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search for identity and their struggle to become recognized by society and to get the status of the "adults."
N. Shuvalova. "Referativny zhurnal 'Vostokovedeniye i Afrikanistika'", Moscow,2011, No 4, pp. 56-61.
L. Vasilyev,
Senior scholar (IFE of RAS) PECULIARITIES OF STRUGGLE AGAINST TERRORISM IN CENTRAL ASIA UNDER CONTEMPORARY CONDITIONS
Extremism and separatism in the Central Asian region as well as concomitant terrorism represent the complicated and multi-aspect phenomena with political, economic, social, criminal and military components. This region is marked by operations of international terrorist organizations or their branches, radical Islamic fundamentalists and extremist groups, which causes anxiety of both the states and of the whole world community. It is important to take into account the fact that their emergence has the internal reasons, which are similar in various countries. At the same time, their activities are firmly connected with ideological trends out of the boundaries of the region, while the terrorist organizations of Central Asia maintain close contacts with the international criminal community, which keeps under control the trade of arms, narcotics and people.
One should take into account that separatism represents by itself a definite political movement, while extremism and terrorism are the means of achievement of political aims, which may be and are widely used both by separatists and representatives of other political trends. In other words, if separatism is the substance of definite political ideas, extremism and terrorism are the forms of their realization.
The main reasons of emergence of separatist movements in Central Asia are as follows.
The disintegration of former republics of the Soviet Union and their transformation in new independent states caused strengthening of nationalism and inter-ethnic tension with the threat of their further splitting up. This danger increased the weakness of the state power usually accompanying the initial period of their formation. The Russian scientists estimated that for the period of disintegration of the USSR 180 regions existed on its territory, which were marked by higher inter-ethnic tension, including the Middle Asian republics. It was explained particularly by existence in these states of a great number of complicated mixed ethnic enclaves. For instance, in Fergana valley they represent actually all Central Asian nationalities. The situation was aggravated by the fact that the administrative borders of these republics in Soviet time repeatedly and arbitrarily were changed, causing border problems, which have not been regulated finally up to the present time. It does not promote the ethnic good neighbor relations rousing the wish to re-unite with the main mass of the related people.
One of the reasons of separatism in Central Asia is the unevenness of social-economic development of various Central Asian states. For instance, the level of living in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan is essentially higher than in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. This circumstance explains the intention of national minorities, living in border regions of the less developed countries to re-unite with their ethnoses, living correspondingly in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
The present separatism in the states of Central Asia is accompanied by the struggle for territorial autonomy within each country, if the people of one its part dislike the dictate of representatives of the other part, which is the result of the clannish approach to formation of the authorities. This circumstance duplicated
by uneasy inter-state relations in the region, by the overpopulation of its many districts, by limitation of water resources and other problems prevent consolidation of stability of the region. The local separatists from time to time use terrorist methods of struggle, which under conditions of complicated inter-ethnic situation may result in grave consequences.
Out of all regions of Central Asia marked by the strongest separatist feelings the enclaves Sokh and Shakhimardan should be mentioned, which are situated on the territory of Kyrgyzstan with the population from 40 to 50 thousand people.
These enclaves are separated from the main territory of their states creating significant difficulties for the population. The Uzbek leadership takes attempts to conclude with the Kyrgyz colleagues the agreement on exchange of the territories in order to attach enclave Sokh by a wide belt of land to the "mainland" of Uzbekistan. Kyrgyzstan was proposed to get the southern part of Sokh. However, the Kyrgyz party considers such proposed agreement as a disadvantageous deal, since in this case two districts of the country - Leilek and Batken - almost completely would be cut off from the rest territory. The problem is aggravated by discovery of oil fields in Sokh. At present, both parties resorted to forceful seizure of specific oil fields. Uzbekistan having more powerful military forces uses this advantage and increases its military contingent on the border with Kyrgyzstan and in enclave Sokh.
For the last years, the rise of nationalist feelings in the Uzbek Diaspora also in other districts of Kyrgyzstan became quite evident. Its representatives used corruption of local authorities and try to obtain the key posts in some branches of economy, trade, agriculture and services, particularly in the governing bodies. The formed by them organizations advanced the demands of the obligatory quotas for Uzbeks in the
organs of authorities and of the post of governor of the Ash district and of the mayor of the city of Osh.
