epubdos : Afghanistan
SCA MORNING PRESS CLIPS
Prepared for the U.S. Department of State
Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs
TO:
SCA & Staff
DATE:
Wednesday, May 8, 2024 6:30 AM ET

Afghanistan
Taliban say order restored after Afghan opium poppy protests (Reuters)
Reuters [5/7/2024 8:03 AM, Mohammad Yunus Yawar and Charlotte Greenfield, 5239K, Neutral]
The Afghan Taliban said on Tuesday they have quelled protests in a northern province over security forces’ attempts to eradicate opium poppy cultivation which generates income for many impoverished farmers.

Taliban authorities were holding meetings in Badakhshan, spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a Whatsapp message, after several days of protests, in which two people were killed.

Mujahid said in a separate statement that a delegation from Kabul, led by the defence chief of staff, would this week travel to Badakhshan to investigate, a rare official acknowledgement of civil disturbance since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.

Since then, they have vowed to restore control over the entire war-torn nation and have at times forcefully broken up protests in urban areas, especially against decisions that restrict women from education and many workplaces.

"The Badakhshan issue can be solved," Mujahid said.

"Two of our countrymen lost their lives during the clashes, their rights will be observed," he said, adding that authorities would meet with relatives and make a decision over compensation for their deaths.

International research firm Alcis released research based on satellite data last year showing there had been a drastic reduction of opium production in most provinces between 2022 and 2023, often by more than 90%. However it noted that in Badakhshan, the amount of land used for poppy growing had grown.

Mujahid did not elaborate on the cause of the deaths. Local broadcaster Tolo reported that the two had been killed as the protests became violent and security forces opened fire late last week.

Zabihullah Amiri, head of the Taliban-run provincial government’s media department, said that an official delegation from the provincial capital had travelled to the two districts to hold meetings and that the areas were now "under control".

"They accepted the legitimate demands of the people, at the moment, there are no issues in Argo and Darayim districts,” he said. "The people and area are under the control of security forces, and the latest update is that people have committed to cooperating with security forces to eradicate poppy cultivation."

The Taliban seized power in 2021 as the United States and its allies withdrew troops after a 20-year war launched in the weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

In 2022, the Taliban’s supreme spiritual leader ordered a ban on narcotics cultivation in the world’s then-top opium producer.

Many Afghan landowners and labourers rely on growing opium poppies, especially in the Taliban’s historic heartland in the south.

Badakhshan shares a border with Tajikistan and China, with which the Taliban are trying to improve economic links.

The province’s population is predominantly ethnically Tajik, in contrast to the Taliban, most of whose top leaders are ethnically Pashtun, which can exacerbate ethnic tensions despite Taliban promises they will govern the country in the interest of all Afghans.
Locals Protest After Taliban Crackdown Roils Northeast Afghan Province (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [5/7/2024 9:09 AM, Faiza Ibrahimi, 223K, Negative]
Residents of two remote districts in the northeastern Afghan province of Badakhshan have demanded more accountability and better treatment from the authorities after a Taliban crackdown on protests killed at least two people.

Protests broke on May 3 and 4 in the Darayim and Argo districts when the Taliban attempted to forcefully eradicate the poppy crop. The hard-line Islamist group banned poppy cultivation in April 2022 after returning to power in August 2021.

"People are willing to cooperate in eradicating their opium crops peacefully," Shamsuddin Mubarez, a young activist in Argo, told RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi on May 6.

"People responsible for destroying the poppy crops should be locals from Badakhshan," he added while outlining their demands.

A resolution adopted by the residents of Argo also demands that Taliban authorities arrest and punish the perpetrators of the shooting that killed Abdul Basit, 23, a local farmer.

In Darayim, a resident speaking on condition of anonymity said that residents refused to talk to a Taliban delegation made up of provincial officials on May 5.

Nizamuddin, a farmer in Darayim’s Qarlaq village, was killed. Three more protesters were injured after the Taliban fighters attempted to quell the protest that erupted after they began destroying the poppy crop on May 3.

"People want the Taliban government to hear our voice," a resident of Darayim told Radio Azadi. "But they acted dictatorially and didn’t listen to us."

Abdul Matin Qane, the spokesman for the Taliban-led Interior Ministry, told the BBC that local demands for prosecuting the Taliban security forces responsible for the killings in Badakhshan were "completely justified."

The Taliban government has appointed its army’s chief of staff, Fasihuddin Fitrat, a native of Badakhshan, to head a delegation to negotiate with the protesting farmers in the province.

In a purported audio message on May 6, he urged locals to "urgently" end their protests because their agitation would be seen as a rebellion, which could prompt the Taliban to send security forces to quell any unrest.

At least one person was killed in similar protests in Badakhshan last year.

The Taliban ban has pushed the price of illicit opium in Afghanistan to $1,000. But it has pushed tens of thousands of impoverished farmers to extreme poverty because poppies were the best cash crop in the arid, mountainous country.

The Talibans internationally isolated government has so far failed to attract any significant international aid or investments to help Afghan poppy farmers.
Taliban reject Pakistan’s claim Afghan bomber involved in deadly attack on Chinese dam engineers (Reuters)
Reuters [5/8/2024 1:29 AM, Mohammad Yunus Yawar, 5.2M, Neutral]
The Taliban defence ministry on Wednesday rejected Pakistan’s allegations that Afghans were involved in an attack on Chinese engineers, as ties between the neighbouring nations sour amidst rising insecurity.

Pakistan’s military had said at a press conference on Tuesday that a suicide bomb attack in March in Pakistan’s northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, that killed five Chinese engineers, was planned in neighbouring Afghanistan, and that the bomber was an Afghan national.

"Afghans are not involved in such matters," said Mufti Enayatullah Khorazmim, the spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Taliban-run Ministry of National Defence.

"Blaming Afghanistan for such incidents is a failed attempt to divert attention from the truth of the matter and we strongly reject it," he added.

A suicide bomber rammed a vehicle into a convoy of Chinese engineers working on a dam project in northwest Pakistan in March, killing six people.

"The killing of Chinese citizens in an area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa that is under tight security cover by the Pakistan Army shows the weakness of the Pakistani security agencies," Khorazmim said.

Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have soured in recent months. Islamabad says Kabul is not doing enough to tackle militant groups targeting Pakistan and in March Pakistan carried out airstrikes targeting militants on Afghan territory.

Last year, Pakistan expelled nearly 370,000 undocumented Afghan nationals, saying the majority of suicide attacks against its security forces were carried out by Afghans, a charge Kabul rejected.

Pakistan’s military spokesman said on Tuesday that security for 29,000 Chinese nationals in Pakistan, many of them working on infrastructure projects, was the top priority for security institutions.

The Taliban are also seeking economic ties with China, the first country to formally appoint an ambassador to Kabul under the Taliban, and wish to join China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is Beijing’s $65 billion investment in development and infrastructure.
Congressmen demand answers after CNN report contradicts Pentagon investigations into deadly Kabul airport attack (CNN)
CNN [5/8/2024 4:22 AM, Nick Paton Walsh and Mick Krever, 6.1M, Neutral]
Eight Republican members of Congress have written to US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin urging him to explain discrepancies between CNN reporting last month about the ISIS-K attack that led to the deaths of 13 US servicemen and 170 Afghans outside Kabul airport in August 2021, and the conclusions of two Pentagon investigations into the incident.

The CNN report revealed that there were many more episodes of gunfire than the Pentagon has ever admitted, in the wake of the suicide attack in the final days of the American evacuation of Kabul. The reporting included a video obtained by CNN captured by a Marine’s GoPro camera that had not been seen publicly in full before.

The letter was sent on Tuesday by congressmen on the House Foreign Affairs Committee and presented a series of pointed questions for the Pentagon about its investigations into what was the deadliest incident in Afghanistan for decades – a brutal, bloody end point to America’s longest war. The eight congressmen, five of whom are veterans with experience in Afghanistan, urged Austin “in the strongest possible terms to account for the discrepancy between the results of the (US Central Command) CENTCOM investigation and this new reporting,” by CNN.

Much of the controversy about the Pentagon’s two investigations into the attack has focused on gunfire in the aftermath of the blast. Some Marines have told military investigators they felt they were being shot at or opened fire themselves, and 19 Afghan survivors told CNN in 2022 they were shot themselves or witnessed Afghans being shot. But the two Pentagon investigations – released in February 2022 and last month – concluded the only shooting in the aftermath came from US and UK troops in three bursts that were “nearly simultaneous,” and hit no one.

In their letter, the members of Congress said it is “unclear what generated this CENTCOM data point of near-simultaneous gunfire” in three bursts, which is “directly contradicted by the video footage obtained by CNN, which shows 11 episodes of gunfire over nearly four minutes.” They added that, after CNN published the GoPro footage, the Pentagon assured the House Foreign Affairs Committee that it had not seen the video prior to publication, but that the video did not contradict the findings of their investigations.

“While we appreciate CENTCOM’s investigation into the Abbey Gate attack, nearly three years later we still have the same questions that the very US servicemembers captured in the CNN video had, including who was firing the rounds and whether it was the Taliban or another hostile force. We therefore ask you to clarify the volume, incidence, and sources of gunfire at the scene,” the members of Congress wrote.

The Congressmen – Mike Waltz, Darrell Issa, Tim Burchett, Brian Mast, Rich McCormick, Keith Self, Cory Mills and Chris Smith – requested further action by investigators. CNN’s most recent report included an interview with the former head of a major Kabul hospital, Dr. Sayed Ahmadi, who said he and his staff had pulled bullets out of patients from the incident and that over 70 of the dead at their hospital had gunshot wounds. The letter asks why the Pentagon’s investigators did not speak to Dr. Ahmadi, or any other Afghans. The Pentagon has said all reports of gunshot wounds are mistaken, and that witnesses who recall extensive shooting – either at Marines or Afghan civilians – are suffering from the effects of blast concussion, or Traumatic Brain Injury.

“Lastly, why do journalists have this video footage and the Department does not? Is there any more footage in the Department’s possession that has not yet been made public? If so, please release such footage immediately and confirm that no more video recordings exist of which the Department is aware,” they added. “The truth must come out.”

The Office of the Secretary of Defense told CNN in a statement that, as with all congressional correspondence, it would respond directly to the members who wrote the letter. “We honor the service and sacrifice of our thirteen service members who were killed at Abbey Gate and remain fully committed to ensuring our Gold Star families have the support and information they need. This will always be a sacred obligation for the Department of Defense,” James Adams, a department spokesman, said.

Parents accuse Pentagon of being misleading
Growing Congressional scrutiny of the attack comes as the parents of seven Marines who died in the incident – Jared Schmitz, Humberto Sanchez, Taylor Hoover, Nicole Gee, Kareem Nikoui, Hunter Lopez and Rylee McCollum – accused the Pentagon of misleading them.

“As parents, we have always had the suspicion that we were not told the entire truth of how our children were murdered at the Abbey Gate on 8/26/21. The recent discovery of new video released by CNN directly contradicts and exposes outright lies from our recent briefing last month from CENTCOM officials,” the Gold Star families said in a statement they sent to CNN.

