Halloween an ‘Alien’ Holiday in Tajikistan

We should teach the younger generation that Halloween is alien to Tajiks and all Muslims. Proud Tajik boys and girls who love their nation should never celebrate alien holidays. Blogger Bachai Sako [tj] on why people in Tajikistan should not celebrate Halloween today.

Military Parade in Turkmenistan

Tajikistan: Students Forced to Love President

As the president of Tajikistan tours the country's northern province of Sughd, blogger Teocrat reports [ru] that thousands of students were mobilized to greet the president wherever he goes. This has become a standard practice in Sughd. In June, thousands of students were sent to the streets to greet the president's...

Tajikistan's ‘Million Dollar Baby’ Hangs Up Her Gloves

Mavzuna Chorieva, Tajikistan's female boxer who brought the country its only medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics, has married and hung up her gloves, at least for a year. While many people in the country are happy for Chorieva, some have been disappointed over her decision.

Facebook Donations Support Volleyball in Tajikistan

A new Facebook page, Volleyball for Tajikistan, has recently been launched to raise funds for two volleyball teams created in the country's south. Within eight days after the launch, people from across the United States donated enough money to purchase uniforms for 26 young Tajikistani volleyball players, including 13 girls.

Central Asians Treated ‘Like Crap’ at Moscow Airport

I realized that once you find yourself at [the Moscow airport] Domodedovo, you start feeling like you are [crap]. And you feel so not because you are actually [crap], but because the personnel at the airport treat you this way.

Turkmenistan at Twenty-One: Double Holiday and Thaw with Russia

As Turkmenistan marks the 21st anniversary of its independence today, the celebrations coincide with a major Islamic holiday. Also, Turkmenistan's Independence Day this year comes at a time of an apparent improvement in the country's relations with Russia.

Afghanistan Post-2014: Will the Dark Days Return?

With two years to go until NATO troops leave Afghanistan the country’s netizens have mixed feelings about the eventual withdrawal. While many are terrified at the prospect of the return of the Taliban, others look forward to the end of the NATO mission.

Kazakhstan: Misused National Symbols

People should be punished for displaying the coat of arms on garbage trucks and for using the national flag as a construction tool or toy bag.

Kyrgyz Music Fridays

Kyrgyz Music Friday is a weekly feature in which I post a pop music video from an artist in Kyrgyzstan… [It] is not trying to appeal to your musical taste, but simply gives you a glimpse into how pop music is done on this side of the world. Presented by Ivory Pomegranate.

Mongolia: Goodbye, Lenin

The last bronze statue of Vladimir Lenin in Ulan-Bator, the capital of Mongolia, was recently taken down. Alec Metz on Registan.net explains what this means to Mongols and why many of them miss the previous adherence to ‘Lenin Bagsh’ (‘Teacher Lenin’).

Kyrgyzstan: Bride-Kidnapping Prevented

You know what shocked me most of all? The people in the street. They were just standing there and watching [an attempt to kidnap a girl], as if it was some sort of a performance.

Kyrgyzstan: Child Abduction Caught on Tape

A spine-chilling video caught on a CCTV camera in a small provincial town in Kyrgyzstan appears to depict an abduction of an 11-month-old child in a crowded market place. The video has become a focal point for discussion among Kyrgyzstani netizens, with many blaming the child's mother for neglect and even complicity in the abduction.

Tajikistan: Russian ‘Migrant Guide’ Deemed Insulting

A new 'migrant worker's guide' to the city of St. Petersburg depicts foreign labor migrants as brooms, paint brushes, trowels, and paint rollers. The leaflet has provoked widespread anger in Tajikistan, with many internet users and officials describing the representation of migrant workers in the guide as 'insulting'.

Kazakhstan: The Accidental Nationalist

To Son Pascal, I say that if you really believe that Kazakhs should stop using Russian language in favor of Kazakh, if you really feel that you, a foreigner, can tell Kazakhs how to feel pride in their background, you’re playing with fire. And it’s not your fire to play with.

Turkmenistan: Build Athletes, Not Stadiums

My countrymen appreciate the new [sports] infrastructure..., but they generally feel that what really needs to be built aren’t facilities, but actual athletes.

Central Asia's Water Stories

How is it possible that in Central Asia, a region with abundant water resources, safe drinking water is still a luxury for many people? On his blog, Bakhrom Mananov features several documentaries about water problems in the region and explains why this important resource has become a contentious issue in...

Kyrgyzstan: Lake Son-Kul in Photos and Prose

The lonely beauty of Lake Son-Kul has long caught the imagination of foreign visitors to Kyrgyzstan. At the beginning of October when the grazing season ends, when yurts are packed up and the herders head for their homes, Son-Kul fades into myth, its existence recalled only by the surreal photography and prose it has inspired.

Tajikistan: Mixed Reactions Over Russian Base Deal

Russian President returns from a visit to Tajikistan with a deal that extends Moscow's lease on its military base in the Central Asian country for another three decades. Within Tajikistan, reactions to the arrangement differ from praising the authorities for a "win-win situation" to criticizing them for a "national humiliation".

Kazakhstan Joins the Ban on Anti-Islam Film

Kazakhstan has joined a number of other countries in banning the controversial anti-Islamic film "The Innocence of Muslims." The ban has sparked debates in the country about the effectiveness of this measure and its potential implications.

Turkmenistan: An Introduction to Dutar

One can’t think of Turkmen art and culture without thinking about the dutar. Khan on the NewEurasia.net blog offers an ‘introduction’ to the traditional musical instrument that is also widely used in other Central Asian countries, Iran, and South Asia.