Sputnik: Гражданская война 1992-1997 Таджикистан

Sputnik Tajikistan article marking the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Tajik peace accord. The article reports that Tajikistan’s Day of National Unity is observed on 27 June, and that on 27 June 1997 in Moscow, under UN mediation, a final peace agreement was signed between the government of Tajikistan and the United Tajik Opposition (UTO). The article reports that historians characterise the 1992–1997 civil war as an armed inter-clan intra-ethnic conflict between supporters of central authorities and opposition groupings, whose core was the Islamic Renaissance Party (IRPT/ПИВ) and the Democratic Party of Tajikistan (ДПТ). Cited causes include economic hardship, an ecological crisis tied to cotton monoculture, clan rivalry between the north and south, demographic pressure from the 1960s–70s, the Taliban’s rise in neighbouring Afghanistan, Uzbek interference, and weakened Russian influence. The article names President Рахмон Набиев (Rahmon Nabiyev), elected 24 November 1991 with 56.92% of the vote; opposition figures Максуд Икромов (Maksud Ikromov) and Мирбобо Миррахимов (Mirbobo Mirrahimov, “Растохез”); interior minister Мамадаез Навджуванов (Mamadayez Navjuvanov); general Бахром Рахмонов (Bakhrom Rahmonov); and Эмомали Рахмон (Emomali Rahmon), elected president in 1999. The article reports key events: clashes on 5 May 1992 on the Yavan road; seizure of government buildings; shooting near the KNB (State Security Committee) building on 10 May 1992 killing 14; a five-hour battle for Vakhsh on 27 June with 35 killed; Nabiev’s forced resignation on 7 September 1992; opposition capture of Dushanbe in December 1992; the election of Emomali Rakhmonov as head of the Supreme Soviet; and eight rounds of UN-mediated talks between April 1994 and May 1997. The article cites official figures of over 60,000 dead (150,000 unofficial), around 200,000 displaced to CIS countries (mainly ethnic Russians, Germans, Jews, Ukrainians), and states Tajikistan became one of the world’s poorest countries. Sources cited within the article include the Tajik Interior Ministry and linked prior Sputnik reporting.