Tajikistanibashi? or, non-strategic realignment…
Last week, President of Tajikistan Ehmomahli Rakhmonov announced that he wanted to return to the traditional (non-Slavic) spelling and pronunciation of his name. Today, President Rakhmon dictated that the entire nation will follow him in this move. New birth certificates, graduation papers, and other official documents will now be issued in non-Slavic spellings, whatever the preference of individuals.Â
This extension of presidential preference over private considerations is very reminiscent of the late Turkmenistani President, Saparmurat Niyazov’s rule. Niyazov dictated what would be approved in the way of facial hair, dental work, educational curriculum, and relationships between husband and wife. It heralds the beginning of a contingent dictatorship, where people are forced to change civic and private behavior mid-course due to the whims of its leader. When Niyazov changed the names of towns, months, and days of the week to honor himself and his family, he sacrificed civic and social continuity and stability. These changes also contributed to Turkmenistan’s increased isolation from the rest of the world.
Though President Rakhmon has not yet descended into full  Tajikistanibashi mode, this ruling will have several short-term and medium-term effects on its own. First of all, it creates an anti-Russian feeling in a state which has already lost considerable numbers of its ethnic Russian population through out-migration. Second, it puts in jeopardy temporary migrants from Tajikistan in Slavic states, especially Russia, but also possibly Kazakhstan. These migrants are already in some physical jeopardy in Russia, and retaliatory acts against them in the Russian Federation are sure to step up. The loss to Tajikistan’s remittance economy will be considerable. According to a January, 2007 World Bank Report on the European and Central Asian economy remittances make up 12.5% of Tajikistan’s GDP (look at figure 2.1).
Third, any financial aid from Russia will be put in jeopardy by this directive. As already reported, Tajikistan was expecting to open a new office of the Eurasian Development Bank, 66% funded by Russia. Russia has already given money to the World Food Program on Tajikistan’s behalf just this month. It is hard to believe that direct investment and foreign aid from China is going to make up any shortfall if Russia’s policymakers take this amiss.
Though surrounded by Turkic peoples, Tajikistan has never been a part of “Turkestan”. The Tajik language is related to Persian, and Tajikistan continues to seek out and find fellowship with their fellow Persians in Iran. China is their near neighbor and perhaps their most important trading partner. Yet even the most prosperous state needs more than one friend, and Tajikstan is far from prosperous.Â
Mr. Rakhmon needs to balance his foreign policy between Russia and China even as he cements better relations with other states. For examples, he can look toward two of his neighbors to see the consequences of domestic policy upon national diplomacy.  Kazakhstan’s President Nazarbaev exhibits the diplomatic abilities needed to survive in Central Asia. Whatever Mr. Nazarbaev’s faults, he has managed to make Kazakhstan a good friend to the United States, the Russian Federation, China, and the European Union. By treating with all, he has ensured Kazakhstan a place in the global economy. By contrast, Turkmenistan, also rich in energy resources, has only one friend–Russia’s Gazprom. Mr. Rahmonov cannot count upon the international fidelity that comes with energy resources. [See previous post: Tajikistan courts new investment]. Thus, his need to balance between competing powers is even more necessary. Forcing a repudiation of Russian heritage is not conducive to such a balance.
This law contributes nothing to Tajikistan’s stability and prospects. It only caters to Presidential vanity, and it may signal the beginning of a new downward spiral for this challenged state.
Photo: Jamestown Foundation
March 27th, 2007 at 9:58 pm
[…] Bonnie Boyd says that the Tajik president’s decisions to drop Russian endings from surnames potentially has foreign policy implications for Tajikistan. She says that the decision does nothing for Tajikistan but satisfy a presidential whim. Nathan Hamm […]
March 29th, 2007 at 10:28 am
Nonsense!
Any normal politician will truely accept that Emamali Rahman has the right to whatever name he choses for himself, and Russian President or Russian media cannot instruct anybody on “goods” or “bads” for any country’s foreign policy.
And it is also right thing to get rid of colonialist-Russian-IMPOSED name endings in every aspect! In fact Russian politicians should apologise to Tajiks for imposing Russianised name on Tajiks during the Soviet Union, instead of propaganda against traditional names.
And Russian media should accepts that Russia is no more a dominant power in the region once it had a hegemony. And this country should nop more look down on other CIS countries as “little brothers”.
These are simple facts, you should accept them as reality and reconsider your relations with these nations, you will definitely be happy as they will.
Propaganda doesx not benefit Russia.
March 29th, 2007 at 10:40 am
Russia, the so-called “strategic partner” of Tajikistan grabbed many strategic projects and facility of Tajikistan in exchange of its debt of 250 million dollars.
