Emomali Rahmon, a Tajik politician, is not an easy figure, and the attitude of his compatriots and foreign colleagues towards him is very ambiguous. Many coups and rebellions fell to the share of this talented organizer. His transformations and reforms, even for his countrymen, sometimes seem rather strange and ineffective. There has been a lot of criticism of him lately. In order to better understand what drives this figure, you need to turn to his roots, family, to the time when the future president of Tajikistan was just taking his first steps in the political arena.
Family
What do we know about Emomali's family? The future president was born on October 5, 1952 in a large family. He became the third child. At that time, the Emomali family lived in the Kulyab region, in the village of Dangara, in the Tajik SSR. The boy was very proud of his father and older brother. Sharif Rakhmonov, Emomali's dad, was a participant in the GreatPatriotic war. He was awarded the Order of Glory 2nd and 3rd degrees. Unfortunately, the brother of the future Tajik president, Faiziddin Rakhmonov, died in the line of duty at the end of 1950 in the Lvov region, Ukraine. The politician's mother, Mairam Sharifova, died at the age of 94 in 2004. This was a great loss for our hero.
Early years
Our hero grew up and soon went to high school, which he successfully graduated from. The family did not have enough money. The young man did not have the opportunity to study further at that time. After graduating from school, Emomali Rahmon went to work at an oil plant in Kurgan-Tyube as an electrician.
After that, he served in the Pacific Fleet for three years, from 1971 to 1974. Then Emomali returned to the plant to his speci alty. The young man was very purposeful. He entered the Tajik State University in the correspondence department and successfully graduated from it later. There wasn't enough money. He took on any job, even managing to work hard as a salesman. From 1976 to 1988, Emomali worked first as a secretary of the board on a collective farm in the Kulyab region, then as chairman of the trade union committee here, then in party bodies. Soon, the purposeful young man becomes the director of a state farm in the Dangara region of the same region. In 1992, Emomali was elected to the post of deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the Tajik SSR.
Children
What does the president dream about in his spare time? That his children and grandchildren will have a happy life. And he, for his part, will do everything for this. Since childhoodour hero dreamed that he would have a very large family. Everything came true. He has nine children: two sons (Somon and Rustam) and seven daughters (Firuza, Rukhshona, Ozoda, Takhmina, Zarrin, Parvin and Farzon). Let's try to trace the fate of some of them:
• The eldest daughter of Emomali Rahmon, Firuza, became the wife of the son of Amonullo Hukumov, head of the Tajik railway.
• Son Rustam, born in 1987, graduated from the Tajik National University, was a student of MGIMO courses. In his career, everything turned out as well as possible, probably not without the help of an influential father. At first, he headed the Business Support Department at the State Committee, then worked as the head of the Anti-Smuggling Department. A little later, he took over as president of the Football Federation of Tajikistan (once he himself played football for the Istiklol club). In 2009, Rustam married the daughter of an influential manager of a large food production in the city of Dushanbe. This wedding took place on a grand scale. Emomali Rahmon spared no expense for this. It was officially announced that the celebration was held within the framework of the presidential bill "On streamlining celebrations, traditions and rituals." In fact, it turned out that the rules were violated. The film from the video of the wedding fell into the hands of the opposition, who hurried to publish it, providing appropriate comments discrediting Emomali.
• The second daughter named Ozoda. She also received a good education. She graduated from the Tajik National State University,acquiring a degree in law. Then she studied at the University of Maryland and Georgetown University, which is located in Washington. After that, Ozoda worked for some time at the Tajik embassy in the United States. In 2009, she was appointed Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of her home state. It is easy to guess under whose patronage she quickly and rapidly makes a career. Her husband was Jamoliddin Nuraliyev, Deputy Minister of Finance of Tajikistan.
• Another daughter of the President - Parvina - married the son of the Chairman of the State Committee for State Property Management Ashraf Gulov. Her second choice was Sherali Gulov, Minister of Energy and Industry.
• Daughter Zarrin works as an announcer on one of the main TV channels in Tajikistan. Her husband was Siyovush Zukhurov, the son of the head of the communications service, the champion of international boxing competitions.
Civil war in Tajikistan
How did Emomali Rahmon come to power? A significant role in this was played by the civil war that unfolded in the state after the collapse of the USSR. After Tajikistan gained independence, Rahmon Nabiev became its head. However, the opposition represented by the Islamists, inspired by the fall of the former regime, strengthened and attempted to overthrow it. Under pressure from these forces, Nabiev was forced to leave the political arena.
Power in Tajikistan passed into the hands of the opposition. Only groups led by Sangak Safarov and Faizali Saidov could resist her. This is where the story of Emomali begins. Rakhmonovjoined the Safarov association. Unrest in the country resulted in a civil war. In 1992, Emomali became the chairman of the Kulyab regional executive committee, and then the chairman of the Supreme Council. The so-called "Kulyabians" became the dominant force in Tajikistan. They were supported by Russia and Uzbekistan, which were against the possible Islamization within the country. On November 6, 1994, presidential elections and a referendum on a new constitution were held in the state. As a result of voting, Emomali Rakhmonov won a crushing victory for his opponents. The opposition said that the newly-made president of Tajikistan falsified the election results. Shortly thereafter, Mahmud Khudoyberdiyev, commander of the 1st motorized rifle brigade, mutinied in the city of Kurgan-Tyube and then in Tursunzade. He demanded the resignation of many high-ranking officials of the country. Emomali had to give in a little to the rebels and remove some of the leaders of the highest power from their posts.