“We are consumed with anger at the betrayal from the Biden Administration. This is only the beginning for us to expose the cover up that has and is still taking place. The Biden Administration wants us to go away silently, but we will not!” they added.

The new CENTCOM commander, Gen. Erik Kurilla, ordered in September last year a supplemental review of the military’s 2022 investigation into the incident, and the families of dead servicemen were briefed last month on its results. Its focus was mainly whether the ISIS-K suicide bomber could have been stopped and determined the attack “could not have been preventable at the tactical level.” The families have long maintained more could have been done to stop the ISIS-K suicide bomber.

The letter and statement emerged as CENTCOM released over a thousand pages of witness accounts and evidence from the supplemental review. The 1,214 pages offer a variety of accounts of the aftermath of the blast, some of which appear to support the supplemental review’s conclusions. Yet others contain previously unseen witness testimony of gunfire in the aftermath which appears to jar with the two investigations’ conclusions.

Two apparent Marine accounts of the blast aftermath provide similar descriptions of a US personnel member being calmed down as he tried to load a .50-caliber heavy machine gun in a sniper tower that overlooked the blast site, and then apparently not firing the weapon. Names of the US personnel were redacted.

One of the service members recalled: “The Marines on the ground were shooting towards the blast location. But I didn’t see anyone shoot at us.” He added the gunfire continued for “probably a few minutes,” and then he recalled hearing: “some Gy Sgt [Gunnery Sergeant] yelled up to the tower saying we were taking small arms fire and find them and f**king kill them. I’m not sure of his name.”

Another eyewitness said he was inside the sniper tower above the blast site when two rounds hit the window in front of him and a third round narrowly missed him.

The evidence also suggests the Pentagon may have more video footage than it has acknowledged in public. A service member tells the review there were nine drones operational over the airport in the immediate aftermath of the blast, and that he watched feed from these drones for three hours.

The Pentagon has released five edited minutes of footage from the aftermath. The account also says “ISR” – likely a surveillance camera – was available at the scene shortly after the blast. Not all of this footage has been released. In another account, a Marine appears to hand over a GoPro to the supplemental review team.

Army Lt. Col. Rob Lodewick, public affairs adviser to the supplemental review team, said the two investigations had maintained their “utmost focus” on a “transparent, exhaustive and conclusive accounting” to the families of the dead US personnel, US military and public. “Any accusations of a deliberate attempt [by military officials] to mislead or deceive remain categorically false.”

Yet he added investigators “recognize the potential for new information to emerge over time” and that CENTCOM “welcome any additional information and imagery available to help ensure a comprehensive understanding of the attack on Abbey Gate from as many perspectives as possible.”

Lodewick noted the review team compiled 4,000 pages of evidence and “considered the totality of the information, provided by over 190 interviews, when concluding there was no complex attack.” He added all “imagery, including voluntarily provided personal GoPro footage, was thoroughly examined” and handled in “accordance with DoD and Service policies.”
What Is the State of US Assistance to Afghanistan and Afghans? (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [5/7/2024 10:35 AM, Catherine Putz, 201K, Neutral]
Last week, the U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction (SIGAR) released its 63rd quarterly report, providing an update on U.S. assistance to Afghanistan. In the extended wake of the August 2021 withdrawal of Western forces, subsequent collapse of the Republic government, and the Taliban’s rise to power, these reports have shifted in focus but remain valuable troves of information on a country that has fallen far from U.S. headlines.

The United States, SIGAR notes, “remains the largest donor to the Afghan people.” Since August 2021, $17.19 billion in assistance has been made available to Afghanistan and Afghan refugee programs. This includes $2.8 billion in appropriations for Afghanistan, around $10.8 billion in funding for Defense and State programs including Operation Allies Welcome and Enduring Welcome aimed at bringing and settling Afghan allies in the U.S., and $3.5 billion in frozen Afghan Central Bank assets transferred to the Fund for the Afghan People (which has, to date, made no disbursements).

The $2.8 billion in appropriations for Afghanistan assistance is primarily directed to the “humanitarian” funding category, with assistance in all categories – humanitarian, development, agency operations, and security – falling precipitously since October 2021. For example, of the $2.8 billion more than half, $1.6 billion, was allocated in fiscal year 2022 (which began in October 2021). In FY2024 only $277 million was funded.

SIGAR’s report dives into specific programs, which is well worth perusing to understand the breadth and scope of assistance efforts – and which efforts have fallen by the wayside as budgets contract. For example, all of the USAID education programs listed in the report ceased to receive funding after FY2022. The USAID programs that continue to have funding into FY2024 include a handful of health programs, one focused on new disease early warning systems and another on urban health; as well as an economic growth program focused on export-oriented competitiveness.

The difficulties in engaging with the Taliban, and concerns about funding being misappropriated if transferred to Taliban control, depress opportunities to work on even humanitarian issues. Taliban policies limiting women’s ability to work are also damaging to these efforts.

The 63rd quarterly report’s essay section focuses on the Afghan diaspora, specifically interviews with 61 members of the diaspora in the United States in four areas that have become major resettlement centers: Houston, Texas; Sacramento, California; Omaha, Nebraska; and Washington, D.C.

One of the themes SIGAR identified was a sense of mourning and betrayal: “Most Afghans resettled in the United States are mourning the loss of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. They expressed a sense of betrayal, feeling abandoned personally, and feeling that their country was abandoned by Afghanistan’s leadership and their U.S. partners.” This sense of betrayal extended also to the Afghan Republic government, which some interviewees criticized for its inability to reevaluate the situation and regroup, instead dissolving.

Another theme is the belief among the diaspora that the situation in Afghanistan is deteriorating, and a fear that their extended families still in Afghanistan are at risk. Many described the Taliban’s ideology as imported, foreign to Afghanistan.

Finally, most interviewees, SIGAR said, “also described the new challenges they are facing in the United States. Many of the recently resettled suffer from depression, culture shock, lack of support, and poverty — stresses that are compounded for families separated from their loved ones left behind in Afghanistan.”

Not only are the journeys to the United States arduous, and the pathways paved with finicky bureaucratic steps, but navigating life in the U.S. has proven difficult for some. Many have relied on networks of friends and family, finding refugee resettlement agencies in the U.S. lacking. Once settled, Afghans face myriad difficulties from unemployment to language barriers that serve to deepen mental health issues stemming from trauma and isolation, especially for Afghan women stuck at home in small apartments.

The diaspora members that SIGAR interviewed were reportedly divided over the issue of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan. “While they agreed that there is tremendous hunger and need in Afghanistan, some felt that U.S. assistance, however inadvertently, bolsters Taliban rule.” Another noted, however that U.S. disengagement creates space for America’s competitors.

Later in the report, in recounting recent developments, SIGAR notes that the annual World Happiness Report – compiled by a partnership of Gallup, the Oxford Wellbeing Research Centre, the U.N. Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and an editorial board – ranked Afghanistan as the unhappiest country in the world out of 143 countries. Neighboring countries like Pakistan and Uzbekistan came in at 108th and 47th, respectively.
Pakistan
Pakistan Says Taliban Offshoot Behind Attacks on China Interests (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg [5/7/2024 5:42 AM, Kamran Haider, 5543K, Negative]
Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan — a local offshoot of neighboring Afghanistan’s Taliban - planned and executed a suicide bomb attack that killed five Chinese engineers in March, according to Pakistan’s military spokesman.

The bombing was planned by the TTP based in Afghanistan and the suicide bomber was an Afghan national, Major General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said in a televised news conference on Tuesday. Pakistan has formally protested to the Taliban government 12 times after finding the offshoot based in Afghanistan was behind several attacks in the South Asian country in the past few years, he said.

Chaudhry said about 2500 Chinese are working on different projects under Belt and Road Initiative’s China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
Pakistan’s military says recent suicide attack that killed 5 Chinese was planned in Afghanistan (AP)
AP [5/7/2024 8:56 PM, Munir Ahmed, 22K, Negative]
Pakistan’s military on Tuesday said a suicide bombing that killed five Chinese engineers and a Pakistani driver in March was planned in neighboring Afghanistan and that the bomber was an Afghan citizen.

At a news conference, army spokesman Maj. Gen. Ahmad Sharif said four men behind the March 26 attack in Bisham, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, had been arrested.

Sharif said the attack that killed the Chinese engineers, who were working on Pakistan’s biggest Dasu Dam, was an attempt to harm the friendship between Pakistan and China. Thousands of Chinese are working on projects relating to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

Sharif also said Pakistani Taliban who have sanctuaries in Afghanistan were behind a surge in attacks inside Pakistan since January that killed 62 security forces nationwide, and that Pakistan had solid evidence of the group’s inovlevemnt in the rising violence.

The attacks have prompted several foreign embassies to take extra security measures, asking diplomatic staff and nationals in Pakistan to remain vigilant.

In a statement on Tuesday, the U.S. consulate said it was “aware of a threat of a terrorist attack at Karachi Port,” and asked its citizens and embassy staff to stay away from the area. It also advised them to keep a low profile and stay alert in places frequented by tourists.

Karachi — Pakistan’s largest city — has witnessed several militant attacks on Chinese and Pakistanis in recent years. Last month, five Japanese workers narrowly escaped a suicide blast that targeted their van and killed a Pakistani bystander.

Sharif said the Afghan Taliban had failed to honor promises they made to the international community before coming to power, vowing no one would be allowed to use Afghan soil for attacks against any country.

The Pakistani Taliban — a separate group but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban which seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 — had denied being behind the March attack, saying in a statement at the time that “our sole targets are security forces (and their agents) imposed upon us. We are in no way involved in this attack.”

On Tuesday, Mohammad Khurasani, spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban — known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP — repudiated using Afghan soil for attacks on security forces inside Pakistan. He said in a statement Tuesday the group’s militants, who were present across the country, targeted security forces and military personnel.

Additionally, the army spokesman vowed not to allow any undocumented foreigners to remain in the country. He said Pakistan’s military had completed 98% of a fence being constructed along the border with Afghanistan and 91% of a fence along the Iranian border had also been completed to check illegal movement, curb smuggling and prevent cross-border militant attacks.

Since last year, nearly 563,639 Afghans living illegally have gone back to Afghanistan after Islamabad launched a crackdown on illegal migrants, drawing widespread criticism from international and domestic human rights groups.

Afghanistan has never recognized the porous border that runs through the heartland of the Pashtun, Afghanistan’s largest ethnic group.

Sharif also dismissed media reports about the possibility of any deal or talks with the country’s imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan or his party. Khan is serving multiple prison sentences on charges of corruption, revealing official secrets and marriage law violations.

Khan was ousted by a parliamentary no-confidence vote in April 2022. He accused the military, his rival, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and the United States of being behind his ouster. All three have denied the accusation.
Pakistan says attack that killed Chinese engineers was planned in Afghanistan (Reuters)
Reuters [5/7/2024 9:40 AM, Asif Shahzad, 5239K, Negative]
Pakistan’s military said on Tuesday that a suicide bomb attack that killed five Chinese engineers was planned in neighbouring Afghanistan, and that the bomber was also an Afghan national.

