Tajikistan: The Trials of Independence

by Mohammad Reza Djalili, Frederic Grare, Shirin Akiner, etc.

Release Date: March, 1998

Edition: Hardcover

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The Mystery of Central Asia Unlocked

I first became aware of Tajikistan after receiving a new globe as a wedding gift. I spun it and my finger dropped on the tiny country. I remarked to my new wife, "I wonder what they do there?" Ever since, I have been facinated by this mysterious country half a world away. The series of essays contained within "Tajikistan: The Trials of Independence" provide an in-depth, and occassionally disconcerting, picture of the pains this country has encountered in its short independent life. It provides a detailed ethnographic study that underscores the deep divisions within the population; it chronicles the struggle to combat rebel opposition from within and drug trafficers from without; it also shows how foreign aid (and, primarily, Russian military protection) has prevented total collapse. I have never been to Tajikistan; I have no ties to the country. This book, however, has given me a new appreciation for its struggles.