Awell-known Tajik journalist and activist has been stabbed in Moscow. 

Bakhtior Sattori told RFE/RL in a telephone interview on February 20 that an unknown assailant attacked him near his apartment.

Sattori said he was stabbed in the stomach and face on February 19.

He underwent surgery and doctors say his condition is serious but stable.

Sattori said he has no idea who is behind the attack.

He said the attacker’s face was covered but he described the man’s eyes as looking «Central Asian.»

Sattori, 49, worked at the Tajik Embassy in Moscow before becoming the press secretary of the Tajik Migration Service’s representative board in Moscow.

After losing his job last year, Sattori became an active member of an organization called the Training Club of Tajikistan’s Future Government.

— RFE/RL’s Tajik Service

http://www.rferl.org/content/tajik-activist-stabbed/24907630.html

The Open Society Documentary Photography Project (http://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/about/programs/documentary-photography-project) announces a grant and training opportunity for documentary photographers from Central Asia, the South Caucasus, Afghanistan, Mongolia, and Pakistan.

The grant is being offered to:

visually document issues of importance in the region; and
provide training and support to photographers from the region.

Approximately 10 cash stipends in the amount of $3,500 each will be awarded to photographers to produce a photo essay on a current human rights or social issue in the region. Grantees will participate in two master-level workshops on visual storytelling through photography and multimedia. These workshops are led by internationally-recognized photographers and industry professionals who will then provide ongoing mentorship and support throughout the six-month grant term.

The Open Society Foundations will pay travel and hotel expenses and provide a per diem to cover meals and incidentals for the workshops.

The deadline for proposals is March 5, 2013.

For more information on the grant, please visit: http://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/grants/production-grants-individuals

Journalists from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Poland, Russia, Ukraine and other Commonwealth of Independent States countries can apply for this fellowship.

Internationale Journalisten-Programme (IJP) offers the Marion Gräfin Dönhoff Fellowship for young journalists. The aim of the program is to give young journalists an idea of the politics, economy, culture and social life of Germany, and give them an opportunity to gain work experience in foreign newsrooms.

Staff or freelance journalists ages 23 to 35 can participate in the program. Applicants must have excellent knowledge of the German language.

Fellows will intern in German newsrooms and work as foreign correspondents covering events in Germany for their countries’ media.

Participants will receive stipends of EUR€3,900 (about US$5,300) each, which will cover travel expenses, health insurance and accommodations.

The deadline is April 15.

For more information, click here: http://www.ijp.org/doenhoff.html?&Result%3A_no_post_sending_forms_are_found%3B=

Amid a lingering climate of fear hanging over southern Kyrgyzstan, journalists there are embracing a Soviet-style survival tactic: rather than run the risk of reprisals for writing freely, they are self-censoring and reporting only on what are considered safe topics.

Appearances can be slightly deceiving when it comes to gauging the operating environment for reporters in Kyrgyzstan. Reporters Without Borders, in its 2013 World Press Freedom Index, indicated that Kyrgyzstan’s media climate is the most favorable in Central Asia, ranking it 106th, out of the 179 countries evaluated. Tajikistan was the next best, coming in at 123rd. Kazakhstan ranked 160th, Uzbekistan 164th and Turkmenistan 177th.

The Reporters Without Borders report looks at Kyrgyzstan as a whole. Local observers, however, say that conditions in the northern and southern sections of the country are markedly different. Southern Kyrgyzstan was the scene of widespread inter-ethnic violence in 2010 and tensions have remained high there since then, with ethnic Uzbeks feeling particularly skittish. Given the situation, the quality of journalism in the region is suffering, according to a Bishkek-based media watchdog, called Journalists.

“The sad reality is that journalists in southern Kyrgyzstan try to defend themselves by heavy self-censorship,” Aigul Matieva, a media lawyer and attorney for Journalists, told EurasiaNet.org. “Media people do not dare to write openly about their concerns, as they are low-paid and vulnerable.”

Local officials in southern Kyrgyzstan deny that the media climate is repressive. “The government does not interfere in work of journalists,” Kamil Sydykov, the head of the Osh Mayor’s Press Service, told EurasiaNet.org. “They decide how they write and what they write about. We do not control them, and do not give them instructions.”

Journalists in southern Kyrgyzstan contend that authorities don’t need to be heavy-handed because, based on what has occurred in the region over the past two-plus years, it’s easy for anyone to anticipate what can happen to those who contradict the official line. Cholpon S., a local journalist from Osh, who asked to change her name for security reasons, readily admits that she avoids writing anything critical of the policies and practices of government officials, both on the local and national level.