The suicide bomber rammed a vehicle into a convoy of Chinese engineers working on a dam project in northwest Pakistan in March, killing six people.

"The entire attack was planned in Afghanistan, the car used in it was also prepared in Afghanistan, and the suicide bomber was also an Afghan national," Pakistan military spokesman Major-General Ahmed Sharif told a news conference in Islamabad.

Afghanistan’s Taliban-run administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Kabul has previously said rising violence in Pakistan is a domestic issue for Islamabad and denied allowing the use of its territory by militants.

The Taliban are also seeking economic ties with China, the first country to formally appoint an ambassador to Kabul under the Taliban, and wish to join China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is Beijing’s $65 billion investment in development and infrastructure.

China has stressed to the Taliban the importance of security in the region.

Sharif said four main suspects of the plot to target the Chinese engineers have been arrested.

He added that security for 29,000 Chinese nationals in Pakistan, of which 2,500 were working on CPEC projects and 5,500 on other development projects, was the top priority for security institutions.

Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have soured in recent months. Islamabad says Kabul is not doing enough to tackle militant groups targeting Pakistan.

Islamabad has gone as far as to say some elements in the Taliban are facilitating the Islamist militants of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) - which is not affiliated with the Taliban, but has long pledged loyalty to the Afghanistan-based movement.

Last year, Pakistan expelled nearly 370,000 undocumented Afghan nationals, saying the majority of suicide attacks against its security forces were carried out by Afghans, a charge Kabul denied.

"TTP militants are using Afghanistan’s territory to destabilise the security situation in Pakistan," Sharif said, adding that TTP militants were also procuring advanced weaponry from Afghanistan to carry out the attacks.

He warned that the Pakistan military will go to "any extent" to tackle militants and their facilitators, adding it had previously targeted militant hideouts inside Afghanistan.

Eastern neighbour and arch-rival India has also committed multiple border ceasefire violations in recent months, Sharif said.

Both the nuclear-armed nations have fought three wars since independence from British rule in 1947, two of them over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

An Indian army spokesperson said the military "does not and did not undertake any speculative firing or ceasefire violations of any kind."
Pakistan: Afghan-based terrorists planned suicide attack on Chinese (VOA)
VOA [5/7/2024 6:54 PM, Ayaz Gul, 761K, Negative]
Pakistan said Tuesday that recent militant attacks in the country, including a deadly suicide car bombing on Chinese engineers, were planned from “terrorist sanctuaries” in Afghanistan.

Major-General Ahmed Sharif, spokesperson for Pakistan’s military, leveled the allegations during a live broadcast news conference. He said Afghanistan’s Taliban government has failed to prevent the use of Afghan soil for cross-border terrorism despite repeated protests and sharing of “solid evidence” with them through diplomatic channels.

In late March, a suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden car into a convoy of Chinese engineers and workers in northwestern Pakistan, killing five of them and their local driver. The slain Chinese nationals were working on a major dam project.

“This attack was planned in Afghanistan, and terrorists and their facilitators were also being controlled from there,” said Sharif. “The car used in it was readied in Afghanistan, and the suicide bomber was also an Afghan national.”

The spokesperson also said Pakistani security forces captured and killed several Afghan nationals who were carrying out recent terrorist attacks, adding that members of the Afghan-based, anti-Pakistan Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, along with other fugitive insurgents, orchestrated the cross-border terror attacks.

Explaining that the Afghanistan-based terror group is aiming to undermine peace and stability in Pakistan, Sharif said, “The main reason for the new wave of terrorism in Pakistan is the facilitation and supply of modern weapons to the TTP” by elements in the Taliban government.

The Taliban’s Defense Ministry spokesperson rejected as "irresponsible and far from reality" the Pakistani military’s claims that Afghan soil was used in the attack against the Chinese workers.

Enayatullah Khwarizmi asserted in a statement that the killing of Chinese citizens occurred deep inside Pakistan and "shows the weakness" of Pakistani security agencies.

"The Islamic Emirate has assured China on this matter, and the country has also understood that Afghans are not involved in such issues," Khwarizmi claimed, using the official title of the Taliban administration. Beijing has not immediately commented on the Taliban assertions.

Surging TTP and other insurgent attacks have strained Islamabad’s ties with Kabul.

TTP, designated as a global terrorist organization by the United States and the United Nations, is a close ally of Afghanistan’s fundamentalist Taliban rulers.

The group is known to have provided recruits and shelter to Taliban leaders in Pakistani border areas when the Taliban was staging insurgent attacks against the U.S.-led NATO troops in Afghanistan for almost two decades. The Taliban seized power in 2021 as all foreign forces withdrew from the country.

Pakistani officials and the latest United Nations assessments have documented the presence of thousands of TTP fighters on Afghan soil since the Taliban takeover.

Sharif said Tuesday that growing incidents of terrorism in Pakistan prompted the government to evict undocumented Afghans and send them back to their native country. He noted that more than 563,000 Afghans living illegally in Pakistan had gone home since October, when Islamabad began its crackdown on undocumented migrants.

The crackdown is not targeting an estimated 1.3 million registered Afghan refugees in the country and the more than 800,000 others carrying government-approved Afghan citizenship cards.
Pakistan will not succumb to pressure on Iran gas pipeline, foreign minister says (VOA)
VOA [5/7/2024 1:54 PM, Sarah Zaman, 761K, Neutral]
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said Tuesday his country will not back off from building a much-delayed gas pipeline with Iran.

“We will not let anyone use their veto,” Dar said at a press briefing Tuesday, without naming the United States.

Pakistan and Iran signed a Gas Sales and Purchase Agreement in June of 2009 for a pipeline that would supply 750 million to 1,000 million cubic feet per day of gas to energy-starved Pakistan from Iran’s South Pars Field.

While Iran claimed in 2011 that it had completed its side of the pipeline, construction delays continue on the Pakistani side, primarily for fear of invoking U.S. sanctions.

The Biden administration has repeatedly said it does not support the Pakistan-Iran pipeline as Tehran is under U.S. sanctions for its nuclear program.

“The government will decide what, when, and how to do anything based on Pakistan’s interests. It cannot be dictated to us,” Pakistan’s foreign minister told reporters in Islamabad.

In February, Pakistan’s outgoing caretaker government approved building a small patch of the pipeline from the Iranian border into Pakistani territory to avoid billions of dollars in penalties for project delays.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government, which took office in March, has not begun construction on the project.

The pipeline received only a passing mention in a lengthy joint statement issued at the end of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s visit to Pakistan in late April, prompting speculation the project was not on track.

“We have to watch our interest. We have to look at our commitments,” Dar said, rejecting the notion Pakistan was delaying the project under U.S. pressure. However, he conceded the pipeline is “an issue that is quite complicated.”

After Raisi’s visit in which both sides agreed to boost bilateral trade to $10 billion dollars, the U.S. State Department warned, yet again, that Islamabad could face trouble for doing business with Tehran.

“Broadly we advise anyone considering business deals with Iran to be aware of the potential risk of sanctions,” Vedant Patel, State Department deputy spokesperson, said during a briefing last month.

Energy-starved and cash-strapped, the South Asian nation of some 240 million people needs cheap fuel from its neighbor. Pakistan currently meets much of its needs with expensive oil and gas imports from Gulf countries.

Iran’s arch-rival Saudi Arabia, on whom Pakistan relies heavily for financial support, is also widely believed to be opposed to the pipeline.

Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, spokesperson of Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry, told media in late April that Islamabad was in talks with Washington to address concerns surrounding the pipeline.

“We have noted some statements have been made by the United States. We are also engaged with the United States and discussed the various aspects of Pakistan’s energy needs,” Baloch said at a weekly press briefing.

Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs contended in the past that Islamabad does not need a sanctions waiver from Washington to build the pipeline with Tehran.

However, experts say sanctions will kick in once gas is pumped.

Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Energy have not confirmed if Islamabad has applied for a sanctions waiver from Washington.

Donald Lu, assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian Affairs, told a Congressional hearing in March that Pakistan had not requested the waiver to purchase Iranian gas.
Pakistan court orders jail for wife of former PM Imran Khan, lawyer says (Reuters)
Reuters [5/8/2024 2:33 AM, Asif Shahzad, 5.2M, Negative]
A court in Pakistan granted on Wednesday a request by the wife of former Prime Minister Imran Khan to shift to jail, her lawyer said, instead of house arrest ordered by the government because of security concerns.

Bushra Bibi, detained at Khan’s hilltop mansion in Islamabad since the couple’s January conviction on charges of illegally selling state gifts, had challenged the house arrest, her lawyer Naeem Panjutha posted on social media platform X.

Through her lawyers Bibi had filed an appeal in the Islamabad High Court, asking to be shifted to the jail.

The court ordered authorities to shift her to Adyala jail in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, where Khan, 70, a former cricket superstar, is serving his 14-year sentence, his party said in a statement.

The party said Bibi had complained of being served contaminated food by the authorities at the house, which was declared a sub-jail.

The authorities have denied the accusation.
India
Indian Envoy Says Talks Underway to Resolve Diplomatic Dispute With Canada (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg [5/7/2024 3:24 PM, Laura Dhillon Kane and Thomas Seal, 5543K, Negative]
India’s high commissioner to Canada says diplomatic talks are underway to find solutions to “issues of concern” to both countries, in his first public remarks since three Indian nationals were charged with the murder of a Sikh activist.

Sanjay Kumar Verma told the Montreal Council on Foreign Relations that he believes the two countries will come to see the merits of resolving their disputes. “My concern is national security threats emanating from the land of Canada. These threats are largely emanating from the Canadian citizens. So these two are my red lines,” he said Tuesday.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau kicked off a diplomatic firestorm last year when he said there were “credible allegations” that Indian agents had orchestrated the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen who had been advocating for an independent Sikh state called Khalistan. Nijjar was shot to death in a parking lot in the Vancouver suburb of Surrey, British Columbia, in June.

India dismissed the allegation as “absurd” and expelled dozens of Canadian diplomatic staff. It had designated Nijjar a “terrorist” and maintains that Canada has not taken seriously its concerns about Sikh separatists.

Last week — more than seven months after Trudeau made the allegation in Canada’s House of Commons — police in Edmonton, Alberta, arrested three men accused of carrying out Nijjar’s murder and said officers were actively investigating connections to the Indian government.

The trio, all Indian citizens in their 20s, had a brief appearance in court in Surrey on Tuesday. Protesters waving pro-Khalistan flags and holding signs blaming the Indian government for the murder gathered outside.

The criminal prosecution of the three men remains in its early stages and they have not yet entered a plea. Police have said there are multiple investigations still ongoing and more people may be charged in relation to the murder. One of the accused — Karan Brar, 22 — is being represented by a well-known Canadian lawyer, Richard Fowler.

Verma, in his remarks to the Montreal forum, said Canada and India maintain strong bilateral trade relations, despite the diplomatic dispute. “There are so many positive things which are happening,” he said.

