DUSHANBE, August 10, 2012, Asia-Plus – Tajik Diaspora in Kyrgyzstan has called on the people of Tajikistan to prevent the split of the country based on regional identity, the CA-News news agency reports.
A statement released by the Tajik Diaspora on August 10, in particular, says that “activists of the Diaspora, permanently residing in Kyrgyzstan, with great pain in their hearts have learned about the current military and political situation in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region of the Republic of Tajikistan.”
“We consider it necessary to nip in the bud any attempts to divide the Tajiks on the basis of regional identity because it may lead to separatism and the split of Tajikistan,” the statement noted.
The statement was signed by 50 persons, including Tajik-language poet Sharifjon Uchqurghoni, writer Saidazim Poulodi and others.
We will recall that the clashes began in Khorog, the capital of the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region on July 24 when government forces launched a military operation against what it called “militants” following the murder of the regional security chief Abdullo Nazarov on July 21.
The authorities have blamed Tolib Ayombekov, a former warlord from the civil war, for the murder of Abdullo Nazarov.
According to some media sources, fighting that occurred in Khorog last week has left at least 17 soldiers, 30 militants, and some 20 civilians dead.
The authorities are still demanding that four people it considers responsible for the assassination be handed over to face justice.
