· August, 2007

Stories about Central Asia & Caucasus from August, 2007

Japan: Yokozuna gets the boot

  25 August 2007

Never far from controversy, Mongolian Yokozuna (sumo champion) Asashoryu is again in hot water. He left Japan having submitted a doctor's note claiming he was injured, after which a video image showing the yokozuna playing soccer in Mongolia made it onto some of the major Japanese TV networks, sparking a controversy.

Afghan bloggers irritated by Iranian TV series

The Afghan embassy in Iran has complained about an Iranian television series on Channel 3, Char Khoone, that depicts Afghans characters as villains. Several Afghan and even Iranian bloggers have reacted to this news. Dialogue 3, an Afghan blogger, says: Since the beginning of the summer Iranian TV has aired...

Tajikistan: Beating the US

  23 August 2007

One of the most discussed topics on Tajik blogs recently was the loss of the US U-17s to the Tajik team in the Under–17 Football World Cup. This and much more in this week's blogosphere roundup.

Central Asia: Amusement parks

  23 August 2007

You kind of always wanted to visit the ubiquitous amusement parks in Central Asia and the Caucasus, but just never dared to go inside, right? Joshua Kucera takes you on a photo tour.

Central Asia: Clan-tastic

  23 August 2007

Christine Quirk looks at how clans shape political behaviour and in how far they make it difficult to enfranchise groups who might have different viewpoints or are far down on the clan power structure.

Armenia: Intra-ethnic relations

  23 August 2007

Onnik Krikorian notes that the recent fist fights between Armenian basketball teams from around the world show that divisions and animosity exists between different Armenian groups.

Turkmenistan: Prisoner amnesty

  23 August 2007

Bonnie Boyd notes that by releasing 11 prisoners who were allegedly implicated in a failed plot to kill his predecessor, the new Turkmen president Berdymukhamedov continues to move in the direction of reform.

Afghanistan: Fear of kidnapping

  22 August 2007

Õnne Pärl says that although she has usually not been overly cautious while walking through Kabul, she is now alarmed by the frequent kidnappings of foreigners in Afghanistan.

Kyrgyzstan: Naryn

  22 August 2007

Ivar Dale takes his readers on a trip to Naryn, on which he meets characters that each tell their story of life in Kyrgyzstan's highest, coldest and poorest region.

Kyrgyzstan: Free trade effects

  22 August 2007

Ben Maritz says that the flood of cheap Chinese imports into Kyrgyzstan is at least partly responsible for the decimation of the Central Asian country's industrial base.

Kyrgyzstan: Alaa-Chu

  22 August 2007

Tom Toomey tells the story of Chynara, a Kyrgyz teacher who freed her niece out of the hands of bride kidnappers.

Russia: Xenophobia and Violence

  21 August 2007

There are 48 comments so far to a post on xenophobia and violence in Russia, over at Sean's Russia Blog. One commenter writes: “It seems to me that the Kremlin gave a green light to the ‘ultra-nationlist’ tendencies of some ethnic Russians by the way it dealt with Georgia and...

Tajikistan: New legislation

  21 August 2007

At neweurasia, Madina lists several of the new laws and regulations that were stipulated by the Tajik government recently. Many of them are absurd and remind Madina of an 18th-century caliphate.

Central Asia: Which port to choose?

  21 August 2007

As a landlocked region, Central Asia is reliant on other countries’ maritime infrastructure to integrate with world markets. On Registan.net, Kayumars Turkistani evaluates two potential seaports, Gwadar in Pakistan and Chabahar in Iran.

Kazakhstan: Sham elections

  21 August 2007

Arthur concludes that Kazakhstan's parliamentary elections which took place this weekend were seriously flawed, both because of irregularities on voting day itself and, equally important, because of skewed media coverage of the poll's contestants. Plus: Bonnie Boyd writes a great backgrounder on the elections.

About our Central Asia & Caucasus coverage

Nurbek Bekmurzaev
Nurbek Bekmurzaev is the Central Asia editor. Email him story ideas or volunteer to write.

Arzu Geybullayeva
Arzu Geybullayeva is the South Caucasus editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.