I’ve been posting on The Registan as a vacation replacement for Nathan. Some of the posts I wrote:

- Rumsfeld in Bishkek and a less-friendly mood in Uzbekistan
- Bride-kidnapping in Kyrgyzstan
- A call for comments on Kyrgyzstan’s secondary education
- Failed state Georgia?

Finally, there is a new Thinking-East edition online. Go check out the following articles:

- The impact of professional exchange programs to the US for students from Azerbaijan by Marianna and Katy
- Austin Kilroy: “The new Georgia: looking to the future, being pursued by the past”
- Olesya Ryzhova’s critical account of failed Western engagement in Uzbekistan
- Bruno de Cordier: “Seeing demons where there are none” on wrong perceptions of Islam in Central Asia
- Anjelika Mamytova sees no women’s participation in Kyrgyz politics
- Florence Hodous compares agricultural policies in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan

Marianna commenced her postings on the upcoming Azeri elections slated for November 2005. Her reports will be published weekly here: http://azerbaijan.youngeurasia.net/

This is part of a new Thinking-East strategy. We’ll divide our activities and create smaller area-bound subdivisions, one of which will be edited by me and other people (the Caucasus and Central Asia section).

This website will then be called www.neweurasia.net – so keep your eyes peeled for something fresh and new.

Update: Marianna posted the second bit.

My professor at my alma-ater SOAS, Dr. Shirin Akiner, wrote a report on what happened in Andijon back in May. She became quite a controversial figure for doing so. Her 50-pages report has been published, and is available here. Some of her statements can be read in short here (from an Uzbek TV-show). RIA Novosti picked up the story here. While she is widely cited as an ardent supporter of the Uzbek government’s position, she herself says:

. … the interview has been widely reported under the headline ‘Academic supports Karimov’. This is the cry of the ideologue: in other words, ‘you are either with us or against us – and if the latter, your views cannot be taken seriously’. This is the very antithesis of intellectual inquiry.

via Registan

Many contest her views, including a fellow German reporter, Marcus Bensmann. He testified during a Senator’s hearing which Laurence from The Registan attended. First off, this is Laurence’s opinion on the validity of Bensmann’s account:

Marcus Bensmann, a German reporter who had been in Andijan, looked like a Peter Sellars character, wearing funny glasses and hair that resembled a wig. He spoke with a strong German accent. In response to a question from Congressman Pitt, he attacked British scholar Shirin Akiner’s report on the Andijan event. But the only error he mentioned sounded rather minor. Akiner apparently claimed shooting began at 6:20, while Bernsmann said he was in the square when shooting began at 5:30. He condemned Akiner for touring with local officials, but remained oblivious to the irony that he said he had attended the Andijon demonstration at the invitation of some of the organizers. (Either Bensmann or Templer mentioned that someone told them that if Westerners came, they would feel safe, making them, essentially voluntary human shields.)

The most striking statement from Bensmann was that he attended the earlier trials of the Akromists, and had never before been to a trial of Islamists where they did not mention Allah. Yet, these defendants pointed to the Uzbek constitution, the words of President Karimov, and saying they were just businessmen, he said. But Bensmann didn’t try to explain where this new legal strategy had come from–ICG consultants perhaps? He also admitted that when his stringer was arrested, he just went to the Uzbek police and asked for him to be released–which they did. Bensmann then sent him to another country, he said. He said he knew IMU and Chechen gunmen, they were big and strong but the Andijon gunmen were skinny, so did not come from anywhere else. Given Bensmann’s own claims he is on friendly terms with terrorists, he might not want to anger sources by revealing things they wish to keep secret. Again, an unreliable witness.

(my emphasis)

I got in touch with that Marcus Bensmann to tell him about my (very positive) relationship with Dr. Akiner and that I am generally very much in favour of her analytical observations. As there are many conflicting accounts of what has happened, I was very interested his opinion. One should bear in mind that he is a direct witness, he stood on the square when everything sparked off. Here some of the most striking points:

- The square has been full of people. The AP photo taken by Efrim on that day is real.

- Most people on the square came from Andijon; women, children, young and old — they were not armed.