Only the Norak Space Observatory which Russia plundered from Tajikistan is worth milliards of dollars. Russian’s humanitarian aid through World Food programme is very new and as Russian says is “posle pozhar…” because simply Tajikistan is no more in need of that.
But llok at the US: Only humanitarian assistance that US allocated through USAID since 1992 is more than 350 million dollars. Compare with Russia.
The same applies to China and Japan, European countries, their assistances and investments are thousand times more than Russian empty promises. Russia promised to invest two millard dollars in Tajikistan’s energy projects, but failed to implement it, because it has no strong position, always changed its position like a fox.
No ally of Russia has ever benefitted from this country: Look at Milosevich of Bosnia, Najibulla of Afghanistan, Shevardnadze of Georgia, all of them have been left to their destiny by their “strategic friend” in the wors time.
Russia is retreating from its engagement in Iranian nuclear programme like a prostitute, voting against Iran finally. What else one can expect from this state which has no firm position in international diplomacy??????
March 29th, 2007 at 1:04 pm
Thanks for your insights Faramarz. But Is not Russia not still partnering with Iran in significant ways…pipe line, defense weapons You seem close to the ground there and I would appreciate any additonal comments in this regard.
Peace, Sam in Florida, USA
March 29th, 2007 at 1:13 pm
…what does “posle pozhar.” mean? Thanks. Sam
March 29th, 2007 at 1:47 pm
Dear Faramarz,
First, thank you for writing in and I appreciate your comments. I agree that Russia is an extremely difficult partner to have. Yet do you see Tajikistan able to be fully independent of Russian goodwill? I do not, frankly, see that as much of an alternative.
If you look at my post again, I think you will see that I advocated Tajikistan follow a multilateral diplomacy. I used Kazakhstan’s foreign relations as an example. I don’t believe Tajikistan should be a client state of Russia, but if Tajikistan isolates from Russia, they face the prospect of becoming a client state of China instead. It is not in Tajikistan’s best interest to become or remain the client of any state. One example that you did not use was that of Belarus. Now that Beltantransgaz is a part of Gazprom, President Lukashenka’s cold shoulder to the rest of the world looks exceedingly counterproductive.
I have no quibble with President Rakhmon’s desire to change his name. Instead, I have a problem with his desire to make that choice for others. By changing his name, he has already offerred the opportunity for other Tajikistani citizens to do so. The ruling that others must have their names changed or amended for official documents makes mandatory what should be a private choice.
As for Mr. Milosevic, he was the instigator of most of the conflict and war atrocities in the Former Yugoslavia; Mr. Najibullah was installed as President during the ill-fated Soviet war in Afghanistan. Mr. Shevardnadze was displaced in a peaceful Rose Revolution after unsustainably throwing a democratic election. Even the situation between Russia and Iran in regard to the nuclear impasse is not about betrayal. As Sam notes, Russia and Iran have a relationship based upon numerous issues and transactions.  Russia and Iran have and should have economic ties; Russia does have nuclear energy expertise to export. The problem for the world community is that nuclear weapons proliferation must and should be a primary security issue.
In each of these cases, Russia acted eventually as a member of the international community, under considerations of multilateral diplomacy and obligation. This is the course I am recommending to President Rakhmon.
Please accept my best regards and thanks for your comments,
Bonnie
March 29th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
“Though President Rakhmon has not yet descended into full Tajikistanibashi mode, this ruling will have several short-term and medium-term effects on its own. First of all, it creates an anti-Russian feeling in a state which has already lost considerable numbers of its ethnic Russian population through out-migration. ”
Ms. Bonnie Boyd,
With all due respect, but the above is speculative. Rahmonov is not as stupid as to shoot himself in the foot, by whipping up anti-Russian sentiments, becasue these will backfire on Tajkistan in the form of diaspora persecutions in Russia (in the style of recent Georgian diaspora persecutions at the hands of Putin). The situation is already abysmal for Tajiks in St. Petersburg and Moscow especially, why would Rakhmonov want to put fuel to the flame.
March 29th, 2007 at 9:47 pm
Dear Dancing Dervish,
I agree the conditions for Tajik diaspora in Russia are abysmal, and that whipping up Russian nationalist sentiment is bad for their personal safety.
Why would President Rakhmon mandate that Others change their name just because he preferred this choice for himself? I hope you check back and tell me what you think about this part of the new developments.
Thank you very much for writing, and I hope you and Faramarz and Sam write back. I also welcome comments from others who may have some light to shed upon this subject.