Fight the opposition
Emomali Rahmon reshuffles the government. But the riots don't end. There are many dissatisfied with the new president of Tajikistan. Several assassination attempts are made on him. The first happened on April 30, 1997 in the city of Khujand. Unknown people threw a grenade at the president's motorcade. In the same year, a rebellion was raised in the city, which spread beyond its borders. Emomali suppressed it, and then began to get rid of his opponents. How? Through arrests. Many oppositionists were detained even outside of Tajikistan, extradited to their homeland. There they were awaited by a prison and long-term sentences. November 8, 2001 onThe President was assassinated for the second time. The politician was not injured in any of them.
Strengthening in power
In 2003, a referendum was held in Tajikistan, as a result of which amendments were to be made to the Constitution. The main amendment to the law concerned the tenure of the president in office. Previously, it was 4 years. Now the president of Tajikistan had the right to lead the country for 7 years. The majority of voters supported Emomali, which allowed him to rule the state for another 14 years (2 terms) since 2006. Also, changes were made to the Constitution of the country regarding the age of the president. Restrictions on this issue have been lifted.
Search for ways out of the crisis and optimization of government spending
Even before the collapse of the Soviet Union, Tajikistan was considered one of the poorest republics. The civil war, which began in the country immediately after the collapse of the USSR, caused it enormous damage, which is estimated by economists at $7 billion. She claimed 60-150 thousand human lives. To this day, the main problem of the state is the insecurity of citizens. According to the World Bank, in 1999 up to 83% of Tajik citizens were below the poverty line. In order to overcome this problem, in 2002 the Government developed and approved the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper. As a result of its implementation, the indicator of material security of the population has increased markedly. The President of Tajikistan followed other steps taken to reduce the level ofpoverty in the country. Thus, Emomali Rahmon staked on the hydropower resources of the state, having completed the construction of the largest hydroelectric power station in Central Asia - Rogun. Russia and Uzbekistan also participated in the project. However, these measures did not have the desired effect on the country's economy. But this had a negative impact on relations with the project participants. The economy of Tajikistan to this day is very dependent on the money earned by citizens outside the country.
Controversial transformations in the way of life of fellow citizens
The President of Tajikistan, trying to get the country out of a severe economic crisis, has carried out several reforms that can hardly be called effective and efficient. Even among his fellow citizens, they cause bewilderment. So, when visiting one of the schools in 2006, the politician noticed that one of the teachers had golden crowns. After that, all citizens of the state were ordered to get rid of such "luxury". Moreover, the leader of the country banned the holding of magnificent solemn ceremonies and holidays in order to save the savings of compatriots. The schools no longer held the last bells and holidays of the primer. It was also forbidden to hold magnificent weddings and funerals. Bachelor parties, bachelorette parties, bridesmaids were also canceled. Anyone who dared to break the law was supposed to pay a fine. It is worth recognizing that all these innovations were not obliged to be carried out by the family of Emomali Rahmon. The photo of the magnificent wedding of the president's son Rustam was on the front pages of all local newspapers. The leader of the country also had other transformations concerning the way of life of fellow citizens. Yes, in 2007he ordered to issue a decree on the change of Tajik surnames. He also changed his. Now it sounded not "Rahmonov", but "Rahmon". It was forbidden for registry offices to register children whose last names ended in "-ov" and "-ev".
Relations with Islam Karimov
How the enmity between the two presidents began is now difficult to restore. It seems that Emomali Rahmon and Islom Karimov have been disliking each other for a long time. Some journalists claim that the Tajik president, at a meeting devoted to negotiations on the construction of the Rogun hydroelectric power station, spoke sharply against his Uzbek counterpart. According to Rahmon himself, he not only argued and cursed with Karimov, but even got into a fight several times.
Criticism of the President
“Emomali Rahmon and his family are involved in corruption” - these words were not repeated in Tajikistan, perhaps only by the lazy ones. If we trace how the relatives of the president receive high ranks and posts, then there is no doubt about this statement. Moreover, the involvement of the leader of this country in large-scale corruption is also evidenced by the fact that US diplomatic cables were leaked from Wikileaks. So, in one of the documents from 2010 from the American embassy in Tajikistan, it is said that the president's relatives, headed by him, are in charge of big business, protecting their personal interests to the detriment of the country's economy. Most of the company's income ends up in hidden offshore firms, bypassing the state treasury.
Awards
The President of Tajikistan has manyorders, medals and titles. Among them:
• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Three Stars.
• Order of Merit, 1st class..
• Order "Hero of the Republic of Tajikistan".
• Peacemaker Ruby Star.
• United Nations Peace Prize.
This is just a small list of awards that Emomali Rahmon has. 2014 was a difficult year for him. He seeks to strengthen relations with his foreign counterparts. Regular meetings and discussions are held with V. Putin, A. Lukashenko and other leaders of foreign states.
The Tajik president is a very difficult controversial figure in the world political arena. This is evidenced by his biography. Emomali Rahmon is an outstanding leader despite various rumors about his rule. And it's hard not to agree with this.
