DUSHANBE, May 3, 2016, Asia-Plus – In a statement released on April 29, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs expresses concern about the Tajik authorities’ decision to demolish the building of the Theater of Russian Drama named after Vladimir Mayakovsky in Dushanbe and move the theater to the outskirts of Dushanbe.
The statement, in particular, notes that the building of the Vladimir Mayakovsky Theater of Russian Drama is a historical monument and the founding of the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic was declared at this theater in 1929.
“We hope that Dushanbe authorities will take necessary measures to ensure continuation of fruitful work of troupe of the only Russian theater in Dushanbe,” the statement said.
We will recall that Tajik authorities are seeking to move the Vladimir Mayakovsky Theater of Russian Drama as part of ambitious municipal redevelopment plan that includes the construction of modern buildings. Plans to demolish some of the most popular landmarks in Tajikistan’s capital have sparked outrage. In a desperate bid to halt the destruction, hundreds of city residents in October last year signed an online petition addressed to President Emomali Rahmon and Dushanbe Mayor Mahmadsaid Ubaidulloyev, who is also speaker of parliament.
Meanwhile the Ministry of Culture (MoC) says that only four sites in Dushanbe are considered to be of historical and architectural significance. “These sites include the building of the Opera and Ballet Theater, the building of the Parliament, the Ismoili Somoni Memorial Complex (1999), and the Ancient Settlement of Dushanbe (3rd Century BC),” Sherali Khojayev, chief specialist with the MoC Department for Protection of Historical and Cultural Heritage, told Asia-Plus in an interview.