March 30th, 2007 at 1:30 pm
Ms. Bonnie Boyd,
Granted. That he made it mandatory for other Tajiks to drop Russian name endings is not agreeable to me either. I want to stick to my Russianized last name, not so much because I like it (it sucks to be honest), but becuase I do not want the corrupt law-enforcement to charge me for the new passport and in general I don’t like it when people shove things down my throat, be they presidents or whoever. On the other hand, however, the measure does not apply to the ethnic Russians, therefore does not have foreign policy implications for Tajikistan vis-a-vis Russia, but is rather intended by Rahmonov to boost his Muslim credentials at home and abroad, if you know what I mean. IRPT has a sizable voting bloc and Rahmonov wants to tap into it and believe you me many of IRPT adherents have sympathised with the measure. Needless to say, Rahmonov have raised his profile among his neighbors as well.
I hope the above sheds some light on the issue.
March 31st, 2007 at 9:24 am
Dear Dancing Dervish,
Thank you very much for responding and putting Mr. Rakhmon’s name change into the context of “Muslim credentials at home and abroad.” I will certainly look at this aspect of future changes in Tajikistan’s policy from now on. Soon I will update the blog on this issue, adding some of the other news stories and incorporating your comments.
Please write in again: one of the reasons that the Foreign Policy Association has developed this blog is to encourage better understanding between people of good will. To really know how these policy changes affect others, we have to hear from those who live with them. You have indeed shed light upon the issue!
Very sincerely yours,
Bonnie
April 1st, 2007 at 4:18 am
Some opinions mentioned here are completely irrelevant. Name-changing of a president will not have any foreign relations implications, unless the other side (e.g. Putin_Russia) is too dude to be concerned about it.
Russia and Russian Media and Russian authorities shpould better abd firt think of changing the very racist public opinion in Russia where xenophobia is taking ground day by day, worse and worse.
If Russian or any other country is concerned or rather worried about Rahman’s name-change, it definitely means that they have psychological problem. Because Rahmon changed his own name and has a right for it. He did not change Putin’s name. He did not impose his will on others.
It is good to get rid of Russian name endings because they are IMPOSED on us forcibly, we have the right to self determination, self identification and we are proud of it. In fact foreign imposition of names or any other cultural norms should be condemned.
As regards “Islamic credentials”, I dont believe it either, it is a foreign media generalization, because most of european journalists have no idea of Central Asia and they even mix up Rahmon and Niyazov and Karimov, they have free enough space to generalise and expand their lie markets without knowing anything in teh ground. I believed that Rahmon simply came to know that he likes to be called in Tajik tradition, because ordinary people never used Russian ending in their speaking language, unless they spoke about an official. They always used names without Russian endings despite Soviet propaganda and control.
As regards foreign diplomacy, a country wich follows likes and dislikes of other countries, makes just a mistake, every country despite economir or political dependence etc, should be self-confident and should decide for itself, irrespective of whether others like it or not.
We are no inferior to others and even better in some respects, at least we have no racist or fascist movement in our country, while fascists and racists are harboured by officials in Russia, in Uzbekistan state itself forcefully assimilates other ethnics into the major fold, depriving minorities of their basic human rights, violating the rights of millions to education in their own language.
As for anti-russian sentiments in Tajikistan, there have never been and never are such sentiments, Whoever lived in Tajikistan knows better, its is just a Russian media propaganda to inflame anti-Tajik feelinngs inside Russia which already exists.
In fact Russian have better position in Tajik society than any other country, most of them who left country before, returned after years of wandering and finding no good place in Russia. Russians’ migration during Civil War is not motivated by racist problems, during war iots usual that everybody who has a home of hope elsewhere, migrates from any country where there is a war. During the war thousands of Tajiks also migrated to Russia, even the number of Tajik migrants surpasses that of Russians. It is natural.
Best wishes,
Faramarz
April 16th, 2007 at 3:55 am
[…] Read her full article here.. […]
April 20th, 2007 at 8:19 am
[…] The stride of new cultural legislation went on: In March 2007, Rakhmonov decided that his name should actually be Rakhmon, thus scrapping the Russian suffix. Several bloggers detected a Turkmenistanisation in this move. As Bonnie Boyd of the Foreign Policy / Great Decisions Central Asia Blog noted: This extension of presidential preference over private considerations is very reminiscent of the late Turkmenistani President, Saparmurat Niyazov’s rule. Niyazov dictated what would be approved in the way of facial hair, dental work, educational curriculum, and relationships between husband and wife. It heralds the beginning of a contingent dictatorship, where people are forced to change civic and private behavior mid-course due to the whims of its leader. […]
May 25th, 2007 at 9:38 am
[…] In the coming years, perhaps decades, Turkmenbashi will undoubtedly live on in the form a suffix tacked on to any Central Asian ruler who does something vaguely authoritarian and eccentric. A while back, Ian from Beyond the River rightly criticized me for falling into that trap when Tajikistan President Rakhmon enacted several weird decrees that shoved the government in teenager’s social lives (though I wasn’t the only one). […]