DUSHANBE, April 15, 2015, Asia-Plus – Radio Liberty’s Tajik Service reports dozens of local civilian support staff at a Russian military base in Tajikistan protested on April 15, saying they have not received their wages in six months.
Bozorali Boltayev, who participated in the protest in front of the base in the southern town of Kulob, said protesters had spoken to the senior commander at the base “and he promised we will receive our unpaid wages.”
But he said local employees including cleaners, builders, and plumbers “have heard similar promises many times before” and have not received their salaries.
Igor Shcherbakov, a Russian official at the base, said recently that “the military base is not responsible for local employees because it pays to a third party, the Bit Service-Plus company, which is responsible for hiring and paying the local staff.”
Bit Service-Plus has said the Russian base has not made the relevant payment.
Tajikistan borders volatile Afghanistan and hosts about 7,000 troops, one of the largest Russian military contingents abroad.