However, he also raised concerns about unethical “educational outlets” — undeserving of the term “college” or “university,” he said — that have been exploiting Indian foreign students in Canada, many of whom come from poor families who sold assets or took on debt to send them to the country, driving some to kill themselves.

“There was a time when we were sending one body bag of an Indian international student every 10 days,” Verma said.

Trudeau’s government has made a series of announcements cracking down on colleges that promise foreign students a pathway to permanent residency in Canada, but in fact provide low-quality education programs. It plans to reduce the number of temporary residents by 20% over three years.
3 Indian nationals charged with killing Canadian Sikh separatist leader make first court appearance (AP)
AP [5/7/2024 5:23 PM, Jim Morris, 22K, Negative]
The three men charged in the slaying of Canadian Sikh separatist leader Singh Nijjar in June made a brief first court appearance Tuesday.

The killing of the prominent activist became the center of a diplomatic spat after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in September that there were “credible allegations” of Indian involvement.

Canadian police said Friday they arrested the three Indian nationals in Edmonton, Alberta for shooting and killing the 45-year-old in his pickup truck after he left the Sikh temple over which he presided in the city of Surrey.

Kamalpreet Singh, 22, Karan Brar, 22, and Karanpreet Singh, 28, have been charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.

All three wore red prison overalls when they appeared in court via a video link and agreed to a trial in English. They were ordered to appear in British Columbia Provincial Court again on May 21.

Brar and Karanpreet Singh appeared in the morning. Kamalpreet’s appearance was delayed until the afternoon as he waited to speak to a lawyer.

The small provincial courtroom was filled with spectators during the morning session. Others crowded into an overflow room to watch the proceedings via video.

Richard Fowler, the defense lawyer representing Brar, said the case will eventually be moved from the British Columbia Provincial Court to the Supreme Court and combined into one case.

About 100 people gathered outside the courthouse waving yellow flags and holding photos of Indian government officials whom they accuse of being involved in Nijjar’s killing.

Canadian police say the three suspects had been living in Canada as non-permanent residents.

Nijjar — an Indian-born citizen of Canada — was a plumber and a leader in what remains of a once-strong movement to create an independent Sikh homeland in India, known as Khalistan, for which he had heavily campaigned. He organized unofficial referendums around the world about Punjabi independence. The separatist leader was called a human rights activist by Sikh organizations and a criminal by India’s government.

India had accused Nijjar of links to terrorism, but angrily denied involvement in the slaying. In response to the allegations, India told Canada last year to remove 41 of its 62 diplomats in the country. Tensions remain but have somewhat eased since.

A bloody decadelong Sikh insurgency shook north India in the 1970s and 1980s until it was crushed in a government crackdown in which thousands of people were killed, including prominent Sikh leaders.

The Khalistan movement has lost much of its political power but still has supporters in the Indian state of Punjab, as well as in the sizable overseas Sikh diaspora. While the active insurgency ended years ago, the Indian government has repeatedly warned that Sikh separatists were trying to make a comeback.
Sikh leaders welcome arrests in Canada activist killing, but questions loom (Al Jazeera)
Al Jazeera [5/7/2024 5:40 PM, Jillian Kestler-D’Amours, 2060K, Negative]
Sikh leaders in North America have welcomed recent arrests in the killing of Canadian Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, but allegations that the Indian government was involved continue to fuel questions and unease.

Canadian police announced late last week that three Indian nationals were arrested in Canada for their involvement in the June killing of Nijjar, a prominent Sikh community leader in the westernmost province of British Columbia.

Police added that their investigation into Nijjar’s shooting death would continue, including whether “there are any ties to the government of India”.

Moninder Singh, a spokesman for the BC Gurdwaras Council, a coalition of Sikh temples in the province, told Al Jazeera there was “some relief” that arrests were made in the case.

But Singh, who knew Nijjar personally, said the question of Indian state involvement is “looming” over the Sikh community, which numbers about 770,000 people across Canada — the largest Sikh diaspora outside India.

“The foreign interference is real. The assassination plot is real,” said Singh, adding that it is imperative to get to the bottom of what India’s role has been.

“All of that has to be exposed,” he continued. “There [are] numerous reasons why it’s very, very important for public safety in Canada, along with deterring India from carrying out this kind of operation ever again.”

Canada-India tensions

Tensions between Canada and India skyrocketed in September after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that authorities were investigating “credible allegations of a potential link” between Indian government agents and Nijjar’s killing.

Nijjar was fatally shot on June 18, 2023, outside the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, a temple in Surrey, British Columbia, where he served as president.

India vehemently denied the allegations that it was involved, calling them “absurd”. It also accused Nijjar of being involved in “terrorism” — a claim rejected by his supporters.

Nijjar had been a leading advocate in what is known as the Khalistan movement, a Sikh campaign for a sovereign state in India’s Punjab region.

While largely dormant inside India itself, Sikh separatism is largely viewed as a threat by the Indian government, which has urged Western nations to crack down on Khalistan movement leaders in the diaspora.

Canada has provided shelter to “Khalistani terrorists and extremists” who “continue to threaten India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said as it rejected Trudeau’s allegations in September.

But Sikh leaders in Canada said they have faced threats for years, and they accused the Indian government of trying to silence them.

Nijjar’s killing amplified these longstanding tensions, and new reports have emerged of Indian officials’ involvement in other alleged plots to harm prominent Sikh leaders in Canada and the United States.

Reports of threats

For instance, in late November, the US Department of Justice announced charges against a 52-year-old Indian national, Nikhil Gupta, over a foiled attempt to assassinate Sikh American activist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.

The plot to kill Pannun, another Sikh separatist leader, was organised in coordination with an Indian government employee and others, according to the Justice Department.

Last week, The Washington Post reported that US intelligence agencies determined that the operation to target Pannun was approved by the then-head of India’s foreign intelligence agency, known as the Research and Analysis Wing or RAW.

The Indian government rejected those allegations as “unwarranted” and “unsubstantiated”, according to media reports.

But rights groups have said India “needs to do a lot more than issue denials” in such cases.

“India’s alleged involvement in assassination plots in the US and Canada suggests a new and notorious leap in extrajudicial killings,” Elaine Pearson, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said in December.

Pritpal Singh, an activist and founder of the American Sikh Caucus Committee, was among the prominent Sikh leaders who were informed of threats against them over the past year.

Agents with the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) visited Pritpal, who is based in the state of California, in June to warn him.

In a statement to Al Jazeera this week, Pritpal said he commended “the unwavering commitment of Canadian and American law enforcement agencies” in their investigations into Nijjar’s killing and the surveillance of Sikhs.

“The alleged involvement of the Indian government in these heinous acts is a blatant violation of international norms and human rights. It is wholly unacceptable for any government to engage in extrajudicial killings and suppress dissenting voices abroad,” he said.

Pritpal also demanded accountability for threats against Sikh activists. “We must insist on US justice against those involved in India’s alleged murder-for-hire scheme targeting Americans on US soil,” he said.

“It is imperative that these cases are prosecuted on American soil by the United States Department of Justice to prevent these perpetrators from self-prosecuting.”

India hits out at Canada

Still, India has continued to deny any involvement in the alleged plots, while blasting Canada over its approach to Nijjar’s killing in particular.

The Indian High Commission in Ottawa, the Canadian capital, did not respond to Al Jazeera’s requests for comment on the case.

After news broke on Friday that Canadian authorities had made arrests, the Indian external affairs minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, said the Canadian government had a “political compulsion” to blame India.

Speaking to Indian news outlet The Economic Times this week, Jaishankar also accused Canada of “providing a haven to organised crime”.

“We’ve been repeatedly telling the Canadians that, if you actually allow such forces to set up shop and create networks, this is going to harm their own society. But so far, I don’t think that advice has been well heeded,” the minister said.

Canadian authorities have rejected the idea that they have allowed unlawful activity to proliferate. Experts also argue that many of the individuals India considers “terrorists” are not violating any Canadian laws.

“Canada is a rule-of-law country with a strong and independent justice system as well as a fundamental commitment to protecting all its citizens,” Trudeau said during a Sikh community event in Toronto on Saturday.

“I know that many Canadians, particularly members of the Sikh community, are feeling uneasy and perhaps even frightened right now. Well, every Canadian has the fundamental right to live safely and free from discrimination and threats of violence in Canada,” Trudeau added.

Use of ‘proxies’

Last week, the head of a Canadian public inquiry into foreign interference also released an interim report that accused Indian officials as well as their proxies in Canada of engaging in “a range of activities that seek to influence Canadian communities and politicians”.

This includes efforts to “align Canada’s position with India’s interests on key issues, particularly with respect to how the Indian government perceives Canada-based supporters of an independent Sikh homeland”, Commissioner Marie-Josee Hogue said.

The report noted that India “does not differentiate between lawful, pro-Khalistani political advocacy and the relatively small Canada-based Khalistani violent extremism”.

Therefore, “it views anyone aligned with Khalistani separatism as a seditious threat to India”.

Hogue also found that Indian officials are increasingly relying on Canadian and Canada-based proxies and their contacts to conduct foreign interference.

“This obfuscates any explicit link between India and the foreign interference activities. Proxies liaise and work with Indian intelligence officials in India and in Canada, taking both explicit and implicit direction from them,” the report said.

‘Galvanising’ Sikh communities

Ultimately, Sikh leaders have called for a full investigation into all those who may be involved in threats against members of their communities, including Indian state officials.

“I can’t speak to the motivation of the Indian state if it is proven that they are behind these heinous attacks,” said Kavneet Singh, chair of the board of the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF), a US-based civil rights group.

“But they have had a long history of suppression of freedom of expression and targeting those who speak out in dissent.”

Kavneet told Al Jazeera that the American Sikh community is advocating at the federal and state levels “for improved legislation to better help law enforcement understand, identity and prosecute” instances of transnational repression.

He added that, despite the threats, the Sikh community’s history “has not been one of living in fear”.

Instead, “it’s one of understanding that there are potential threats, and it’s [one of] being vigilant,” Kavneet said. “In fact, I think this is actually galvanising the community and our diasporic allies.

“While there may be political differences amongst communities, ultimately we stand together when members of the community and/or our institutions are threatened by actors either foreign or domestic.”

Singh at the BC Gurdwaras Council echoed that sentiment, stressing that the Indian government is trying to “silence” Sikh voices in the diaspora who are advocating for a sovereign state.

Singh was among five Sikh leaders — including Nijjar — who were warned by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s national security division in 2022 about threats against their lives.

He told Al Jazeera on Tuesday that the Canadian authorities told him within the past two months that the threat against him “is still real” and he should avoid large public gatherings.

“If we speak on this issue [Khalistan] and we’re going to lead the community on this issue in the diaspora, I think those threats will always be there now. There’s no way that we can ever go back,” he said.

“When Hardeep’s assassination happened, that really set some clarity in for some of us that this is real. This is the new real for us and the new reality, that this can happen at any time.”
Four arrested for duping young Indian men into fighting for Russia in Ukraine (Reuters)
Reuters [5/8/2024 4:14 AM, Sakshi Dayal, 5.2M, Negative]
India’s federal police said four people linked to a network of human traffickers have been arrested, accused of luring young men to Russia with the promise of lucrative jobs or university admissions only to force them to fight in the war in Ukraine.

