THE SOCIAL-DEMOCRATIC PARTIES OF CENTRAL ASIA: DECLARATIONS, SPECIFICS,AND PROJECTS
Abstract
When writing about his mainly positive attitude toward the Industrial Revolution in England and French Utopian Socialism, Ahmad Donish (1827-1897), an outstanding Central Asian diplomat, never suspected that this would make him the region’s first social-democratic agitator. Later, socialist ideas “in bad Turkish translations” (as Donish’s pupils and followers asserted) were actively promoted in the Central Asian khanates. One can say that this ideology and the social-political movement of the Turkestan, Bukhara, and Khiva workers who readily embraced it are over 100 years old.
How has the movement changed over the last 100 years? How should we treat the rich social-democratic history in light of the collapse of the Soviet Union and “developed socialism?” How are the social-democratic parties of Central Asia developing in the context of the world financial crisis? What are their prospects? What can be said about their leaders (P. Zoiirov, Zh. Tuiakbai, G. Kaliev, and others)?
It is not my intention to answer all these questions; I shall concentrate on the key issues using the largest and influential social-democratic organizations as an example. I have in mind the People’s Democratic Party of Uzbekistan (leader—L. Guliamov, 310,000 members); the National Social-Democratic Party of Kazakhstan (NSDPK) (Zh. Tuiakbai, 140,000 members); the Social-Democratic Party of Uzbekistan (SDPU) Adolat (I. Saifnazarov, 90,000 members); the Kazakhstan Social-Democratic Party Auyl (G. Kaliev, 61,000 members); the Social-Democratic Party of Tajikistan (SDPT) (R. Zoiirov, 5,000 members); the Social-Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan (SDPK, A. Atambaev, 5,000 members), and some others.
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Many of the local parties agree with this (see, for example: “Za novy Kazakhstan! Predvybornaia programma OSDPK,” 18 July, 2007, available at [www.osdp.kz]); as well as bits and pieces from an interview by R. Zoiirov,leader of the Tajik Social-Democrats, quoted below).
The Socialist Party of Kazakhstan, the Orleu Pub-lic Movement of Kazakhstan, the Agrarian Labor Party of Kyrgyzstan, and certain others deserve special historical study.
See: O Estado de São Paulo, 4 April, 2007.
G. Yavlinsky, “The Road Map for Reform,” The Moscow Times, 17 June, 2005.
M. Kettle, “Socialism is Dead,” The Guardian, 27 October, 2004.
S. Milne, “Communism May Be Dead, but Clearly not Dead Enough,” The Guardian, 17 February, 2006.
R. Zoiirov, “Sotsial-demokraticheskaia partiia—novaia partiia dlia srednikh sloev Tajikistana,” 6 February, 2003,available at [www.varorud.org] (see also: R. Zoiirov, “I am not seeking high posts, I want to lead people,” 10 June, 2008,available at [www.ozodi.org], in Uzbek).
It should be said that the Preamble to the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan affirms commitment “to the ideals of democracy and social justice”; Art 14 says “the state shall function on the principles of social justice and legali-ty.” The Uzbek rulers were convinced from the very beginning that social justice was a dominant idea and declared that they intended to tie together effective economic development and social guarantees and social justice. They posed as the social guarantor of stability, social security, and social justice.
See: I.A. Karimov, “Uzbekistan po puti uglubleniia ekonomicheskikh reform. 1995,” available at [www.press-service.uz].
See: R. Zoiirov, “Sotsial-demokraticheskaia partiia—novaia partiia dlia srednikh sloev Tajikistana.”
“Za novy Kazakhstan! Predvybornaia programma OSDPK.”
S. Konovalov, “Predvybornye platformy partiy: opyt primeneniia metodiki diskursnogo analiza,” 6 November,2007, available at [www.kisi.kz.]
In 2007 the ILO, in which the social-democrats are fairly influential, adopted a Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization. In 2007 the World Day of Social Justice (20 February) was officially established. In his address on the occasion of the first Day of Social Justice (20 February, 2009), U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said: “For the United Nations, the pursuit of social justice for all is at the core of our global mission to promote development and hu-man dignity. Tragically, social justice still remains an elusive dream for an appallingly large portion of humanity. Ex-treme poverty, hunger, discrimination and denial of human rights continue to scar our moral landscape” (Message of U.N. secretary General Ban Ki-Moon on the Occasion of the World Day of Social Justice, 20 February, 2009, available at [www.un.org]).
N.A. Nazarbaev, Strategiia nezavisimosti, Atamura, Almaty, 2003, p. 88.
Program of the Social-Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan, endorsed by the 2nd Congress on 24 September, 1994,available at [www.kenesh.org].
I.A. Karimov, “Vystuplenie na 48-i sessii Generalnoi Assamblei OON,” 28 September, 1993, available at [www.press-service.uz].
