DUSHANBE, September 17, 2013, Asia-Plus — Campaigning for Tajikistan”s presidential election has officially started and as of September 17, political parties and two national social organizations are reportedly allowed to forward their candidates for the presidency. Candidates reportedly have 25 days to complete registration requirements.
The Democratic Party of Tajikistan (DPT) held its pre-election congress on September 17 and DPT leader Saidjaffar Ismonov was nominated to run in the 2013 presidential election, which is scheduled for November 6.
Forty-five delegates voted for Ismonov’s candidacy, three candidates abstained from voting and one delegate voted against his candidacy.
The Democratic Party of Tajikistan can trace its origins back to the last days of the Soviet Union. Registered on June 21, 1991 and banned by the Supreme Court on June 21, 1993, the Democratic Party of Tajikistan was reregistered on December 3, 1999.
At the end of 1990s, two factions laid claim to the Democratic Party of Tajikistan: the Almaty platform led by Mahmadruzi Iskandarov and the Tehran platform run by Azam Afzali. The Tehran platform later transformed itself into the Taraqqiyot (Progress) Party.
On October 5, 2005, the Supreme Court sentenced DPT leader Mahmadruzi Iskandarov to 23 years in prison. The sentence followed his conviction on charges of terrorism, the embezzlement of state funds, and the illegal storage of weapons, though his supporters say he was jailed for political motives. The party split into two factions again and the Ministry of Justice recognized Masoud Sobirov as the legitimate leader of the Democratic Party of Tajikistan in October 2006.
On December 23, 2012, DPT held an extraordinary congress and Saidjaffar Ismonov, the leader of one of the DPT wings, was elected as chairman of the party.
The Democratic Party of Tajikistan now has 8,000 members.