About 35 Indian men were duped in this manner, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said in March.

The four Indian nationals arrested were a translator, a person facilitating visa processing and the booking of airline tickets as well as two "main recruiters" for the southern states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the CBI said on Tuesday.

The investigation "is continuing against other accused persons who are part of this international network of human traffickers," the CBI said.

The families of two Indian men who were killed in the war have told Reuters they had gone to Russia expecting to work as "helpers" in the army.

India’s foreign ministry says each case has been "strongly taken up" with Russia. Moscow has not responded to repeated requests from Reuters for comment.

India has refused to condemn Russia over the war, calling instead for dialogue and diplomacy to end the conflict. The two countries have enjoyed a close relationship for decades, trading in items from fighter jets to tea.

India has also increased its purchase of cheap Russian oil since the war, with Moscow emerging as its top oil supplier in the last financial year for the second year in a row.
Modi Is Winning Over Indian Women to Grow Majority for Next Term (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg [5/7/2024 7:00 PM, Ruchi Bhatia and Swati Gupta, 5543K, Positive]
At an annual, popular trade fair on the outskirts of India’s capital, New Delhi, Sarojini is busy haggling with customers over the price of a sari, a traditional Indian outfit often with ornate design.

She says her life has been transformed over the past decade – from not being able to afford basic essentials to running a successful business. Sarojini, who goes by one name, credits one man for her new found confidence and prosperity: Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“Modi is empowering women in every possible way,” Sarojini said. “He has helped us earn independence and the respect of society,” she said.

She says her life took a decisive turn in 2014, when Modi first took office. She along with a few other women were approached by a local community group, affiliated with the federal government. The group trained her in the craft of zari — intricate, metallic thread embroidery — and helped her kickstart a business.

Sarojini is among the 471 million registered female voters who will decide whether Modi returns to office for a third time. Their numbers stand just shy of the 497 million eligible male voters, which means that in a country with one of the world’s most skewed gender ratios, almost as many women as men may cast their ballot in the on-going elections.

Political parties are keenly aware and battling furiously to win over women. But even as the parties make ever loftier promises, experts say they need to do more to create programs that encourage women – like Sarojini – to enter the labor force rather than ones that entrench existing gender norms of being caregivers and homemakers.

Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party has won the last two elections decisively — and has steadily build up support among women. In the last elections in 2019, 46% of women voted for the BJP compared to 44% of men, according to the India Today-Axis My India exit poll survey.

The reasons for this are myriad: The BJP has vastly increased the size and number of populist and welfare initiatives aimed at female voters. There’s a free food program that targets some 800 million Indians. The universal availability of toilets – important to rural women – and programs that help women sign up for bank accounts, have been hugely popular.

Another major factor is Modi’s star power. Rithika Kumar, a political scientist at the University of Notre Dame, has been studying women’s voting patterns and found name recognition made a huge difference in places like the northern, largely agrarian state of Bihar.

“Modi’s name and the party’s lotus symbol dominated the political consciousness of women voters,” said Kumar.

Modi’s Hindu nationalist policies also help, as does the inauguration earlier this year of a temple dedicated to the Hindu god Ram. Building the temple, where a medieval mosque stood, has long been a rallying cry for the BJP.

Women tend to be more religious than men, according to Ranjana Kumari, director of the Centre for Social Research. “So all this Ram factor, the temple, and all that has been driven home very effectively,” she said.

Cash Handouts

Over the past decade, Modi’s government has disbursed over 8 trillion rupees ($96 billion) to women through cheaper loans. More than 97 million women have been the beneficiaries of a government program in which they squirrel away small sums of money that allows them to obtain a loan at a later date.

There’s the transfer programs, such as subsidized kerosene or cooking gas, or the building of free toilets, which provide a modicum of control and security to many women. As do direct cash transfers, such as the one credited with winning the BJP a state election last year. The party had promised around 1,000 rupees every month to every woman.

Programs like these make a difference, according to Kumari of the Centre for Social Research. While she says it is “unfortunate” that women are being made dependent on cash handouts, it is possibly the first time women feel they have been recognized for the household work and their contributions to their families.

India’s main opposition Congress party is promising 100,000 rupees every year to “one woman in every poor household” to recognize their homemaker roles.

“A woman cooks food, takes care of the children and protects the future of this country,” Rahul Gandhi, a senior member of the party, said at a rally. “But, they are not paid for the work they do at home.”

Other political parties have also made pledges: guaranteed monthly income, free washing machines, and pensions for female homemakers.

Several of these programs and pledges have benefited many women, but not all.

Take 30-year-old Sunita Devi. She has a more immediate worry — drinking water. Her village Rampur, in the western state of Rajasthan, doesn’t have tap water, and the women there have to trek two kilometers each day to fetch water.

“They said years ago that they will put taps in every household,” Devi said. “Modi has not done that. We can’t say that Modi has solved our problems.”

Devi said women still rely on private institutions for credit as the government-run initiatives have yet to reach them. Neither has the popular free food program.

The government also has a long way to go to boost women’s participation in the economy. Just 30% of women were active in the labor market in 2022, the lowest among the Group of 20 nations.

Perhaps the biggest challenge to Modi’s aspirations of turning India into a developed nation by 2047 remains the lack of opportunities for women. Most analysts dismiss the goal as fanciful but Bloomberg Economics says if barriers to women’s employment can be addressed, gross domestic product could expand by more than 30% by 2050.

It’s unclear whether any of the parties will propose policies that reduce those barriers — education, jobs training and childcare support — and encourage women to participate more in the workforce.

Protecting Women

Another challenge for the government has been the perception that, despite its rhetoric, it hasn’t done enough to protect women. Modi’s party initially refused to sack a member of parliament accused by women athletes of abusing them. In recent days, its been under pressure over a candidate with an allied party who has been accused of widespread sexual assault.

Modi tried to counter this by saying at a recent rally that his government had “enacted strict laws for women’s safety.”

Given the challenges, Modi’s administration has tried to court women in other ways. Late last year, it introduced and passed a law that reserved a third of all lawmakers’ seats in the parliament for women. Female parliamentarians made up just 12.9% of seats in 2024 – once again, the lowest among G-20 economies.

The law will take years to come into effect but its timing – just months before the national elections – was an important signal to India’s women. The Congress, for its part, has promised to reserve 50% of all federal government jobs for women.

The BJP has prepared a massive get out the vote program targeted at women. As many as 4,000 female workers are helping to campaign on the successes women have achieved through the government’s programs.

“The idea is to have constant touch with women,” said Vanathi Srinivasan, BJP’s national president of the women’s wing. “Women find it easier to connect with fellow women and discuss their aspirations and problems.”

For Sarojini, who has seen the weekly sales from her embroidered garments business rise from around $25 a decade ago to more than $2,000 today, the choice is clear.

“Most women in my village are voting for Modi,” she said. “I will vote for him too.”
Indian vote body tells X to remove Modi party video targeting Muslims, opposition (Reuters)
Reuters [5/7/2024 10:25 AM, Shivam Patel, 5239K, Neutral]
India’s high commissioner to Canada says diplomatic talks are underway to find solutions to “issues of concern” to both countries, in his first public remarks since three Indian nationals were charged with the murder of a Sikh activist.

Sanjay Kumar Verma told the Montreal Council on Foreign Relations that he believes the two countries will come to see the merits of resolving their disputes. “My concern is national security threats emanating from the land of Canada. These threats are largely emanating from the Canadian citizens. So these two are my red lines,” he said Tuesday.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau kicked off a diplomatic firestorm last year when he said there were “credible allegations” that Indian agents had orchestrated the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen who had been advocating for an independent Sikh state called Khalistan. Nijjar was shot to death in a parking lot in the Vancouver suburb of Surrey, British Columbia, in June.

India dismissed the allegation as “absurd” and expelled dozens of Canadian diplomatic staff. It had designated Nijjar a “terrorist” and maintains that Canada has not taken seriously its concerns about Sikh separatists.

Last week — more than seven months after Trudeau made the allegation in Canada’s House of Commons — police in Edmonton, Alberta, arrested three men accused of carrying out Nijjar’s murder and said officers were actively investigating connections to the Indian government.

The trio, all Indian citizens in their 20s, had a brief appearance in court in Surrey on Tuesday. Protesters waving pro-Khalistan flags and holding signs blaming the Indian government for the murder gathered outside.

The criminal prosecution of the three men remains in its early stages and they have not yet entered a plea. Police have said there are multiple investigations still ongoing and more people may be charged in relation to the murder. One of the accused — Karan Brar, 22 — is being represented by a well-known Canadian lawyer, Richard Fowler.

Verma, in his remarks to the Montreal forum, said Canada and India maintain strong bilateral trade relations, despite the diplomatic dispute. “There are so many positive things which are happening,” he said.

However, he also raised concerns about unethical “educational outlets” — undeserving of the term “college” or “university,” he said — that have been exploiting Indian foreign students in Canada, many of whom come from poor families who sold assets or took on debt to send them to the country, driving some to kill themselves.

“There was a time when we were sending one body bag of an Indian international student every 10 days,” Verma said.

Trudeau’s government has made a series of announcements cracking down on colleges that promise foreign students a pathway to permanent residency in Canada, but in fact provide low-quality education programs. It plans to reduce the number of temporary residents by 20% over three years.

Modi and his BJP party have made controversial remarks in what analysts say is an attempt to invigorate their hardline base as the election sees comparatively low voter turnout compared to previous years.
NSB
Bangladesh Raises Key Policy Rate to Tame Inflation (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg [5/8/2024 5:15 AM, Arun Devnath, 201K, Neutral]
Bangladesh’s central bank raised its key interest rate as the South Asian nation seeks to tame inflationary pressures.

Bangladesh Bank increased the overnight repurchase agreement rate by 50 basis points to 8.50%, the monetary authority said in a statement Wednesday.

The policy decision comes as authorities are looking to curb price gains, which have inched up due to a rise in energy and food costs. Inflation has held above 9% since March last year and authorities have taken a raft of measures, including import controls to reduce price pressures. Inflation climbed 9.81% in March compared with 9.67% the previous month.

Higher borrowing costs will slow demand and help reduce price gains, which Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government aims to bring down to 6% in the year ending June. After extending her rule for a fourth straight term in January this year, Hasina has asked her officials to keep a leash on prices.
Sri Lanka polls could risk economic recovery: central bank chief (Agence France-Presse)
Agence France-Presse [5/7/2024 6:25 AM, Staff, 11975K, Negative]
Sri Lanka’s tentative recovery from its worst economic crisis could be stalled by presidential elections due later this year, the island nation’s central bank chief warned Tuesday.

Months-long shortages of food, fuel and medicines culminated in Sri Lanka defaulting on its foreign debt in 2022 and angry protests that led to the ouster of then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

His successor Ranil Wickremesinghe has introduced austerity measures including sharp tax hikes, and cracked down hard on anti-government demonstrations.