However, the main region of Central Asia characterized by activities of separatists is the Sinkiang-Uighur Autonomous Region (SUAR) of China. The conflict in this region is characterized not only by ethnic but also by religious features, since the Uighurs are Turkic Muslims. They wish to establish independent state Uighurstan, or Eastern Turkestan. This aspiration has deep historic roots. The Uighurs - represent one of the oldest nationalities in Central Asia. Although the Chinese settled in the native territory of Uighurs already in II century B.C., the territory was marked by formation of Jungar khanate populated mainly by Uighurs. And only for the period of 17571759 this territory was conquered by China, which named it "New Territory" in Chinese. The indigenous population periodically organized revolts against the Chinese dominance. After creation of the CPR the territory got autonomy and received the status of the autonomous region. But it did not solve completely the national question in the north-western part of the country, and the anti-Chinese feelings still exist there.
The disintegration of the USSR and the example of being blessed with independence and actual statehood by a number of peoples in Middle Asia contributed to the rise of nationalist feelings. On this wave the leaders of the movement proclaimed the intention to continue the struggle for separation from China "in any case and irrespective of victims".
The Islamic Movement of Eastern Turkestan is the main separatist organization of Uighurs, which enjoys the greatest support of representatives of this ethnos in the region. The World Uighur Kurultai, held in Istanbul in the end of 1996, proclaimed the armed struggle for its independence. The majority of participants expressed their intention
to support "Chechen option" of developments as the most efficient ones in solving Uighur problem with the final aim of creation of the state of Eastern Turkestan. At present, according to the official data of the CPR, the population of the SUAR exceeds 15 million people, including Muslim Turkic peoples in size of 9 millions, i.e. 60% (over 7 million Uighurs, 900 thousand Kazakhs and 130 thousand Kyrgyz). The aspirations of the movement's participants exceed the borders of the SUAR. They intend to include in the new state some regions of other states of the region, primarily of the states with a considerable Uighur Diaspora (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan).
The Islamic Movement of Eastern Turkestan has about 600 fighters trained in the camps of Islamists in Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan and Chechnya. The structure of the organization includes the religious-political center of political guidance, mobile bands, detachments of intelligence and counter-intelligence, as well as the organs in charge of propaganda and material-technical equipment. The leaders of the movement count outside the SUAR on a big Diaspora of Uighurs in the mentioned countries and pay attention to the other parts of the region. According to some data, the number of Uighurs settled outside the SUAR make over 200 thousand people. As a result of these activities, the movement succeeded not only to obtain financial support of the Uighur Diaspora in the states of Central Asia but also to create in these states of their own organizations (for instance, "Uighar Ozatshik Tashlakhty" in Kazakhstan) and to maintain close relations with them. Following these contacts the new organizations start to support the armed terrorist actions as the methods to achieve the formulated aims. In July 2009, in the city of Urumchi (the SUAR) the most extensive actions taken by Uighurs occurred, and 186 persons were killed and over 1000 people were wounded, while 1400 participants in these troubles were arrested. It should be stressed
that these events became the most extensive troubles in China after the events taken in the central square of Beijing in June 1989; the troubles were suppressed only by the regular troops of the army.
The Chinese authorities consider that the troubles were provoked by R. Kadir, a businesswoman, living in the USA, and the leader of the World Uighur Kurultai. Some representatives of this organization said that the troubles were caused by the factors, such as the mass resettlement of Chinese to the territory of Sinking, providing them with economic advantages, which deprive the indigenous population of the SUAR of a chance to find jobs, as well as limit the sphere of spread of the language and of religion of Uighurs. It should be taken into account that the growth of the number of Uighurs thanks to the higher birth rate surpasses the increase in population of Chinese. The mass immigration of Chinese in the SUAR reduces economic chances of the growing indigenous population, which contributes to dissemination of separatist and nationalist feelings in Uighur Diaspora.
The Islamic extremism is the second main reason of terrorist activities in the CAR. Its sources are first of all connected with rapid politicization of Islam in Central Asia. Islamic extremism in the CAR is not a radical trend in religious society, it is extremism under religious banner, and it pursues primarily political aims. For the last years, the trend to essential politicization of Islam in the Central Asian states transformed into a significant factor having impact on the growth of social-political tension in the region. To the author's mind, it is conditioned by several reasons.
Following the collapse of Communist ideology there appeared an ideological vacuum, which actually started to be filled with ideology by Islam.