“I have a feeling that all critical materials are being monitored by Kyrgyz authorities, therefore I, like most of my colleagues, stay away from reporting on political, nationalism or corruption issues,” Cholpon told EurasiaNet.org. “If you criticize authorities, you may end up being questioned by a National Security Committee officer in a best-case scenario. Writing stories about growing nationalism is more dangerous, as an angry mob can attack for you being unpatriotic.”

Cholpon is not an exception as many journalists admit to being concerned about their personal security. Stanislav Polishuk, a freelance reporter based in Osh, says journalists self-censor their stories because they realize “in case of trouble nothing can protect him or her.”

“Unfortunately, the law may not always be a reliable protection, as quite often interviewees speak off the record, or ask not to mention their family names. And without making references to sources, a reporter can’t justify and prove his or her critical materials,” Polishuk told EurasiaNet.org.

Begaim Usenova, the head of Institute for Media Policy in Bishkek, says the threat of lawsuits is a significant factor in media self-censorship. Kyrgyz courts are not deemed independent and officials have been known to use the judicial system to enforce their political will. An easy way to get revenge against a journalist or media outlet that riles a member of the political elite, then, is for that power-broker to file a lawsuit.

“In 2012, the Institute for Media Policy participated in 24 court trials and registered 8 acts of violence against reporters,” Usenova told EurasiaNet.org. “When former or incumbent state officials or lawmakers claim damages while suing journalists, they ask for over million soms (approximately US $21,200), which shows that they do not seek refutation, but rather want to shut down a certain media outlet.”

Usenova went on to note that a Kyrgyz parliamentary resolution, which prompted a ban on the Russian-language news service Ferghana News, has had a chilling effect on local journalists. “In June 2011, the National Parliament, while discussing the temporary parliamentary commission investigation of the results of the tragic 2010 events, passed a resolution and ordered the Government to take measures to block [Ferghana News],” Usenova explained.

“Consequently, following the resolution, in February 2012, the national communication provider “Kyrgyztelecom” restricted access to the site for residents of this country, without having either legal right or without any judicial decision.”

“Kyrgyzstan is a member of the OSCE, and lawmakers of the national parliament should not take decisions to restrict the freedom of the mass media, including Internet media outlets,” Usenova added. International media watchdogs also have assailed Kyrgyz authorities over the ban, and Ferghana News representatives have brought a pair of lawsuits seeking to lift the restriction and enhance press freedom.

Address of the original publication: http://www.eurasianet.org/node/66543

As President Imomali Rahmon gears up for a reelection bid later this year, he’s apparently trying to take care of some unfinished business from Tajikistan’s civil war, which ended 16 years ago. Specifically, Rahmon is striving to neutralize a prominent political rival, former Prime Minister Abdumalik Abdullajanov.

Abdullajanov has lived in exile for almost two decades, mostly in the United States. But on February 5, he was taken into custody at Kyiv’s Boryspil Airport on an Interpol warrant sought by the Tajik government back in 1997. At the time of his arrest, he had just gotten off of a flight from Los Angeles. A local court has issued an order allowing for Abdullajanov’s detention for up to 40 days while Ukrainian and Tajik authorities wrangle over an extradition request.

According to the Tajik prosecutor general’s office, Abdullajanov was involved in a conspiracy to assassinate President Rahmon back in 1997, and he also engaged in anti-state activity through his alleged support for the rebel colonel Makhmud Khudoiberdyev in northern Tajikistan in the late 1990s. In addition, he’s accused of abuse of power while holding political office, including embezzlement and racketeering charges. Abdullajanov served as prime minister from 1992-93, after which he became Tajikistan’s ambassador to Russia. In 1994, he was a challenger to Rahmon in the presidential election. He left the country shortly after Rahmon won the vote.

Abdullajanov’s lawyer in Ukraine, Andriy Fedur, has asserted that the charges against the former prime minister are politically motivated. He also told the Kyiv Post that Abdullajanov has refugee status in the United States, and thus cannot be legally extradited to Tajikistan, where it is unlikely that he would receive a fair trial, and where his client would fear for his life. Abdullajanov has denied the charges against him, and has protested the Ukrainian court’s detention ruling.

Officials in Dushanbe don’t seem to be overly concerned with the niceties of international refugee law. Local media outlets in Tajikistan quoted Interior Minister Ramazon Rakhimov as saying that “although Abdullajanov has lived for the last 15 years in the US, he is still the citizen of the republic [Tajikistan], and he must bear responsibility for his deeds according to the law of his country.”

If convicted, the 64-year-old Abdullajanov could face a 20-year prison term and confiscation of his property.

In recent years, Abdullajanov has kept a low profile. His arrest in Ukraine came as a surprise to some political Dushanbe analysts, who contend that Abdullajanov no longer poses much of a threat to Rahmon’s grip on power.