Nandalal Weerasinghe said the crisis-hit economy had stabilised thanks to tough reforms prompted by an International Monetary Fund rescue package, but the country was not completely out of the woods.

"Domestically, what I see as the challenge is to continue the same policies going forward irrespective of the administration," Weerasinghe said. "That is an important one."

Wickremesinghe’s party has indicated that he will seek a fresh term at the elections due in September or October.

His two main rivals have said they wants to renegotiate terms of the IMF bailout, reduce taxes and increase food and energy subsidies.

Last month, the Asian Development Bank also warned that Sri Lanka’s recovery could be stalled by abrupt policy changes after elections if the outcome weakened the government’s commitment to austerity measures.

Foreign lenders have also warned that any delay in restructuring Sri Lanka’s foreign debt could impact the economy.

Sri Lanka had expected a deal with foreign lenders -- including China, its single biggest bilateral creditor -- by the end of March, but so far no accord has been announced.
Iran’s Outreach to Sri Lanka and the Quest for Regional Influence (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [5/7/2024 11:13 AM, Staff, 201K, Neutral]
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi recently visited Sri Lanka, marking the first visit by an Iran’s head of government to the island nation in over 15 years. This visit comes against the backdrop of changing regional and global dynamics, all while Sri Lanka is gearing up for its presidential elections.

Iran is keen to expedite its economic partnership with Sri Lanka, which has been severely impacted by U.S. sanctions, while for Sri Lanka, increasing trade and securing foreign investments is critical at this juncture. Grappling with a severe economic crisis, Sri Lanka recently secured an IMF bailout package and the government continues to contend with public discontent stemming from high taxes and living expenses.

During his visit, Raisi met Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe and signed agreements covering cooperation in economy, trade, science and technology, art, media, and tourism. Raisi inaugurated the Uma Oya hydropower and irrigation project, which was developed with Iranian assistance. Valued at $514 million, the project aims to irrigate land, provide drinking water, and contribute electricity to the national grid, particularly benefiting impoverished districts. The Uma Oya project had experienced significant delays largely due to the sanctions on Iran.

Wickremesinghe lauded the project as a symbol of South-South cooperation and said, “We all are countries that belong to the [Global] South at a time when the South now wants to establish its own identity and its own independence.”

Raisi criticized the current world order and asserted Iran’s resistance to the current international system reflecting upon the shared concerns of the Global South.

The Gaza war has garnered attention in Sri Lanka’s political discourse. Both Raisi and Wickremesinghe have advocated for a ceasefire in Gaza and criticized Western leaders for their “double standards” and “hypocrisy.” While Wickremesinghe has supported a ceasefire, he has also faced criticism from the opposition parties in Sri Lanka as the current government has actively pursued closer ties with the United States and Israel. Sri Lanka joined the naval alliance against the Houthis led by the U.S. and also recently signed an agreement to enhance air connectivity with Israel.

Iran seeks to broaden its economic partnerships, a goal emphasized by the Raisi administration. Iran aims to navigate its limitations amid sanctions, with a focus on fostering trade, economic cooperation, and maritime connectivity, all of which are foundational to the emerging ties between Iran and Sri Lanka.

On the other hand, Sri Lanka faces a severe economic crisis marked by political instability and mismanagement, with problems carried over from the previous governments of Mahinda and Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The country’s economic woes stem from corruption, nepotism, and reckless and unsustainable economic policies. Sri Lanka’s import-heavy economy coupled with dwindling reserves and a lack of foreign currency exacerbate the challenges, necessitating urgent measures to address the dire economic situation.

As per recent reports, cash-strapped Sri Lanka exported $20 million worth of tea to Iran to partially settle its $251 million oil debts. The barter trade agreement, reached in December 2021, enables Iran to acquire tea imports without depleting its foreign currency reserves amid sanctions.

The Iran-Sri Lanka relationship is a prime example of how external factors can change the course of bilateral economic engagement. Sri Lanka was one of the countries that swiftly complied with the U.S. sanctions on Iran and stopped importing oil from Iran. However, recent developments indicate the willingness of both countries to cooperate by identifying mutual interests and shared concerns. The domestic and geopolitical contexts contribute to this changing nature of engagement, especially as both countries are facing significant crises at home even while they have to adjust their foreign policy amid wider global geopolitical competition and tensions.

Iran understands the significance of Sri Lanka’s geostrategic location, particularly as the Iranian navy continues to assert its military strength and influence in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). Sri Lanka’s proximity to critical sea routes, including the Malacca Strait and the Strait of Hormuz, further amplifies its significance for Iran’s interests, especially in safeguarding maritime trade and security. Iran aims to revitalize and expand opportunities for collaboration, fostering deeper ties with Sri Lanka to bolster its broader strategy of enhancing influence in the IOR. This aligns with Iran’s initiatives like the proposal to establish a naval alliance involving India and Pakistan.

With recent attempts to strengthen bilateral ties with South Asian countries, Iran intends to project its diplomatic clout both domestically and globally. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei as well as Raisi and Iran’s Foreign Minister Amir Abdollahian have also asserted this on multiple occasions. To overcome its isolation, Iran has sought to reach out to countries grappling with economic or political challenges, positioning itself as an alternative, particularly in areas where it possesses technical expertise.

However, the viability of any partnership will hinge on Iran’s capacity to proficiently oversee its economy and refrain from direct involvement in any escalation of the Gaza war, which could potentially drag Iran to a bigger crisis.
Central Asia
All 5 Central Asian Leaders To Attend Victory Day Parade In Moscow (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [5/7/2024 1:03 PM, Staff, 223K, Neutral]
All five Central Asian presidents are scheduled to attend a parade on Red Square on May 9 to commemorate the end of World War II in Europe in 1945, while the majority of the world’s leaders continue to condemn Russia’s ongoing unprovoked invasion of Ukraine launched in February 2022.

Yury Ushakov, an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, on May 7 said Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoev, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, and Turkmen President Serdar Berdymukhammedov will attend the event in the Russian capital’s Red Square.

Ushakov added that President Miguel Diaz-Canel of Cuba, President Thongloun Sisoulith of Laos, and President Umaro Sissoco Embalo of Guinea-Bissau will also be present.

The Kremlin said earlier that Putin will hold separate talks with leaders of Cuba, Laos, and Guinea-Bissau after the parade on May 9.

Armenian President Nikol Pashinian, who attended the celebrations last year, said earlier that he will not be able to take part in the event this year.

Under Putin, Russia has gone to great lengths to commemorate World War II -- which killed more than 20 million Soviet citizens -- including reviving the military parade on Red Square.

During his more than 20 years in power, Putin has increasingly tried to make the memory of what Russians call the Great Patriotic War an integral part of national identity.

Foreign attendance of the May 9 celebration has waned since Russia’s illegal annexation in 2014 of the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine.

In 2021, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Tajikistan’s Rahmon was the only head of state to attend the Victory Day parade.

In 2022, a little over two months after Russia’s unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, no foreign leaders came to the WWII celebrations in Moscow.

Putin and his officials traditionally hold meetings with foreign leaders and delegations around the May 9 celebration.
Kyrgyz Prosecutor Seeks 7 Years In Prison For Government Critic (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [5/7/2024 9:56 AM, Staff, 223K, Negative]
A prosecutor asked a Bishkek court on May 7 to sentence government critic and journalist Oljobai Shakir (aka Egemberdiev) to seven years in prison on a charge of online calls for mass unrest. Days before his arrest in August last year, Shakir criticized the government’s decision to hand four spa centers near Lake Issyk-Kul to Uzbekistan and called President Sadyr Japarov and the State Committee of National Security chief Kamchybek Tashiev to participate in public debates with him. Shakir rejects the charge, calling it ungrounded.
China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Construction to Begin in October, Kyrgyz President Says (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [5/7/2024 2:12 PM, Catherine Putz, 201K, Neutral]
Construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan (CKU) railway will begin in October, according to Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov.

Speaking during a working trip to Osh on May 6, Japarov said that at present, “Kyrgyzstan is a dead-end state in terms of logistics.” According to local media reports, he emphasized that Kyrgyzstan accesses the world via Kazakhstan’s and Russia’s railways. “When the [CKU] railway is built, we will be able to go out into the world.”

“In October, construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway is planned to begin. We will become a transit country for the world. We will enter the world market. Through the railway we will go out to the sea,” he reportedly said.

Kyrgyzstan, like all of Central Asia, is landlocked (Uzbekistan is double landlocked). To reach the sea, and via international shipping the world’s markets, Kyrgyz goods most often travel through either Kazakhstan and Russia, or China. The CKU railway has long been contemplated, but its geopolitical moment arrived with the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and ensuing war.

The CKU railway is expected to shorten the route from China to Europe by 900 kilometers, cutting transit times for freight by an estimated eight days – while avoiding Russian territory and the Trans-Siberian railway. The bulk of the planned construction will take place in Kyrgyzstan and western China, as Uzbekistan already has a well-developed domestic rail network.

According to reporting by RFE/RL, Kyrgyz authorities are eyeing a 311-kilometer route across the country, which will run from Torugart to Kosh-Dobo and Kazarman and on to Jalal-Abad near the Uzbek border in the famed Fergana valley. In March, Japarov met with the deputy general director of China State Railway Group and the two sides said they had “reached a common understanding on the mechanism for implementing the project.” The cost of construction for the Kyrgyz portion was estimated at $4.7 billion in a feasibility study completed in June 2023.

In April, Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Akylbek Japarov said the feasibility study was being updated and cited the total cost of the project as $8 billion.

Financing remains a core problem. As Kyrgyz economist and analyst Iskender Sharsheev told RFE/RL in a recent interview: “Without the support of large international and regional investors, as well as possible financial assistance from international financial organizations, independent financing for the Kyrgyz Republic may prove to be an impossible task.”

Although construction will certainly generate short-term employment, the medium and long term impacts are less concrete. Kyrgyz officials, like Japarov, characterize the project as opening Kyrgyzstan’;s access to the world. But analyst Niva Yau told Navruz Karimov and Abror Kurbonmuratov, reporting for The Diplomat last October, that the most likely outcome is that the already unbalanced trade relationship between Kyrgyzstan and China would remain. “What is realistic is actually using the railway to import more Chinese products and open up more space, however small, for some Central Asian products to sell to China,” Yau said.

In 2022, nearly half (48 percent) of Kyrgyz exports went to Russia, followed by 18 percent to Kazakhstan and 11 percent to Uzbekistan – China trailed behind Turkey (6.2 percent), receiving a measly 2.7 percent of Kyrgyz exports that year. Imports present a different flow, with 42 percent of imports into Kyrgyzstan originating in China in 2022, 25 percent in Russia, and 7.9 percent in Kazakhstan. For much of the last decade, Kyrgyzstan has run a negative balance of trade. A rail line through Kyrgyzstan to Uzbekistan, with Europe at the far end of that transit route, would arguably serve to deepen that imbalance.

