VZCZCXRO3585
RR RUEHLN RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHDBU #0355/01 0721117
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 131117Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY DUSHANBE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9783
INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 1404
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 1923
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 1942
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 2043
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL 2010
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 2019
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS 1187
RUEHDBU/AMEMBASSY DUSHANBE 1411

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DUSHANBE 000355 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KDEM TI
SUBJECT: TAJIKISTAN'S INDEPENDENT MEDIA PROCEEDS WITH CAUTION AFTER 
ELECTION 
 
DUSHANBE 00000355  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1.  (U)  SUMMARY:  Tajikistan's independent media is breathing 
slightly easier after the presidential election.  In a lunch 
hosted by EmbOffs March 1, eight independent journalists opened 
up about the media environment.  Most admitted that although the 
government has relaxed pressure on independent media, they are 
wary of the new-found freedom and the government continues to 
harass some journalists.  END SUMMARY: 
 
¶2. (U)  Independent journalists told EmbOffs that after the 
November 2006 presidential election, they have encountered less 
government pressure and have continued to push the boundaries by 
publishing articles critical of the government and government 
officials.  The government now permits Mukhtor Boqizoda, an 
independent newspaper editor, to publish his paper Nerui Sukhan. 
 Boqizoda was found guilty of stealing electricity in 2005 and 
given the unusual sentence of correctional labor, rather than a 
fine, as is customary for such "administrative" violations. 
Observers in the independent press feel the charge was a ruse to 
force Boqizoda to cease printing his paper. 
 
RADIO FREE EUROPE, NOT FREE TO OPERATE 
 
¶3.  (SBU)  Despite some media freedom concessions, the 
government still closely monitors the media.  One example of 
ongoing government pressure surrounds the controversial new 
urban plan.  In December 2006, Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty 
broadcast a story about Dushanbe's new urban plan which 
threatens to displace residents from the city center with 
minimal compensation.  According to Embassy sources one of Radio 
Free Europe/Radio Liberty's sources of information alleged 
corrupt parties are behind the urban planning.  After the 
report, the mayor's office sent Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty 
a letter stating that the story was one-sided and portrayed the 
city government in a negative light.  It demanded Radio Free 
Europe/Radio Liberty issue a public apology.  Radio Free 
Europe/Radio Liberty's source has since, in a written statement, 
denied ever making the comments to the correspondent.  Some 
believe the mayor's office pressured the source into signing the 
statement.  To date, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty has not 
issued a public apology and the government has not pursued legal 
action. 
 
¶4.  (SBU)  Incidents such as the recent pressure on Radio Free 
Europe/Radio Liberty remind journalists that the government is 
watchful of their reporting.  Journalists continue to exercise 
self-censorship.  One journalist said that despite an overall 
improvement in government attitude, he would not bother to 
publish his once shut-down paper and risk the government's 
wrath. 
 
NO DAILY PAPERS ON THE CORNER 
 
¶5.  (U)  Access to news remains a problem in Tajikistan.  The 
majority of towns and villages outside of the capital, receive a 
limited number of hours of electricity every day meaning that 
television and internet are rendered inaccessible most of the 
time.  Tajikistan does not have a daily newspaper and without 
regular television or internet access, most have to rely on 
once-a-week newspapers published every Thursday.  When asked why 
Tajikistan does not have a daily newspaper, the journalists 
offered many excuses for the absence of a daily newspaper, 
citing a lack of proper distribution channels as the main 
culprit.  According to the journalists, it is very difficult to 
distribute newspapers to Tajikistan's more rural areas.  Even 
within Dushanbe, there is no reliable distributor and often the 
companies pay children or old women to sell newspapers on a 
street corner.  In the past, the government has shut down some 
corner news kiosks citing the possibility of terrorists using 
them to place bombs.  In Kulyab, a district in southern 
Tajikistan of approximately 80,000 people, a single vendor sells 
300 issues of papers brought from Dushanbe every week on a table 
in the main center.  The independent journalists also point out 
that the existing publishing houses are under strict government 
control and would not be willing to print more than once a week. 
 Some journalists argue that publishing a daily newspaper in 
Tajikistan is not financially sustainable. 
 
 
DUSHANBE 00000355  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶6.  (SBU)  The journalists expressed skepticism about a daily 
newspaper and some were not in favor of a daily newspaper 
proposed by Asia-Plus, one of the leading news agencies in 
Tajikistan.  The journalists feared that Asia-Plus would then 
have a monopoly over news distribution and crush smaller 
independent newspapers such as theirs. 
 
¶7.  (U)  COMMENT:  The journalists' concerns about a powerful 
daily newspaper overshadowing smaller papers reflect both an 
underdeveloped professional ethic and lack of entrepreneurial 
spirit in Tajikistan.  Donor organizations can support both 
large news agencies and smaller independent papers to foster a 
more diverse media.  A strong daily newspaper, particularly one 
published in Tajik language, with a reliable and far-reaching 
distributor and appropriately positioned vendors, would increase 
access to information and open the door for future daily 
newspapers.  END COMMENT. 
JACOBSON