The rapid rise took place in national consciousness of the peoples, which found their own statehood with simultaneous support by the authorities of the process of rebirth of Islamic traditions.
The difficulties in the social-economic sphere promoted the growth of protest movements, which used the slogans of Islam defining it as a society of social justice.
The destruction of legal norms and social guarantees existed in the Soviet period promoted establishment in mass consciousness of the Muslim population of positive attitude to Islam as an alternative law.
The prevailing existence of low level of religious enlightenment of the population, the lack of qualified theological training and education of the official Muslim clergy, the uncontrolled education of students in questioned religious education institutions abroad should be stressed.
The existence of multinational structure of the population is of significance in these countries, where Islam comes forward as a uniting and consolidating force and also as an instrument of regulation of relations among ethnoses.
The common aim of various Islamist organizations in Central Asia is as follows: to overthrow the secular authorities, to establish the state of caliphate on the territory of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan and the SUAR in China. They carry out not the religious but political activities, and these organizations differ greatly from the organizations, which are engaged in missionary activities, due to contradictions in understanding of religious problems. The list of the region's extremist organizations includes not one dozen of groups with almost similar methods and characterized with different rate and scale of activities. The most significant organizations are mentioned below.
The Party of Islamic Liberation (Khizb ut-Takhrir) was established in Palestine (1952) with the aim of overthrowing the secular governments in Muslim countries and installation there the Islamic form of governance with further creation of a united state. The party's branches function not only in some states in Near East, Central, South and South-East Asia but also in Europe - quite legally in most of them. The main forms of the party's activities are as follows: ideological propaganda, recruitment of supporters, purposeful work aimed at the split of society.
The governments of some states in Central Asia underestimate the extension of influence of this organization. Its leaders do not recognize the existing contemporary states and divided the whole world into regions and provinces ("vilayats"). The party's branches are built by principle of circles (separate for men and women) - small groups with rigid discipline in charge of propaganda of party ideas.
In their work directed to the population the extremists take into account psychological features of various strata of the population in each country; for instance, the extremist literature in Kyrgyzstan is disseminated in Russian, Kyrgyz and Uzbek languages. The books, brochures and leaflets are written in rather simple but not primitive language. The publications contain many citations of Koran and Sunna. The text is logically constructed in the way to indicate the reasons of hardships of the people and to show them the exit out of the shaped situation, which evidently consists in joining some or other extremist party or group.
The leadership of "Khizb ut-Takhrir" rests upon first of all three groups of citizens: the socially unprotected strata of the population (unemployed people, pensioners, students, fathers and mothers of large families); the representatives of power structures and officials of law enforcement bodies and of other power structures. According to some
data, for the last years the social base of the party, for instance in Kyrgyzstan increased from 2006 to 2008 from 5 thousand to 15 thousand members, while 20% of these people, except local residents (Kyrgyz and Uzbeks), consisted of Tatars, Russians, Kurds, Chechens and Turks-Meskhetins. The main and most active part of the organization consists of Uzbeks from Fergana valley. The members of the party pay greater attention to Islamic intellectuals and youth. The activists of the party concentrate their work in time of election campaigns on the support of individual candidates. At the same time, many candidates maintain contacts and cooperate with the party's organizations striving for victory at the elections. And what is more, some candidates to deputies, primarily supported by opposition, apply themselves for the party's support, including material assistance.
At the same time, the Party of Islamic Liberation makes the most of not only legitimate ways of activities. Its agitation materials contain appeals for change of the constitutional system of the countries, where it carries out its activities, which is a direct violation of these countries' laws. The arrests of the organization's members in various countries of the world revealed many cases of armed actions taken by them. According to information of secrets services, including the Russian services, the party maintains close contacts with international Islamist organizations, regarded as terrorist organizations by the world community. It should be said that some members of the party were trained in the camps of Islamic fighters.
As was stressed by the secret services of Uzbekistan, the Party of Islamic Liberation jointly with another extremist organization - the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan organized the extremist activities in the country. One of the local circles of "Khizb ut-Takhrir" -organization "Akromia" assumed responsibility for the events in Andijan in 2005.
