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Uzbekistan since 2016. © Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Uzbekistan’s Election Campaign Lacks Intrigue and Real Opposition

The presidential vote is likely to quietly legitimise the incumbent and consolidate his position.

27 Jun 23

Following his re-election on May 29, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan now looks set to continue a regional policy that has included expanding trade and economic cooperation, improving connectivity and reaching markets in Central Asia and beyond. © Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

Turkey and Central Asia’s Growing Partnership

Erdoğan’s win marks continuity in Turkish economic and political engagement with the region.

8 Jun 23

A girl reads a book in a reading room of Chuy regional library, in the town of Kant. Over 80 per cent of the 1,060 libraries in Kyrgyzstan are located in rural areas and in most villages they are the only cultural facility. © IWPR Central Asia

A World in 30 Metres: Kyrgyzstan’s Rural Libraries

Precious resources are often villages’ only cultural centres, but they remain underfunded and at risk.

22 May 23

The Kyrgyz authorities are seeking to introduce controls over the screening of audio-visual materials during festivals, conferences and trainings, in a move that rights’ groups consider a further restriction of basic freedoms. © Aneta Pawlik/Unsplash

Kyrgyzstan Mulls Mandatory Licenses for all Video Content

Warning that draft resolution that foresees the introduction of blanket oversight could violate country’s constitution.

10 May 23

Tajik journalists near Kokhi Somon, the presidential residence, in Dushanbe in July 2021. Journalists and rights groups say that the space for independent media in Tajikistan is shrinking as criminal cases against reporters are on the rise, fostering self-censorship and democracy backsliding. © IWPR Central Asia

Tajikistan’s Turn of the Screw Against Media

Crackdown has turned journalism into a dangerous profession in the Central Asian nation.

3 May 23

Women dance to mark Navruz in Baysun, a village in Uzbekistan’s south-eastern region of Surkhandarya. The village is known for its festival, the Baysun Bahori, meaning Spring of Baysun. © Abdulkhak Turgunov

Celebrating Navruz, the Spring Jubilee

Communities gather to prepare sweetmeats, spring clean their neighbourhoods and play equestrian games.

5 Apr 23

Russia’s media regulatory body is demanding that a range of Kazak outlets censor content related to the war in Ukraine. © Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Russia Demands Kazak Outlets Censor Ukraine Reports

“It could be described as an attempt against the sovereignty of Kazakstan’s media.”

16 Mar 23

Tajikistan: Authorities Arrest Bloggers for “Immorality”

Harassment for posting allegedly obscene content seen as a means to further shrink freedom of speech.

14 Mar 23

(L to R) Natalia Tsoi, boxing referee from Kazakstan; Farida Abdueva, Muay Thai fighter from Kyrgyzstan; Shoira Zulkaynarova, boxer from Tajikistan; Aziza Yakubova, boxer from Uzbekistan. © Courtesy of N. Tsoi, F. Abdueva, S. Zulkaynarova and A. Yakubova.

Central Asia: Fighting, Inside and Outside the Ring

Women who dream of taking on combat disciplines have to first defy conservative traditions.

8 Mar 23

1. A collage of all Kyrgyzstan's presidents since the country became independent in 1991. In mid-February 2023, Sadyr Japarov gathered his predecessors in a secret meeting in Dubai in what he called a unifying gesture; critics however maintain it was a populistic move. © Office of the President of Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyz President’s Secret Meeting with Predecessors Causes Controversy

Critics deem mysterious summit, presented as a gesture of unity, as simply a populist move.

7 Mar 23

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