While construction may begin in October, as Japarov suggests, the considerable questions about the financing of the project and the long-term impact will remain. Furthermore, the geopolitical shift that lent renewed energy to the project could very well shift again before work is completed.

And the work will be considerable. In October 2023 RFE/RL reported that the rail line through Kyrgyzstan will require “more than 50 tunnels and 90 bridges through Kyrgyzstan’s highest mountains.” None of this makes the project impossible or unfeasible – that’s for engineers to decide – but it does add layers of difficulty to the railway, and that’s before considering the risks of corruption in such an enormous undertaking.
Uzbekistan Posthumously Exonerates 198 People Repressed During Soviet Era (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [5/7/2024 8:24 AM, Staff, 223K, Neutral]
The Supreme Court of Uzbekistan has exonerated posthumously 198 individuals convicted by the Soviet regime in the 1920s-1930s for "counter-revolutionary actions, armed uprisings, terrorism, banditry and espionage, and anti-Soviet activities."

The Supreme Court announced on May 6 its decision to exonerate the men, many of whom were sentenced to death and others who were incarcerated for many years.

The exonerated were from Uzbekistan’s Autonomous Republic of Karakalpakstan, the regions of Bukhara, Namangan, Xorazm, and Jizzax, as well as from Tashkent, the capital.

"At this moment, justice was decided. The truth that had been kept veiled for years was celebrated. The holy names of the repressions’ victims, who selflessly fought for independence and sacrificed their own lives, will live forever in the hearts of our people," the court statement said.

In August 2023, the Supreme Court exonerated 240 people convicted in the 1920s-1930s by the Soviet regime for taking part in the Basmachi (Raiders) movement, which fiercely fought against Russian and Soviet forces.

In August 2021, the court exonerated 115 people convicted in the 1920s-1930s by the Soviet regime.

The Supreme Court said at the time that those exonerated had been recognized as victims of Soviet repression by a special commission established in accordance with a 2020 order by President Shavkat Mirziyoev. The case materials revealed that the men were sentenced by troikas of the Soviet OGPU (Joint State Political Directorate), the predecessor of the Soviet KGB.

The Basmachi movement, which started during World War I in Central Asia, was eradicated by the Soviets by the late 1920s. However, clashes between Soviet forces and remaining Basmachi rebels along the border with Afghanistan continued until the early 1930s.

According to the Supreme Court, it has exonerated 1,031 individuals who were repressed during the Soviet era on the territory of what is now Uzbekistan.
1 Amendment, Dozens of Arrests: How Uzbekistan Is Hounding Citizens Who Criticize the President (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [5/7/2024 8:08 AM, Madina Amin, 201K, Negative]
Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev will again be a guest of honor at Moscow’s May 9 Victory Day military parade commemorating the 79th anniversary of victory in the European theater of World War II (1941-1945). Citizens of Uzbekistan have diverse opinions on their country’s relations with Russia, especially following the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022. However, voicing dissent about the Uzbek president’s mingling with Putin is not for everyone.

Last year on May 8, D. Tursunov (Nova24.uz reported his name as Bakhodir Kurbanov) from Namangan posted a screenshot of the news about Mirziyoyev’s attendance at the military parade in Moscow and insulted the president for it. He also reportedly made “anti-state comments.”

Last week he was given a five-year prison term.

The five-year sentence he received is not solely for slander. He was also accused of illegally crossing the Uzbek border. Tursunov reportedly left Uzbekistan in 2016 for Azerbaijan and from there, he traveled to Iran. At the time, Uzbek citizens were required to obtain an exit authorization sticker from the Interior Ministry’s visa and registration department (OVIR), a system that was abolished in 2019. He returned to Uzbekistan in 2023 after learning he was wanted by law enforcement.

Tursunov’s case is not the first and judging by recent escalations, not likely to be the last. Any negative comment about Mirziyoyev and his family could be interpreted as an insult or slander under Article 158, paragraph 3 of the Criminal Code following 2021 amendments.

In 2021, Mirziyoyev signed a decree introducing several amendments to the Criminal Code, including the one that criminalizes online slander or insult of the president. The previous version of Article 158 only addressed public insults or slander against the president, particularly via press or other traditional media. The amendments extended this to include any online content, such as a blog or social media post, or even comments in any form such as text, photo, audio, or video that express insult or slander of the president. Previously, legislation also required a written claim either from the president or his representative, but the new amendments now allow for direct criminal liability. Punishment, however, remains the same: up to three years of correctional work, up to five years restriction of freedom, or imprisonment for up to five years.

Bobur Bekmurodov, chairman of the national movement Yuksalish and a deputy of the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis, responded on his Telegram page to criticism from rights defenders and netizens regarding the amendments:

We are a presidential republic and the authority of the presidential institution is directly related to the authority of the state and the people. It should not be forgotten that according to the constitution, the presidency is an institution acting on behalf of the people of Uzbekistan, and the personality of the President is inviolable. That is, the President has constitutional status.

Following the amendments, arrests have grown in numbers.

In 2022, then 31-year-old Sobirjon Boboniyozov from Khorezm was sentenced to three years in prison for reportedly uploading videos to a Telegram group that had insulting and defamatory content about Uzbekistan’s first president, Islam Karimov, and the current president, Mirziyoyev. In April 2022, a 53-year-old blogger was arrested for content on his YouTube and Facebook pages. He reportedly “misrepresented the reforms” under Mirziyoyev’s regime and spread “derogatory information” about the president. Later, the blogger was found mentally unsound and was sent to a psychiatric hospital in Samarkand for compulsory treatment.

The law does not exempt even small comments left in the spur of a moment. In 2023, 19-year-old Dilshod Iskandarov was sentenced to 2.5 years imprisonment for a comment he left on an Instagram video titled “President’s family” while he was a labor migrant in Russia. The comment was later deleted by Iskandarov himself and was not fully disclosed in the media because it included profanity.

The Ministry of Justice’s experts found it “insulting and discrediting the president.” The court also found it necessary to block his Instagram account, and requested the Ministry of Digital Technologies do so.

At least two other people were punished for similar posts in 2023.

In January 2023, 27-year-old Utkirbek Sobirov from Fergana left a voice-note in a Telegram group, Telegramdagi “Qo’qon metan gaz,” expressing his dissatisfaction with gas and electricity shortages. Uzbekistan had one of the worst energy crises in the winter of 2022-2023, with frequent black-outs, gas shortages, and bad heating. Sobirov expressed his dissatisfaction with the reforms and called on the Telegram group members to hold a public rally. For his voice-note, which the court decided had “signs of insulting the president,” Sobirov was sentenced to three years in prison.

Another case from 2023 also involved a Telegram voice comment – 30-year-old Ahrorbek Qo’chqorov from Fergana received a four-year prison term.

In October 2023, a local court in Samarkand gave a five year and one month prison term to Bunyodjon Boboniyozov. On his Facebook page, Boboniyozev accused Mirziyoyev of supporting Putin in the Russia-Ukraine war, saying the president had been “sold to Putin.”

The excerpts from his Facebook post presented in court read more as analytical rather than ignorant slander. He discussed how Russia would not have benefited if Rustam Azimov, who had more ties with the West, had become the president following Karimov’s death. Referencing rumors that the former president did not die naturally, Boboniyozev claimed, “When Karimov was killed, Patrushev’s Wagnerians were stationed in Tashkent, and if Mirziyoyev was not transferred to the throne, they threatened that there would be a scandal, and Rustam Azimov was not allowed [to run for the office],” according to the excerpt.

He was found guilty under Article 158.3, for insulting or slandering the president of Uzbekistan in public and Article 159 for violation of the constitutional system of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The “golden age” of Mirziyoyev’s rule lasted a couple of years after he rose to office. His initial set of reforms and promising commitments, especially in relation to freedom of expression, made him popular domestically, and authoritarian Uzbekistan more palatable to the West. As the years passed by, the illusion faded and people started voicing their dissatisfaction with his rule. Criminalizing insults against the president was one measure taken to suppress such voices. The arrests stemming from the amendments, such as those mentioned above, set an example to others, instilling fear and discouraging any negative speech.

2024 has been particularly difficult for those who want to express their dissatisfaction with the president in one way or another. UzNews reported nine such cases, including the arrest of a 60-year-old woman from Fergana. She was sentenced to three years for insulting the president and accusing Shukhrat Ganiev, a deputy adviser to the president, of fraud and corruption.

Some have even been arrested for comments they made before the 2021 amendments. This January, a 29-year-old social media user received a four-year prison term from a local court in Jizzakh. He reportedly left a comment insulting the president and his mother on a TikTok video in June 2020.

The longest prison term so far for insulting the head of the state was given to a man from Fergana whose name has not been reported. Uznews reported on May 1 that the man was given seven years of imprisonment in February for publishing several videos on his Facebook page that insulted the president. He also allegedly published a derogatory poem.

How law enforcement finds theses posts and comments and identifies people behind the social media accounts posting them remains unclear. Dilshod Iskandarov, for example, commented from his Instagram account with an obscure handle – @dilshod_oke9377. Bunyodjon Boboniyozov also did not use his real name. His Facebook profile name was Boboniyoz Ahmad. The police most likely use phone numbers attached to social media pages to track down the account’s true owner. Tursunov had a Facebook page with the name Muhammad Sanjar. He had been in Tehran for a couple of years when he posted his thoughts about Mirziyoyev’s visit to Moscow.

In his Telegram rant, Yuksalish’s Bekmurodov noted that everyone’s honor has a high value and “administrative responsibility is established for insulting and slandering anyone, regardless of their position, and criminal responsibility is provided for committing these actions in aggravating circumstances.”

In practice, however, the only aggravating circumstance appears to be the president’s name.
Twitter
Afghanistan
Hafiz Zia Ahmad
@HafizZiaAhmad
[5/7/2024 11:01 AM, 91K followers, 13 retweets, 64 likes]
Today, the members of the UN-Advisory Committee on Financial and Administrative Affairs, consisting of 21 members from different countries, accompanied by the representatives of UNAMA called on IEA-Foreign Minister, Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi.

Hafiz Zia Ahmad
@HafizZiaAhmad
[5/7/2024 11:02 AM, 91K followers, 1 like]
In this meeting, the discussions were held in regards to the representation of Afghanistan in the United Nations, the effective management of humanitarian assistance and the implementation of potential infrastructural projects in Afghanistan.