- The square is much more spacious than described by Dr. Akiner. Her accounts of the dimensions are a joke, according to Mr. Bensmann.

- People were on the square voluntarily, they weren’t forced to be there.

- There were no warnings, e.g. megaphones or shots in the air, to drive the people away from the square.

- Around 5:10 p.m., armoured cars drove past the square and the soldiers opened fire on the people standing on the square. Before, there was no attack on security forces from within the mass of people nor from the occupied Hokimat.

- Mr. Bensmann did not see any fighters from Chechnya or Afghanistan.

- According to Mr. Bensmann, Dr. Akiner forged the time of the attack and puts it to 6.30 p.m. However, it is easy to prove her wrong, as e.g. with the journalist’s telephone bill.

- Dr. Akiner writes that she has been led around through Andijon by the deputy of the local hokim and believes that she could lead fearless interviews. That is, according to Mr. Bensmann, absurd.

Mr. Bensmann is very interested, why Dr. Akiner writes such reports. He is reminded of a visit to a Soviet Gulag by Maxim Gorki and his subsequent report: “In June, 1929 Gorky visited Solovki (cleaned up for this occasion) and wrote a positive article about the Gulag camp that already gained ill fame in the West.”

I won’t comment on that. I am just very much looking forward to being in class with Dr. Akiner next year – when we’ll surely debate this topic as well.

IMHO, the truth probably lies somewhere in between these two conflicting accounts, with some bits better reflected by Mr. Bensmann (who is an actual witness). As Nathan has pointed out before, one very important thing I miss in Dr. Akiner’s reports is a call for more transparency on the Uzbek authorities’ side.

My trip back home went smooth and was unexpectedly sudden. I can seriously recommend booking flights from Central Asia, airlines seem to have a different pricing policy from these places.

Helping friends move offices is a great way to get back into some sort of routine, some hard physical labour feels great after two weeks of serious inactivity in Almaty.

Meanwhile, Thinking-East is making some great progress, we’ll be changing the way we appear quite profoundly very soon.

Well, doing it completely on your own has its intrinsic risks. I am beginning to understand what a challenge it can be to jump in the cool water without a real contigency plan. My intended work placement (internship) over the summer at the local big bank Halyk (or HSBK as it called itself) is not going to work out. The person initially responsible for me is now willing to write me a certificate if I want to. Why work if you can get a certificate? The difference seems to be elusive…

So, after checking alternatives, I am pretty sure that I will go home for some weeks before I hit the road as a proper backpacker later in August. There are more interesting things to do in Berlin for the moment than in Almaty. Thinking-East is undergoing major restauration, the grass in the countryside needs to get cut, you name it. I give up – I am going home, with a tear in my eye amidst the disappointment. I might go the coming Tuesday, but the earlier the better (making the extra flight expense appear a bit more logical).

So, to anyone who expected real-life insights into Kazakhstan -check back here in a month. Then, me and Sven will do a massive trip from Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan to Turkmenistan and finally Azerbaijan. After that, Marko and I will do some proper hiking – zigzagging the Tien Shan. In the meanwhile, check back with Thinking-East.Net, there will be some new food for thought within the next days.

Of course I might change my mind. If nothing has worked out the way I wanted to, it would be no surprise if my intermezzo plans were obsolete by tomorrow.

…and I wasn’t there. Well, kinda sad – but nevertheless, it would have been a thorough tour-de-force getting there and staying only for a couple of days. A friend of mine, working for an international watchdog organisation, spent the day in the South (I am not sure which exact place, but most probably somewhere near Sary-Tash close to the Chinese border).

Apart from that, I am taking it as Emiliana Torrini has taken it – and make the best of my blurry situation. I have given me yet another week to figure out what to do – a couple of opportunities exist. If everything fails, I will pack my things and travel, maybe here, maybe there..

Anyways, first of all I’ll do all I can to get to know Almaty from a working-perspective. I am moving out Aidar’s house on Thursday and will move in a shabby hotel right in the centre. Long live the challenge.