The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (the Islamic Party of Turkestan) represents the second in terms of scale organization in Central Asia. The organization was founded in 1996 with the aim of overthrow of I. Karimov regime and for establishment on the territory of Uzbekistan and other Central Asian states of the World Islamic Caliphate with Sharia form of governance. The activities of the organization are directed and sponsored by foreign Islamic clerical centers, which urge towards creation in Uzbekistan and other region's states of the network of religious-extremist organizations. Their activities are utilized for destabilization of the internal political situation in the corresponding countries by means of terrorist actions, subversive acts, provocations on the borders, capture of hostages etc.
The political leader of IMU is T. Yuldashev, while D. Namangani is the head of the party's military formations. The number of the organization's fighters makes from 2000 to 5000 party members, and they are located mainly in Tajikistan and Afghanistan. The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan is one of the most active organizations in the region. It arranged two armed invasions to the territory of Uzbekistan via Kyrgyzstan of several hundred fighters in 1999 and 2000, as well as active participation in Andijan events in 2005.
In September 2006 T. Yuldashev disseminated audio-information that IMU members were struggling against the coalition forces in Afghanistan jointly with Taliban and Al-Qaeda. The leader of the fighters threatened the leaders of Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan with punishment for persecution of Muslims. Just at that time the secret services of these countries arranged the persecution of IMU fighters, who some months before the audio-information had attacked the customs border point and the Tajik border guards post in Fergana
valley. The fighters planned to seize arms and further to cross the border and enter the territory of Uzbekistan to commit terrorist acts.
For the last years, the number of members of IMU diminished. The organization failed to create in Uzbekistan a significant social basis. It became evident that the majority of the republic's population does not share the ideas of the movement.
Therefore the Uzbek fighters turned out to be in the international Islamic movement proclaiming global aims. T. Yuldashev proved the change of priorities in one of his appeals to Muslims and said: "if earlier the IMU struggled against mainly Islam Karimov regime, now the organization started the struggle against all enemies of Islam on the planet".
Thus, the main aim of Khizb ut-Takhrir and of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan contains in creation of Islamic Caliphate in Fergana valley with its further extension to the whole territory of Central Asia.
The organization of Islamic Jihad (Jamaat of Mojaheds) was established in March 2002 on the territory of Afghanistan after the split in the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. The most radical fighters of the IMU joined this organization and received support of functionaries of such publicized terrorist organization as Al-Qaeda. The organization proclaimed as its aim the overthrow of existing secular governments in Muslim countries and establishment of the states with Sharia form of governance, as well as realization of acts of sabotage in military objects of the countries-members of the anti-terrorist coalition carrying out its activities in Afghanistan. The majority of the organization's members were trained in camps of various international terrorist organizations, took part in military actions in the North Caucasus of the illegal armed formations. The organization assumed responsibility, for instance, for the explosions in Tashkent and Bukhara in March 2004. In October
2005, its leadership expressed its intension to form a special group for arrangement of terrorist acts on the territory of the whole former USSR.
In May 2009, the fighters of this group launched an attack against the block-post OVD/SNB in the city of Khanabad of the Andijan region of Uzbekistan, while in Andijan itself the terrorists committed criminal acts - not less than four suicidal explosions. The organization Islamic Jihad declared its responsibility for these actions. In June of the same year the fighters-participants of the attack against the Uzbek block-post were detected and liquidated by secret services of Kyrgyzstan. It was found out that the liquidated fighters had been trained in one of the fighters' camps on the territory of Pakistan.
The activities of extremist organizations may be characterized by certain features.
1. These organizations are marked by the multinational composition irrespective of the territory of their activities in one of the states in Central Asia. The composition of these organizations is as follows: side by side with ethnoses of Central Asia, they include representatives of Slavonic nationalities, peoples of the Caucasus, fighters from Pakistan and Afghanistan.
2. The activities of these organizations are supported by the international financing. For instance, the IMU gets financial support of Al-Qaeda and other extremist organizations of Near East, while Khizb ut-Takhrir keeps its representation offices in dozens countries of the world.
3. These organizations maintain close connections with organized criminality. All extremist organizations of Central Asia are engaged in narcotic business, arms trade and illegal migration etc. for the sake of getting financial means to carry pout their activities.
4. The extremist organizations are gradually involved in terrorist activities. Regretfully, it is possible to say that some Islamic extremist
organizations long ago passed from dissemination of religious ideas to terrorist means of carrying out actions of political struggle, which, to their mind, are more efficient and above all will much faster lead them to the achievement of the fixed aim.
"Mirovye derzhavy v Tsentralnoi Azii", M., 2011, pp. 183-195.
