The Transformation of Tajikistan: The Sources of Statehood

Tajikistan is one of the lesser-known and least-researched former Soviet Central Asian republics. The birth of the new state in 1991 was followed closely by a civil war which killed more than 50,000 people and displaced many tens of thousands more. Whilst a peace agreement was signed in 1997 significant political violence continued until 2001. Today stability has returned to Tajikistan and the country'¬"s political elite '¬ ; both the Government and dwindling opposition '¬ ; must take some credit for this. However, the vast majority of the population remains poor and subject to the endemic corruption, organized crime and political domination which characterise Tajikistan'¬"s negative peace. More than a decade after the civil war, Tajikistan remains without a year-round supply of electricity and gas, is structurally reliant on seasonal external labour migration, and has an increasingly authoritarian government. This collection of essays places this transformation of Tajikistan in its historical context. It explores the sources of a state with its roots in the Soviet Union but which has been radically changed by independence and its exposure to global politics and economics. Authors address the sources of statehood in history, Islam and secularism, gender, economy and security. This book was originally published as a special issue of Central Asian Survey.