Still not through the paperwork. My third visit to OVIR (the immigration police) didn’t bring about anything new. The people still stubbornly insist to see the invitation letter, which of course is still with the agency in Berlin that did all my visa work. I doubt that it actually exists. Fortunately, they gave me my passport back, which means that I can go through a professional agency now. The only problem: I am late now, due to the cumbersome process I went through the week and have to pay some extra $40… The guys in the agency were not amused, but will try their best. That’s a bureaucracy-nightmare. Had my forefathers in Prussia only not invented such crap – the world would be a much nicer place.

I could read the news of what happened in London pretty much real time. By the minute the first blasts were striking, I was sitting in an internet cafe in Almaty – reading the German Der Spiegel. First, people spoke of electricity blackouts, then the gruesome truth became ever more obvious.

Me and the family were eating dinner later that night and the father spoke a prayer in Kazakh, mourning the dad. Today is Friday, and the mosque in Almaty will have a special prayer for those killed in the blasts. I am still trying to get through to my friends. Unfortunately, the bus number 30 that got halved did so just about 300 meters of my alma ater, SOAS.

Registration hasn’t fully worked out yet. I really should have read my German guide book before. It says something like: ‘You should register yourself with the Kazakh immigration police within the first five days of your stay. All major travel agencies can do this for you, it should cost between 20 and 25 Dollars. Only in case you’re interested in convening a social study, go do it alone. It will take sweat, time, and might lead to complications.’

Well, the second day of the registration marathon was similar to the first one. Aidar almost got in a fight with a rude Kazakh guy, who was simply using his elbows a bit too much. Then, however, it was our turn. Our paperwork was complete except for the registration letter of the company that appears as the inviting body on my visa. Of course, the Visa agency in Berlin kept silent about this fact – but hell, it will work eventually. If the Kazakh authorities want to kick my ass – they have plenty of opportunity tomorrow anyway. I have an appointment at 6 o’clock. Cross your fingers.

Still, I am a bit uncertain regarding my internship. There have been numerous Email between me and my contact in London – but the bank people haven’t called me yet. I hope that by Monday I will know more. Everything is going fairly slow this time – but I remain patient. Clocks are ticking a bit differently over here – so why stress out? Unfortunately, I had to cancel my Kyrgyzstan trip this weekend, despite an invitation to join a friend of mine observing the elections in the Wild South. The people at the immigration police will retain my passport as long as they want to, and there would not be any time left obtaining a Kyrgyz visa.

Had I only read the sentence printed on my immigration card properly. In order to stay in Kazakhstan for longer than 3 days, one needs to register with the local authorities. Usually, this is done by a travel agency, who send their staff in the building and arrange everything for the disinformed foreigner. Aidar and me, however, did it the hardcore way – we went in there alone.

The entrance of the building, located some meters away from the street, already brimmed with people. Inside, there was no better picture. Bureaucracy meets Central Asian temper – what a mess. After finding the right queue to stand in, we had to wait and, most importantly, defend our position against other, more experienced people. Use your elbows, bro!

After getting it right, the police officer only gave us a small, brownish document to fill in; which we did in the front of a huge crowd of people eagerly trying to get to chat with the mighty person behind the glass. What a clamour. After having completed the paperwork, the officer only told us to get a damn copy of Aidar’s house registration, making sure that the place I claim to live in actually exists. My head turns red.

Then, the cashier. Is there a difference between the fee for a single-entry and multiple-entry visa? We didn’t know, and the lady behind the glasswall did either. She only acknowledged Aidar’s continuous questions by totally loosing the plot. She started to scream and literally threw the receipt through the little slip. Everyone’s yelling.

So, we need to go there again. Tomorrow. Early! I don’t know what they will invent for us by then, maybe I need to get my birth certificate flown in from home. Well, at least I didn’t need to get a Kazakh passport. Aidar tells that this takes up to four days of worse trouble. Hell, had I only gone to an agency. But money doesn’t buy you experience, does it?

My work situation is still pretty blurry. No word from London yet about my contacts in the local bank. I will wait a couple of days before I’ll change my plans. We’ll see. Kenesh just invited me to observe the Kyrgyz elections with him in the Wild South, where the ‘Tulip Revolution’ sparked off. Can a trip there be more challenging than getting yourself registered in leafy Almaty, Kazakhstan? Only god knows.