But other observers suggest that a possible motive for the arrest is an allegation that Abdullojanov has links to Dodojon Atovulloyev, a journalist who is one of the most active critics of Rahmon’s administration, and who heads the Vatandor (Patriot) political movement. In early 2012, Atovulloyev was the apparent target of an assassination attempt. Abdullojanov has never publicly denied a connection to Atovulloyev.

On February 6, Atovulloyev issued a statement calling on Western governments and international rights organizations to exert pressure on Ukraine to prevent an extradition. “The extradition of Abdullajanov to Tajikistan, where the judicial system is a tool of execution in the hands of Rahmon, and where prisoners are exposed to torture, … is an inevitable threat of his physical elimination,” the statement said.

Observers in Tajikistan are wondering if a late-January incident involving three kidnapped Ukrainian citizens in Tajikistan may be connected to Abdullajanov’s arrest in Ukraine. According to media reports, Tajik law-enforcement authorities carried out an operation on January 31 that secured therelease of the three Ukrainians who had been in Tajikistan on a business trip at the time of their kidnapping. Officials in Dushanbe have not commented publicly on the matter.

Several experts also note that Abdullajanov was detained in Kyiv, not in Amsterdam – although he flew from Los Angeles via Amsterdam to Kyiv. The Interpol warrant was apparently not deemed credible by law-enforcement authorities in the Netherlands.

Oldrich Andrysek, the regional representative in Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, has come out in support of Abdullojanov, hinting that Tajik authorities were improperly manipulating Interpol. “If someone is put on Interpol’s wanted list, it does not mean that he is guilty. Unfortunately, political opponents sometimes appear on Interpol’s lists, not just economic or other ‘classical’ thieves. The charter of this organization clearly indicates that Interpol cannot be used to achieve political goals.”

Nuriddin Karshiboev, head of the Tajik National Association of Independent Media, told EurasiaNet.org that there are several factors that suggest it will be difficult for Tajik authorities to secure Abdullojanov’s extradition. “Firstly, Ukraine is presently chairing the OSCE, and Kyiv hardly needs any admonitions” relating to sending Abdullojanov back to Tajikistan, Karshiboev said. He added that the US government is also unlikely to sanction the extradition of someone to whom it has granted asylum.

Investigative journalists reporting across borders can enter a competition.

The Daniel Pearl Awards, sponsored by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), reward excellence in cross-border investigative reporting.

The award was created in honor of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, who was slain in 2002. Past ICIJ award winners have reported about abuses faced by immigrants in American workplaces and the involvement of Sweden in the CIA secret renditions program.

The competition is open to journalists of any kind of media who have reported in at least two countries on a topic of world significance. Two US$5,000 first-place prizes will be awarded, one to a U.S.-based journalist or news outlet and one to a non-U.S.-based reporter or outlet. Five finalists will receive US$1,000. In addition, the judges at their discretion may award a special citation for work that is unusually enterprising or done under especially challenging circumstances.

The deadline has been extended to April 30.

For more information, click here: http://www.icij.org/awards

As part of the range of Fulbright programs, the Fulbright Foreign Student Program offers graduate students and young professionals the opportunity to earn a Master’s degree in the United States.

The Fulbright Foreign Student Program is open to all fields of study, with the exception of medical sciences.

Eligibility:

·         Applicants must be citizens of Tajikistan residing in Tajikistan at the time of application or permanent residents holding a valid passport issued by Tajikistan.

·         Applicants must have completed their undergraduate education and hold a degree that is at least equivalent to a U.S. bachelor’s degree.

·         Applicants should have a sufficient level of English to enable them to successfully complete full-time graduate study in the U.S. with a recent paper-based TOEFL score of 550 or higher or equivalent test (i.e. internet-based TOEFL (IBT) or computer-based TOEFL (CBT)).

·         Strong preference will be given to applicants who have not had extensive recent experience in the U.S.

·         An applicant who is currently in the U.S. is ineligible for a grant.

·         In order to be eligible for the program, applicants must currently reside in their country of citizenship.

·         An applicant’s financial need or status will not be a factor in the selection process.

Complete Applications Include:

·         Completed online application form

·         Academic transcripts, diplomas, and translations

·         Three reference letters

·         TOEFL and GRE test scores (if available) More information about the tests and sample exams can be found on www.ets.org/toefl and www.ets.org/gre. In some cases a GMAT is also necessary.

·         Signature form

·         Resume or CV

·         Copy of passport bio-data page

Program Provisions: All grantees receive tuition, a monthly stipend for up to 24 months, supplemental health and accident benefits, a book and equipment allowance, travel support, and the opportunity to attend Fulbright enrichment activities.

