DUSHANBE, February 20 2015, Asia-Plus — The Committee for TV and Radio-broadcasting under the Government of Tajikistan has reportedly refused to broadcast agitation video materials of the Islamic Revival Party (IRP).
“The Committee for TV and Radio-broadcasting has refused to broadcast our three agitation video materials called “Answers to Questions,” “What We Know about the Islamic Revival Party of Tajikistan” and “Elections,” Mahmoudjon Fayzrahmonov, a spokesman for the IRP, told Asia-Plus in an interview.
According to him, the Committee justified its refusal to broadcast IRP’s video materials by saying that only studios having official operating licenses have the right to produce audio and video materials.
“The Committee noted in its letter that the studio that produced IRP’s video materials is unknown, and therefore, it refused to broadcast them,” Fayzrahmonov said, noting that the video materials had been produced by the IRP election campaign staff.
It is to be noted that television is the main source of information in Tajikistan, including for election coverage. Only the four state-owned TV channels broadcast countrywide.
Founded in October 1990, the Islamic Revival Party of Tajikistan is the only Islamic party registered in CIS Central Asia. The IRP was registered on December 4, 1991. It was banned by the Supreme Court in June 1993 and legalized in August 1999. Its official newspaper is
Najot
(Salvation). According to some source, the IRP now has some 50,000 members. Women reportedly constitute more than 51 percent of the Islamic Revival Party members.