I.A. Karimov, “Uzbekistan na poroge XXI veka: ugrozy bezopasnosti, usloviia i garantii progressa,” 1997, avail-able at [www.press-service.us].
Ibidem.
I.A. Karimov, “Ideologiia—eto ob’edinyayushchiy flag natsii, obshchestva, gosudarstva. Otvety na voprosy glav-nogo redaktora gazety Tafakkur, No. 2, 1992,” available at [www.press-service.uz].
I.A. Karimov, “My ubezhdeny v pravilnosti izbrannogo puti,” 1995, available at [www.press-service.uz].
I.A. Karimov, “Uzbekistan—sobstvennaia model perekhoda na rynochnye otnoshenia,” 1995, available at [www.press-service.uz].
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tatement on the Global Financial Crisis, 26 September, 2008,” available at [www.socialistinternational.org].
The Social-Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan speaks of the obvious support of the national minorities (see: Program of the Social-Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan, endorsed by the 2nd Congress on 24 September, 1994).
See: R. Zoiirov, “Sotsial-demokraticheskaia partiia—novaia partiia dlia srednikh sloev Tajikistana.”
“Kazakhstanskaia sotsial-demokraticheskaia partia ‘Auyl,’” 20 February, 2009, available at [www.akorda.ks].
See: Program of the Social-Democratic Party of Kyrgyzstan, endorsed by the 2nd Congress on 24 September, 1994.
I.A. Karimov, “Obespechit postupatelnoe i ustoichivoe razvitie strany—vazhneishaia nasha zadacha,” report at the Gala Meeting devoted to the 16th anniversary of the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan, available at [www.press-service.uz].
R. Zoiirov, “Sotsial-demokraticheskaia partiia—novaia partiia dlia srednikh sloev Tajikistana.”
See: E. Rakhmon, “Vystuplenie na rasshirennom zasedanii Pravitelstva RT, posviashchennom obsuzhdeniiu itogov sotsialno-ekonomicheskogo razvitiia strany v 2008 godu i opredeleniiu zadach na 2009 god (Dushanbe, 16 January, 2009),”available at [www.president.tj].
“Za novy Kazakhstan! Predvybornaia programma OSDPK.”
Ibidem.
See: I.A. Karimov, “Uzbekistan po puti uglubleniia ekonomicheskikh reform.”
It concentrated on accelerated modernization, technical and technological retooling of enterprises, wide introduc-tion of flexible technologies; support for exporter enterprises to maintain their competitiveness in the foreign markets; im-proving competitiveness of enterprises through a rigid economy, lowering production costs and hence the cost of products;cutting down on energy consumption by introducing an efficient energy-saving system; support of Uzbek producers by stim-ulating domestic demand.
On the influence of the social-democratic and socialist ideas on the political establishment of Kazakhstan see:
. Ismagambetov, “Razvitie kazakhskogo isteblishmenta v kontse XIX-seredine XX vekov,” Tsentralnaia Azia, No. 5 (11),1997, p. 7.
See: N.A. Nazarbaev, “Zakliuchitelnoe vystuplenie na rasshirennom zasedanii Biuro Politsoveta partii,” available at [www.akorda.kz]; “Glava gosudarstva, Predsedatel NDP ‘Nur Otan’ Nursultan Nazarbaev provel rasshirennoe zasedanie Biuro Politsoveta partii, posviashchennoe 10-letnemu iubileiu sozdaniia partii,” available at [www.akorda.kz].
N.A. Nazarbaev, Strategiia nezavisimosti, p. 14.
R. Zoiirov, “Sotsial-demokraticheskaia partiia—novaia partiia dlia srednikh sloev Tajikistana.”
See: F.-W. Steinmeir, “Evropeiskiy Pakt budushchego za trud (European Pact for the Future of Employment). Pakt antikrizisnykh mer v ramkakh Evropeiskogo Soiuza,” 21 January, 2009, available at [www.politoraz.ru]; H. Hail, “4 stolpa,na kotorykh osnovyvaetsia sotsial-demokraticheskaia ekonomicheskaia politika,” 25 January, 2009, available at [www.politoraz.ru].
[http://tonyblairoffice.org/2009/01/speech-by-tony-blair-at-the-ne.html].
See: “Socialist International Leaders Address Global Financial Crisis in Meeting at United Nations 26 September,2008. Statement on the Global Financial Crisis, 26 September, 2008.”
See: F.-W. Steinmeir, op. cit.
See: R. Zoiirov, “Sotsial-demokraticheskaia partiia—novaia partiia dlia srednikh sloev Tajikistana;” idem, “Ia—
ptimist, kak i vse chleny SDPT,” 31 December, 2007, available at [www.press-uz.info].
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