Selection Criteria:  Applicants must have a sufficiently high level of English to undertake full-time graduate-level study in the U.S.; must have outstanding academic records; must have satisfactory required test scores of TOEFL, GRE, or GMAT; and should be able to demonstrate high motivation, serious commitment to completing the program, and leadership potential upon returning home.

Application Deadline:  May 31, 2013.

Applicants can access the online application by going to https://apply.embark.com/student/fulbright/international/20/

Please address your questions to:

Shafoat Kabilova, U.S. Embassy, Public Affairs Section

109 A Somoni Avenue, Dushanbe, Tajikistan

Tel: (992 37) 229 2314, 229 2000

E-mail: FulbrightTajikistan@state.gov

Web: http//dushanbe.usembassy.gov

ALMATY, Kazakhstan — An Almaty court has fined the editor in chief of a banned Kazakh newspaper for violating the ban. 

Tatyana Trubacheva’s «Golos respubliki» (Voice of the Republic) newspaper and dozens of other media outlets were banned in December 2012 for carrying what the authorities deemed «extremist content.»

The court ruled on February 7 that Trubacheva must pay a $220 fine after she and her team started printing a new newspaper called «Ripablik» two weeks ago.

On the new weekly’s pages, Trubacheva is identified as «Ripablik’s» reader in chief.

«Ripablik» issues 99 copies a week, which allows it to avoid official registration.

Trubacheva’s lawyer told RFE/RL that she will appeal the court’s decision.

Before the hearing started on February 7, the newspaper’s journalists staged a protest in front of the court building calling the court action an act of oppression against independent media in Kazakhstan.

The U.S. Embassy in Tajikistan seeks project proposals from both government and independent TV stations and production companies from Tajikistan for the 2013 TV Cooperative program (TV Coop).  The Program sends TV stations and TV production studios’ crews to the United States for a two-week period to film original documentaries and news features on jointly planned topics.

For 2013 the priority themes of the documentaries include:

·         Combating Drug and Alcohol Addiction in the USA;

·         Entrepreneurship;

·         Border Issues and Immigration in the USA;

·         Use of Water Resources.

Applicants can also propose themes of their choice.

The typical cooperative project results in at least one, and frequently a series, of prime time TV documentary-type products, plus multiple short unplanned feature stories about American life captured during the two-week trip.  The team shoots and edits their own material and broadcasts the final programs during prime time.  A producer from the Office of Broadcast Affairs is assigned to the project to work full time from inception to completion.  The visiting crew will receive funding from the State Department to cover expenses related to the production, which includes international and domestic airfare, hotel and food allowances, and miscellaneous production expenses.

The visiting TV team should not exceed three persons, one of whom must speak English fluently.  The team is expected to provide its own equipment, to include a betacam SP, DVC PRO camera or similar professional camera system, tripod, lighting and audio gear and videotapes.  The broadcaster must commit to airing the programs during prime-time.  Following the telecast, producer must provide PA/OBS/BS a broadcast quality videotape containing the completed programs.

Project proposals must include the following items:

1. Project Summary: From one-half to one paragraph;

2. Project Justification: One paragraph justification explaining why this project should be implemented;

3. Project Description: From one to two paragraph description of the scheduled project activities, i.e., what sites the crew will visit, whom they will meet, what topics will be discussed, etc;

4. Project Result: One paragraph description of what product will be produced at the end of the project, including where and how it will be aired;

5. Project Staff: Brief background of the project staff, including names and experience;

6. Project Budget: A brief description of the grantee’s/post contribution to the project.

Eligibility:

Both television broadcast stations and production studios are eligible to apply.  Production studios without broadcast frequencies must include a paragraph on how the final products will be aired.

Project proposals must be submitted to the U.S. Embassy in Tajik, Russian or English languages no later than Monday, March 4, 2013, 8:00am.

Proposals should be submitted to:

Public Affairs Section, U.S. Embassy

109 A Ismoili Somoni Avenue

Dushanbe, Tajikistan

Email: usembassydushanbe@state.gov

Phone numbers: 229 23 58; 229 20 00

Several UN human rights experts have called on Iranian authorities to immediately stop a recent wave of journalist arrests and to release those already detained.

The experts said in a statement that security forces arrested 17 mostly independent journalists last week and raided the offices of five newspapers.

Arrest warrants were issued for several other journalists.

The group said more than 40 journalists were already imprisoned in Iran before the latest crackdown.

The UN experts include the special rapporteur on freedom of expression, the chair-rapporteur of the working group on arbitrary detention, the special rapporteur on human rights defenders, and the special rapporteur on human rights in Iran.

The group called the detentions «disturbing» and said they represented «a flagrant violation of Iran’s obligations under international human rights law.»