Hafiz Zia Ahmad
@HafizZiaAhmad
[5/7/2024 11:02 AM, 91K followers, 1 like]
At the outset, FM Muttaqi provided information about the rehabilitation of drug addicts in Afghanistan, the provision of financial support of orphans and the prominent role of Afghan women in the private sector. Meanwhile, FM Muttaqi said that after years of wars and instability,

Hafiz Zia Ahmad
@HafizZiaAhmad
[5/7/2024 11:02 AM, 91K followers, 1 like]
the opportunity has been provided to start regional economic projects such as Qushtepa Canal, Casa-1000, Afghan Trans and other similar projects in Afghanistan. Extending gratitude to the United Nations for humanitarian assistance, FM Muttaqi said that the IEA does not want

Hafiz Zia Ahmad
@HafizZiaAhmad
[5/7/2024 11:02 AM, 91K followers, 1 like]
Afghans to be reliant on the humanitarian aid of others for a long time, rather Afghanistan should be self-reliant with implementation of major projects. Mr. Bachar Bong Abdullah, the head of the committee, said that the purpose of the trip is to evaluate UNAMA’s affairs

Hafiz Zia Ahmad
@HafizZiaAhmad
[5/7/2024 11:02 AM, 91K followers, 1 like]
in Afghanistan and trying to highlight the priorities of the Afghan side in order to present them to the UN-General Assembly. Talking about the significant positive developments in ensuring security, and urban facilities in the life of people in Afghanistan,

Hafiz Zia Ahmad
@HafizZiaAhmad
[5/7/2024 11:02 AM, 91K followers, 1 like]
the member of the committee, Mr. Amjad Qaid Ahmed Al-Kumim said that after Kabul, he will also visit the provinces to closely observe the situation in Afghanistan and present his suggestions to the relevant authorities.

Hafiz Zia Ahmad
@HafizZiaAhmad
[5/7/2024 11:02 AM, 91K followers, 1 like]
In the end, highlighting the priorities of Afghanistan, FM Muttaqi said that the humanitarian assistance should be spent in a mannaer that could help people get jobs, domestic products and industry may thrive and UN bodies fulfil their needs

Hafiz Zia Ahmad
@HafizZiaAhmad
[5/7/2024 11:02 AM, 91K followers, 2 likes]
from Afghan markets to support Afghanistan’s private sector. FM Muttaqi mentioned the growth of medium-sized businesses, attention to developmental projects,

Hafiz Zia Ahmad
@HafizZiaAhmad
[5/7/2024 11:02 AM, 91K followers, 2 likes]
providing alternative livelihoods to farmers and not relying on humanitarian aid as remaining priorities.
Pakistan
Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Pakistan
@ForeignOfficePk
[5/7/2024 3:12 PM, 476.7K followers, 21 retweets, 61 likes]
Foreign Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan Bakhtiyor Saidov @FM_Saidov arrives in Pakistan on a two-day visit. He was accorded a warm welcome on arrival in Islamabad. He was received by Director General (Central Asia & ECO) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Aizaz Khan.
India
Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/8/2024 12:54 AM, 97.6M followers, 2.3K retweets, 8.9K likes]
Opposition in Telangana has already accepted defeat as people have decided to bless the BJP with record numbers. Watch from Karimnagar. https://twitter.com/i/broadcasts/1MnxnMvdEmVJO

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/8/2024 2:57 AM, 97.6M followers, 141 retweets, 883 likes]
This morning at Vemulawada, I prayed at the Sri Raja Rajeshwara Swamy Devasthanam. As the MP from Kashi, the connect with this Temple felt even greater. I prayed for the good health and prosperity of my fellow 140 crore Indians.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/7/2024 1:55 PM, 97.6M followers, 3.4K retweets, 24K likes]
In Hyderabad, I met Dr. Raghu Ram Pillarisetti Ji and Dr. S. Vyjayanthi Ji. Dr. Raghu Ram is a Padma awardee and has done pioneering work in curing breast cancer. We discussed aspects relating to healthcare infrastructure in India. He also appreciated our Government’s efforts in this regard. @RRPillarisetti

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/7/2024 12:55 PM, 97.6M followers, 6.2K retweets, 42K likes]
Upon reaching Hyderabad, had an excellent meeting with the family of our former PM, the respected scholar and statesman, Shri PV Narasimha Rao Garu. They thanked the Government of India for conferring the Bharat Ratna on Shri Narasimha Rao Garu. Our interaction was extensive and we talked about several subjects. The family members expressed joy on India’s progress in the recent years. We also spoke about the richness of Indian culture and traditions.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/7/2024 10:15 AM, 97.6M followers, 8K retweets, 53K likes]
Gratitude to all those who have voted today. Across all the states and UTs, voters from all walks of life have placed their faith in the NDA and our development agenda. INDI Alliance is losing even more steam, thanks to their regressive economics and outdated votebank politics.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[5/7/2024 5:36 AM, 97.6M followers, 6.3K retweets, 21K likes]
Shocking statement by Lalu Ji on snatching the reservation from SC, ST and OBC communities in favour of petty votebank politics. We will never let this to happen.

Derek J. Grossman
@DerekJGrossman
[5/8/2024 3:07 AM, 88.4K followers, 9 retweets, 35 likes]
This new report calling India’s rise under Modi “a mirage” is wrong. Whether we like the nature of Modi’s government or not, the fact is that during his tenure India has become an emerging great power. I’ve gone on the record as such (see below). https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/new-report-claims-indias-rise-on-world-stage-under-pm-modi-is-a-mirage/articleshow/109931366.cms?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=TOIDesktop

Derek J. Grossman
@DerekJGrossman
[5/8/2024 12:08 AM, 88.4K followers, 26 retweets, 110 likes]
India needn’t fret. Squad isn’t replacing Quad. Quad still exists and has a wider Indo-Pacific purview for countering China. Squad is one US answer to help Manila in China-Philippines row in SCS. This is just Biden admin’s minilateral strategy at work. https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/Indo-Pacific/Philippines-first-India-later-as-U.S.-prioritizes-Squad-allies
NSB
Awami League
@albd1971
[5/7/2024 11:26 AM, 637.4K followers, 25 retweets, 106 likes]
HPM #SheikhHasina has met the visiting chief of @UNmigration Amy Pope today at Ganabhaban. During the meeting PM has asked @IOMchief to find more funds for the #Rohingya refugees in #Bangladesh. She also informed Ms Pope about the government’s initiatives for the refugees.

Awami League
@albd1971
[5/7/2024 9:53 AM, 637.4K followers, 31 retweets, 84 likes]
Prime Minister #SheikhHasina today asked the authorities concerned to assess economic possibilities and benefit first before taking any development project. "First, think how many people will be benefited before undertaking any development project", she said during at Ganabhaban. https://daily-sun.com/post/747067 #Bangladesh #AwamiLeague #Development #ProPeople

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maldives
@MoFAmv
[5/7/2024 8:45 AM, 53.8K followers, 24 retweets, 34 likes]
Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer to undertake an Official Visit to India Press Release | https://t.ly/ccmBd

Moosa Zameer
@MoosaZameer
[5/7/2024 3:02 PM, 13.1K followers, 43 retweets, 70 likes]
Congratulations to all female Ambassadors appointed by President Dr. @Mmuizzu today. Glad to see that 4 out of the 9 appointed today as Ambassadors are women. The appointments by President Dr @MMuizzu today also signifies the Government’s commitment to women empowerment and recognising their important role in the decision-making process.

Moosa Zameer
@MoosaZameer
[5/7/2024 12:27 PM, 13.1K followers, 37 retweets, 73 likes]
Warm congratulations @MasoodImadMv on your appointment as the new High Commissioner of Maldives to Sri Lanka. With your vast experience I am confident that your appointment will pave the way for strengthening of the close neighbourly relations between Maldives and Sri Lanka.

Moosa Zameer
@MoosaZameer
[5/7/2024 10:15 AM, 13.1K followers, 49 retweets, 100 likes]
Congratulations Ambassador @AlinyMohamed on your appointment as the Permanent Representative of the Maldives to @UN in New York. Your intellect and extensive experience in the foreign service will be invaluable in manoeuvering the course of Maldives-UN relations and in achieving the foreign policy objectives of the Government

Moosa Zameer
@MoosaZameer
[5/7/2024 8:51 AM, 13.1K followers, 64 retweets, 144 likes]
I congratulate Dr. @FazeelNajeeb for his appointment as the new Ambassador of Maldives to China. Having previously served as the Governor of MMA and as State Minister at @MoFAmv he brings with him diverse knowledge and experience. I have every confidence in his ability to enhance the cooperation.

M U M Ali Sabry
@alisabrypc
[5/8/2024 12:08 AM, 5.3K followers, 2 retweets, 5 likes]
I briefed the media about our recent diplomatic engagements and Foriegn policy priorities!

M U M Ali Sabry
@alisabrypc
[5/7/2024 10:03 AM, 5.3K followers, 4 retweets, 8 likes]
Met with the Russian Ambassador to Sri Lanka H.E. Levan Dzhagaryan at the Foreign Ministry today and discussed the multifaceted aspects of the Sri Lanka-Russia bilateral relations.
Central Asia
Joanna Lillis
@joannalillis
[5/7/2024 9:09 AM, 28.9K followers, 6 retweets, 22 likes]
If you missed it, listen on catch-up to my interview with @TimesRadio on the Bishimbayev murder trial, which has "sparked real soul-searching in #Kazakhstan" about both domestic violence and the prevailing political culture (53rd minute) https://www.thetimes.co.uk/radio/show/20240506-28420/2024-05-06

Navbahor Imamova
@Navbahor
[5/7/2024 9:30 AM, 23K followers, 1 retweet, 10 likes]
The Boysun Spring International Folk Festival brought together nearly 630,000 people this year. This festival showcases one of the most fascinating parts of Uzbekistan/Central Asia, both in terms of nature and culture, featuring canyons, remote villages, and ancient crafts. ( I didn’t attend, watched and enjoyed it virtually :)

Navbahor Imamova
@Navbahor
[5/7/2024 9:00 AM, 23K followers, 10 retweets, 33 likes]
Boysun, Surkhandarya, Uzbekistan: 2 hours drive from southern city of Termez bordering Afghan border. Boysun hosts annual international folk festival and this year’s was apparently attended by more than 10,000 people from the neighboring countries and other parts of the world. 1/4

Navbahor Imamova
@Navbahor
[5/7/2024 9:00 AM, 23K followers, 1 retweet, 10 likes]
Boysun Mountains are among the tallest peaks in Uzbekistan, encapsulating a rich tapestry of history and culture. From the legacies of the Greek, Baktrian, and Kushan kingdoms to the ancient traditions of Zoroastrianism, fire worship, and shamanism, this region is steeped in a vibrant and diverse heritage. 2/4

Navbahor Imamova
@Navbahor
[5/7/2024 9:00 AM, 23K followers, 6 likes]
I asked why spend millions to create yet another event site in Uzbekistan, particularly in such a remote area? It is not remote, I was told. Surkhandarya admin hopes that Boysun becomes a tourist hub and marketplace of arts and craft, Central Asian manufacturers and everyone who wants to showcase and sell their products. 3/4

Navbahor Imamova
@Navbahor
[5/7/2024 9:00 AM, 23K followers, 9 likes]
Boysun air baloons, some 20 of them, added to the excitement this year. What I also heard, which is quite compelling although obvious: Unlike the forums in Tashkent and Samarkand, this folk festival engages locals/ordinary people. They run the show. 4/4

Asel Doolotkeldieva
@ADoolotkeldieva
[5/7/2024 9:48 AM, 14K followers, 2 retweets, 10 likes]
Interesting: heads of security of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan meeting to discuss regional security issues. Terrorism and extremism is again on the agenda https://rus.azattyk.org/a/32936436.html

{End of Report}
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